Underwhelming Arsenal drop two points against Tottenham

Arsenal started the North London Derby with gusto, led by Gabriel Jesus and Eddie Nketiah, who posed a significant threat to Spurs in the initial moments. Their efforts bore fruit when Cristian Romero inadvertently netted an own goal, granting Arsenal an early lead.

Nonetheless, Tottenham, displaying fine football, managed to equalise through Son Heung-min, matching Arsenal’s momentum. With the score levelled at one-all, the match hung in the balance, with Arsenal exerting relentless pressure, seeking to replicate their outstanding performance against PSV earlier in the week.

Tottenham, however, demonstrated resilience, withstanding Arsenal’s attacks and remaining competitive. Arsenal’s supporters in the stands had high expectations, even though Spurs had started the season well. Unfortunately, Arsenal struggled to fulfil their early promise in the game.

Their path to regain the lead involved a penalty converted by Bukayo Saka, but this advantage lasted for just a minute, as Son promptly equalised for Spurs once more following an error from Jorginho. Mikel Arteta had to make do without Declan Rice in the second half, as the high-profile signing appeared to have suffered an injury, leaving a noticeable void in the Gunners’ lineup.

In the end, Tottenham earned a well-deserved point, as Arteta’s team selection and tactical adjustments failed to yield the desired impact. The responsibility for the outcome ultimately rested with Arteta himself.

Just Arsenal Opinion

That was rather underwhelming and a huge disappointment, so many players failed to show up and Arteta has some questions to answer, he got it wrong when it mattered.

There are still players within this team that should not be there, no point in picking on any one individual or making a scapegoat of anyone but if this is what our title challenge is going to be like then forget it.

The worst thing was that Tottenham left the Emirates on a high and that should never ever ever happen.

Tags Arsenal v Tottenham

156 Comments

  1. Fatal mistake from Jorginho ruined the day. We could’ve won the game, but let’s just hope we’ll win next time at Spuds’ turf

    1. Arsenal are getting worse and worse with each passing day. We can blame Jorghino but it was very poor performance by everyone involved. Lack of cohesion, lack direction, lack of urgency, too many mistakes, passing errors, and zero efficiency in final third. Our side change and long ball distribution is pathetic and keeper ball distribution was worst of all, couldn’t find his teammate through out the game. Most of our tactic was based on set pieces and corners or penalty but we seem to have little creativity from open play. Our players just seems quite overrated to become second most valuable team in the world. Soon they will be brought down to earth if improvements are not made instantly.

      1. @VZ, may be you didn’t see it coming but we are not worst at all. In fact I commend the team for playing out draw against a fully fit and complete spurs team. You guys are making mistakes or bias in your assessing, most of our key players are injured and we still keep Spurs at bait and drew them.
        Do you think they will escape defeat if we have a fully fit squad( even with their fully fit team), just imagine Son and Madison are injured in their team, what do you think will happen to them?
        With our injuries, we still had a better chance of scoring, imagine Nketia and Jesus converted their clear chances, what do you think will happen?
        We played without Martinelli, Party, Trossard, Timber and Rice got injured just when 2nd half started, still we managed to hold them.
        But some of you want result at all time no matter the condition.
        Weldon Gunners, you really tried and make me proud…. COYG…

        1. I am not concerned about the point lost as I haven’t mentioned anywhere in my comment regarding points. But the way we played was concerning. Not a single time in the game Arsenal looked like scoring from open play, nor they created big chances. You might think hovering around opponent half is good enough, but not for me. I assess based on big chance created, dangerous play in final third, ball recovery by pressing opponent and fluidity of the game. If we stick to basics then may be sometime we drop points but we can get result most of the time. Finally, if any team is challenging for title they can’t make any excuses about injuries and if Arsenal can’t cope with injuries then what was summer outlay of 240 mil for? Six matches gone and do you really think Arsenal have been convincing in any of those?

    2. Gai, fatal mistake from Jorginho and selection error from the gaffer himself. Nketiah offered little at the wings. In the absence of Pathey, who says Jorginho and Rice couldn’t play together? This isn’t how to challenge MCity.

