Unfortunately, Arsenal was unable to return to winning ways against Liverpool, losing 2-0 on Sunday evening in an FA Cup third-round match. Coming into that game, the Gunners had gone three games without a win, and after that loss, they have now gone four games without a win. In fact we have only won one of our last 7 games, which is unacceptable after our early season form.
If you’re wondering why Arsenal lost, here are my impressions of what were the causes of our collapse this time:
Kai Havertz Starting As A False 9
Many Gooners, upon his arrival, never wanted Havertz to play striker after seeing him fail in that role at Chelsea. Fortunately, Arteta signed him for a different role: to play him as a playmaker, a role he has been excellent at in recent times.
Versus Liverpool on Sunday, with Gabriel Jesus out injured, Mikel Arteta chose to play Havertz as a false 9 instead of starting Eddie Nketiah. The German international squandered about two good chances in the first half to give Arsenal the lead. The Arsenal No. 29 isn’t clinical, and playing him as a false 9, when Nketiah was on the bench, was a foolish decision.
Uninspiring Substitutions
Arsenal’s substitutions made little difference; if you watched the game, you’d see a significant difference in how Klopp’s substitutions changed the game. Diogo Jota, Ryan Gravenberch, Conor Bradley, and Bobby Clark’s introductions for Liverpool had a big impact on the game.
Arteta’s substitute calls were questionable once more. Eddie Nketiah should have come on earlier, given that all Arsenal couldn’t do in the first half was score. In the 62nd minute, Arteta should have brought on Nketiah instead of Gabriel Martinelli since there was no need to enhance the tempo of the game, which was fine as Arsenal only needed a striker to bury the chances. It was too late by the time Nketiah, Smith Rowe, and Leandro Trossard were introduced because Liverpool had already grabbed the lead thanks to Klopp’s impactful substitutions.
Not Rushing For A Transfer Move For A Striker (even if it is on loan)
You’d be perplexed if you saw the first half of the loss to Liverpool but didn’t watch the second and saw the game conclude 2-0, with the Reds winning it. In the first half, Arsenal dominated. They could have won the game in the first 45 minutes if they had had a clinical striker.
A week into the January transfer window, they have yet to make a move for a striker. The need for a striker was obvious just a few weeks into the season, and Arteta and Edu must move quickly to get one. If Nketiah cannot be trusted to play, I believe he should be traded to free up funds for a new striker signing. That is becoming more obvious every week that goes by….
Darren N
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Some fans saying we played well against Liverpool, I laugh. If you observed that game same problems from previous matches were still evident. Our wingers we doubled on, especially Martinelli when he came on. We were still being wasteful as we’ve been lately. The only reason why it looked like we played well was because Liverpool didn’t sit back. Watch the boring play resume when we meet the next Low block, then those who think we played well will see the same problems being more pronounced.
I must admit i was gutted when we got knocked out of FA already but upon relaxing my mind and giving the game a thought based on what i saw, and i noticed the lads have still got “it”, if you know what i mean, i couldn’t help but laugh like villain. Trust the team COYG!
Not only can we not score but have also conceded two goals in each of our last three games. Yes our subs were too late coming on and there is not a fan or pro pundit who doesn’t agree we need a prolific striker if we are to be serious contenders for silverware. We have had a staggering 61 shots on goal over the last three games resulting in just a single goal. Jesus is not a striker although his work rate is great there is no end result. Nketiah is not the answer for a team like Arsenal, he misses too many chances, hits the woodwork more times than score , and too often caught offside. He’s not a kid anymore and should be doing better, compare him to Vlahovic who was tearing up the Italian league at 20 years old. That is who we should be targeting in my mind.
Whilst I agree with the first two points, the third being ridiculous given the transfer window has only been open for 8 days, and we clearly need to sell first, why isn’t the the most obvious reason for our loss mentioned?
We created 4 clear cut opportunities, compared to Liverpool’s 1, and we missed all of them – story of our season.
It’s not to say MA hasn’t made mistakes this season, but there is definitely a bizarre narrative developing where the players are almost blameless, and it’s all the manager’s fault. Is it he that is consistently missing easy chances to score?
Our 7 main forwards have struggled all season to convert easy chances, who’s scoring ability has nose dived recently, and this barely gets mentioned?
I will repeat the point I have made several times: we don’t have a good bench! The quality of the substations a coach can make depends on the quality of the bench.
That’s why I can’t wait for the likes to Elneny, Cedric, Partey, et al to leave; those have just been occupying space for nothing!
Yesterday, i suggest Liverpool had a far weaker bench than us. Klopp still managed to work his magic. I suggest its the coach that changes games at this level. Our bench was ok yesterday but wasn’t used correctly or at the right time.
You are correct. But what did Klopp do, he brought on two accademy players who played well. You can not tell me that Arsenal do not have accademy player as good or better that those two. So if the bench, according to some, is that bad why does Arteta not play them.
Agree
Klopp win that game for Liverpool yesterday. Arteta didn’t win it for Arsenal.
I agree, particularly in terms of attacking options, Liverpool clearly have a stronger bench than we have.
This is one of the reasons Klopp is able to make key changes late in games.
Are you real. Liverpools bench was threadbare. He biught on TWO academy players.
No body is talking how bad saka has been for the past five or six games, it’s a shame Mikel arteta still persist with him. It is high time we delve into the market to get a right winger. olise in crystal palace is ready for big things, imagine if he was in a top top team like arsenal the boy would definitely do wonders
I still think that the midfield of partey and Xhaka made our forwards to play better and that if we can play Partey and rice, we would get better performances from our forwards.
That said we should make recruitment for midfield of someone capable of replacing Partey; then sign a full back.
I also think Patino can do better with Rice than all the midfieldrs we are using. Arteta would have given Smith Rowe a chance yesterday earlier. Look at when Klopp made his replacements and they paid off.
To recruit a striker, we should wait and get the right profile in the summer.
To claim that Havertz has been excellent as a playmaker in recent weeks is delusional. His sluggishness, lack of creativity and movement on the ball is one major reason why we’re where we are right now.
We needed a like for like replacement for Xhaka or something close to that to keep up with our performance last season.
He has one assist all season. He is our top scorer with 5 goals, one a gift penalty. But we are slating Martinelli, Saka, Nketiah and Odergaard for their return in goals (most of those have scored as many or one less) so we cant turn round and say that Haverz return is acceptable. He is getting assist but he isnt giving them back. And i have to say, you are right, he hasn’t been “excellent” at all.
Oh and just to put it in context. Saka who is not firing, has 9 goals and 11 assists in his last 25 games. Not all prem games but he is still producing. Just not at the level we had hoped.
Eddie nketiah is trash. His goal stats show it. The problem is Arsenal have two back up center forwards. In the case of Jesus, he is a back up forward on a decent team. In the case of Nketiah, he is a back up forward on a mid table side.. Neither of them are reliable goal scorers. As long as Arsenal continues to rely on them, the poor results will continue