  2. very disappointed. Not fatal by any means but really wanted a win against Spuds and to keep pace with City. Granted Derbys are usually tough but was hoping we’d win at home. i think there were some poor substitutions too. anyway COYG

    1. Its shame that our team despite playing together for so long still don’t seem to understand each other. Spurs on the other hand just been assembled by new coach and already seem more cohesive unit than us, and were far more comfortable with the ball than us. Yes they also made mistakes in their defensive third but we didn’t have quality player to punish them. This season it seem our flow has been held by something and players are not able to run freely or open up and provide fluidity. It’s difficult to figure out what is holding our fluidity but hope the one who matters can figure it out and bring our team back to best.

  3. We still have not figured the number 8 position, Viera and Havartz offer little attacking wise, and do not give us the intensity Xhaka gave us. And with mediocre Eddie, our first team is not good enough.

      1. Gai, Yet Viera and Havertz prefered to ESR. The gaffer got a few things wrong. Jorginho’s error notwithstanding the team seem to be lacking the quality of Pathey. Urgency really missing in aarsenal play.

  4. Saka seems to be developing a bit of arrogance, I hope it only seemed to me like that, spurs the better team today luckily we managed a draw

  5. It was an exciting game atleast. Somethings were happening…. I liked Saka and Zinchenko apart from Raya. The defenders also played reasonably well but failed to close down Son for the critical first goal. Midfield as commented in the match post itself seemed dead and maybe MA got the subs wrong. Bit of a rough stretch of games coming up lets see if we can get maximum points out of it.
    COYG!

  6. Spurs the better team. We were great first 20 mins but as soon as jesus missed his sitter, our tactic of trying to close them of at the back, slowly diminished and we had no other ideas. I thought Viera looked lost and Raya looked decidedly dodgy. Not a good game.

    1. Reggie, to be fair Raya made a great save to provent a Spurs goal. Viera was up against quality players in midfield and he struggled again with physically.
      Also to balance out Jesus’ miss, Richarlison also missed an easy chance at the end for the win to Spurs.

  7. Arsenal simply cannot win the league, because like every other season, we are plagued with injuries.

    Martinelli was a loss, but I didn’t feel bad as Trossard comes in. He’s then injured as well, so now it’s the third choice option at LW. We then lose Rice, and Saka looked injured at the end as well. Plus long-term injuries to Partey and Timber. Unbelievable!

    I remember Emery’s first season being destroyed by an injury crisis as well.

    The Rice one is the final straw. If he’s out for a while then we’re in big trouble.

        1. Wise up HH. ALL humans are hypocrites. You seem surprised that such and such a famous name is a hypocrite Guess what old chum; WE ARE ALL HYPOCRITES. YOU AND I INCLUDED.
          It is a perfectly normal part of our shared common human condition and none of us can escape it.

          You either observe it and honestly admit it ,or you foolishly deny its evident existence in ALLOF US!

          1. I don’t deny it at all. I have hypocrisy and bias like everyone but the difference between me and someone like thirdman is amount of it and most importantly, honesty.

            I will never give a free pass to Arteta on injuries when it’s something every Arsenal manager have suffered. As I have said before, we seem to have this problem more than others over many years.

            I am honest when I criticize Arteta for signing average players in my eyes for very high fees and put them on enormous wages, something which was one of Wenger’s undoing. Why does he repeat same mistakes?

            We all have some hypocrisy and bias in us but very few of us are honest in our support and judgement and all areas of life.

            1. Well, HH, its good to see you are a realist then. I am bound to ask, that as you ands I AGREE all of us are hypocrites, who exactly among us feels they have a right to decide precisely how much hypocrisy we should have and should not have? Not I for just one!

              I content myself with pointing out that evident human truth thast so mant wish to deny- thus proving my point(if you THINK about it)- and feel unqualified to decide about others , exactly what DEGREE of hypocrisy “I will allow” them to have. I accept that all human havew faults and that we are designed that way from birth, by thrt very nature of being human and not machines.

              Which is WHY, unlike so many others. I DO NOT ACCUSE REFS OF BEING CHEATS.

              It would be super rank hypocrisy at a level I would rather not have, to admit my own and all our own natural fans bias, while unfairly expecting refs, ie fellow humans , to be perfect. Wouldn’t it!
              Once we allow ourselves to think PAST stage one level thinking, on ANY of life conundrums, it is revealing how much we can learn about humans and about mere football too.

              1. By being aware of our own hypocrisy and biases shouldn’t that make us capable of avoiding them unlike those who are unaware like someone in this thread?

                Being aware and admitting it is not a free pass or justification.

                1. HH, No, it cannot make us lose our natural hypocrisy , simply by being aware of its existence. Its not a questionj of a free pass or justificatuion, as we cannot change what we intrinsically ARE,however rmuch we may wish to.
                  IF ONLY IT WERE THAT SIMPLE!

                  We also cannot actually change our eyes or skin colour, simply by wishing it. We ARE hypocrites and it comes with the territory of being human.

                  Cheer up though, as it makes us of interest to others and makes us normal humans. We are not designed to be perfect and I have never met a single perfect person anywhere and , frankly, would not wish to, even were it possible(which it is not). I HAVE MET COUNTLESS DELIGHTFUL FOLK THOUGH, AND IN MANY COUNTRIES.
                  Never be ashamed to be a human, warts and all. And never pretend to be other than what you are. Percentage wise, very few humans are actually bad people, the vast majority of us being essentially good people . Be glad of that.

          2. I don’t disagree, but changing your opinion shouldn’t necessarily mean hypocrisy. Not saying that is the case in this instance. What irks me is the lacking of emotional intelligence that seems to go haywire after games like todays

            1. You are correct to say that changing ones opinion, honestly and having a new genuinely held opinion,( but not pretending ) has NOTHING WHATEVER to do with hypocrisy.
              Two entirely different concepts. Football fans sites are not known for featuring much emotional intelligence, as I think you do realise.

        2. MESSAGE FOR ADMIN

          I remember you saying there would be a suspension or something of that nature, well as you can for the umpteen time HH has
          attacked me with the same b.s. lies. As I said before, like a dog with a bone.

          It’s him constantly jumping on almost any comment I leave, not the other way around.

          Does he finally get suspended now? Because he’s had the warnings.

          1. Well you are a liar on two fronts.

            Firstly, I have already answered you on the injury front, secondly, YOU never apologised for saying that I put MA before the club.

            ADMIN, where is the ban for HH for constantly spreading disinformation?

    1. Rice hasn’t missed more than 2 matches a season for 5 years straight. If he’s proper injured, the fault is definitely at Arsenal.

        1. HH I see little connection between facilities and injury levels .

          Unless and until facilities(ie non human things) decide how often a player keeps playing and under what pressure, than I see no role whatever for facilities, meaning high level medical advice, medical practitioners and top quality training pitches, gyms, etc etc, in preventing injuries.
          Facilities can and do TREAT injuries, but they do not prevent them happening.
          People make decisions, but facilities are, in the main, inanimate!

          1. Agree with you on this.
            I think we tend to put too much pressure on the guy who plays our ‘number 6’ role in the almost single pivot 4-3-3 formation.
            Hence, a reason why maybe a Partey gets injured so often.
            A double pivot of 4-2-3-1 may help reduce the pressure and work load on a single individual in my own thinking.
            I think a 4-2-3-1 suits us more the moment, if you consider we lack a Xhaka-like player in the team at the moment.

      1. DaJuhi, in a contact sport involving a lot of running, thus injuries will occur. Whether Arsenal has more injuries of greater seriousness is a subject for detailed analysis. In comparison, Spurs lost Perisic to a long term ACL injury in a training incident, not even a game.

  8. Spuds played and pressed well, but this was a poor Arsenal display. I struggle to name one player who played well, and Arteta blew this one for me with his selections, set-up and substitutions. Well done to the crowd for keeping going because this display did not merit it. Why did the team look so tired? Is MA overtraining them – hence multiple injuries?
    Raya – one good save, some iffy ones and awful distribution. Can no longer be labelled “Mr Calm”. Nervous performance.
    G Jesus – ineffective so why not moved centrally in place of…
    Nketiah – totally out of his depth, but kept on by MA for 90 mins.
    Zinchenko – played too deep so zero effect going forward
    Jorginho – overwhelmed, slow, poor. Cannot play single pivot
    Saka – started well but faded badly later
    Vieira – “the Straw Man” today.
    Ode – pressed well but otherwise never saw the ball. The list goes on.
    Poor Arteta decisions from start to finish.
    These games happen, but this was disappointing.

      1. From that rude comment I assume you thought we were terrific, GB? Let’s read the rest of the comments and see whose point of view best reflects fans’ views. If they match yours I will apologise, but your insult was unnecessary. Yes, I did watch the game.

    1. I think you’re bang on the money Guy!

      We didn’t acquit ourselves well today. Individually or collectively. My only mitigation would be being a bit tired from the midweek European game. However, I can’t account for some really poor individual performances. Jorginho…..was he still wearing his Chelsea shirt underneath? Lol. Is Arteta becoming the new Ranieri (Tinkerman) ?

    2. The team as a whole was pretty average today, but if you didn’t think Saliba has a great game l wonder what he would have to do to impress you.

      1. Mr guy is one of those who will say everything was rubbish whenever we don’t win.
        We gave away a couple of poor goals especially the second one but overall we probably shaded it.
        There were a couple of players whose play was not good enough. Several others were not great but did not actually play poorly. Saliba was clearly one of those who played pretty well.
        Unfortunately, it is quite uncommon to see balanced assessments on fans sites such as this.

        1. Ohh and you are probably one of those who thinks others have weird thoughts just because they give a negative thought about the game and always come here to praise the team and the gaffer. No?

          See what I did there? I made a assumption based on the few posts I have seen from you since last season. Its lack of variety prompted me to do so. In reality my assumption might be completely wrong (it probably is). In the same way I count myself one of the lucky ones who has seen a wide variety of posts from Guy, and generally the positive posts outweigh the negative ones.

          Its all opinion anyway so isnt it a bit harsh to pass judgement on someone you dont possibly know?

          1. Thanks Sid (the cheque is in the post)!
            True I am more a glass half full than half empty fan – I was wildly complimentary on Wednesday, probably way OTT! We are moving in the right direction, and injuries permitting, the wheels are not coming off. I’m an Arteta apostle but if I see a bad performance, even with injuries and 3 games in a week, I say what I see, which was him once again him tinkering and moving players away from their best position. Except for the final score, football comments are subjective and fans are entitled to different and evolving views, especially immediately after games. Had we played well but lost my comments would have been more positive.

            1. David has a massive problem with reality and lives in a perfect dream world of total positive exaggeration. With any view other that Rose specs not allowed and frowned upon. He has a cheek pulling people up for being negative when he is the polar opposite.

    3. Saka used to be fullback and yet his laziness not to track Maddison let him free for assist. Meanwhile what Jorginho was thinking for so long until Maddison close him down from his own half and snatched the ball. Most of our shots were flying in the sky. Arteta can let limping Saka play 90 mins but can’t substitute his for fresh leg. In champions league also when we were already 3-0 up he let out important players to play for 70-80 mins. Fatigueness was evident in today’s game and unlike mancity we lack technical ability and expertise to overcome those fatigueness and play efficiently. In summary we are lagged behind mancity by quite a distance and that seems difficult to digest truth. Maybe last yr result has created an unrealistic expectations from us to view ourselves as title contenders which look far from reality by recent performances.

    4. guy, dont you think Spurs deserve some credit, or do we all expect every opposition to be beaten before the game begins, as occurred during “the Invincibles”?

      1. That was my opening comment, Ozzie – they played pretty well but I think we made them look better then they are! In mitigation we had injuries and lost any chance of competing in midfield when Rice came off. 3 games in a week also, but for me Arteta blew it. Jesus as CF and Havertz at 8 with Vieira or Nelson wide left as they played centrally through our press too easily. Eddie is not a good presser and Vieira is blown over by the wind but Jesus and Havertz would have turned over the ball more often. For me a bad day for Arteta. Only one game, but the injuries and Arteta’s eccentricities worry me!

  9. Havertz for me is a real candidate for the worst signing in twenty years. Offers absolutely nothing when he starts or when he comes on as a substitute.
    £1,980, 000 for each game he has “played” and nothing.
    I would say that Willian was a better signing than Havertz. At least he realised he was terrible and had the decency to cancel his contract.
    Havertz will just take the money and claim he is not worried about playing badly. Worst signing ever.

      1. I was expecting you to say this and you didn’t disappoint. Ariel duel that didn’t yield anything..

        What about the DIAGONAL passes and the INVERTED, EXVERTED etc.

        1. This seems to be standard now. Either he is bad or we compliment him for not doing anything particularly wrong. He’s so far from our standards

        2. Havertz did not play poorly but is being picked on because of a) the transfer fee and his salary and b) he came from Chelsea.

          1. Seven games, no goals, no assists. Yes for 65 mil, i expect a LOT more. Silly silly statement. Plus i dont care where he came from but now you have said it. He is performing exactly how he performed at Chelsea. No more no less. Just what we paid for.

            1. On this actually, I agree, we should be getting more for £65million. That does not mean he should be written off at this stage of the season. There are still many games to play.

    1. Me2, Do you have personal vendetta against Kai Havertz? What wrong did he do today? Is he the one who gave away the ball that resulted into second goal? I believe Havertz martialed the midfield well today. Infact the culprit was Joginho who gave away the ball that caused the second goal. Joginho was too light weight for Spurs midfielders.
      The injuries could undermine our season. I hope we can find a solution to this unpleasant situation. Already we have the following players out with injuries: Jurrien Timber, Gabriel Martinelli,, Thomas Partey and Trossard. If you add on Leandro Trossard that would simply be ridiculous!

      1. that’s the biggest compliment anyone can give you. “he wasn’t that bad”, “he wasn’t the worst player”. Remember we are supposed to be challenging Man City when you defend below average players. And remember City also have injuries and are in fact missing their most important player and are still running the league. And I don’t wanna hear about money either when Arsenal has been spending tons too.

  10. Good point in the end.
    We need a proper CF.
    spurs were a tough nut to crack and our players will be counting their bruises tomorrow, especially Saka.
    I thought Vieira had a decent game, also Havertz when he came on won a few challenges, both in the air and on the ground, both contrary to some of the comments during the game.
    As I said, we need a proper CF, Toney hopefully incoming.

  11. Nketiah wasn’t good

    Ødegaard was off

    Jesus was completely wasted on the wing

    Raya wasn’t as excellent as some had hoped

    Saliba is dangling on the edge of world class

    Smith Rowe shouldn’t be coming in with 2 mins left

    And what the hell was Jorginho thinking? Oh my Partey

    1. Great analysis dgr8xt.
      Smith Rowe coming on with 2 minutes to go was the last straw for me really. Saka and Odengard were clearly very tired at the 80 minute mark. Jesus was wasted out wide really. I get that he’s recuperating from injury, but nelson or smith rowe should have started the game on the left. My half time change would have been Nketiah out for Nelson and Jesus moves centrally. Jorginho was surprisingly very ponderous on the ball and nearly caused two goals…. Rust? The injuries are concerning at this stage of the season. I was also shocked to also see Havertz one of the tallest guys in the team putting in crosses for Nketiah. If we’re gonna do route one, might as well do it properly by sticking him up there and flinging in crosses. The entire game stank of mismanagement. I rate MA a lot, but he didn’t cover himself in glory today

  12. The problem is Arteta, I know some people won’t like this, but let’s face it , Artetas signing were not good enough. Arteta signed Havertz with £65ml while Madison was available for about £25ml. Just name one thing that Havertz does well, letting xshaka leave and bringing useless Havertz is a disaster. It’s not paying big money that brings success it’s being Smart and sporting the right player. Arteta has been awful in the market. Again arsenal players seems to be over pampered, look at the chances we had in the first half, none of them was taken, but xspurds just had half chances and utilized them.

    1. Havertz is a COMPLETE WASTE OF FUNDS. 😟😕
      He CAN’T Shoot, CAN’T Tackle, CAN’T Give Killer pass and is very LIGHTWEIGHT.😒
      I wonder how he get a Free pass from some Arsenal Fans who CASTIGATED and LAMPOONED the likes of Theo Walcott, Gervihno, Pepe,etc.🙁😏

  13. A TERRIBLE game we were lucky to Draw.😒
    The Game simply showed Thomas Partey is the ENGINE ROOM of this Arsenal team.
    Our Midfield was in Shambles without him.
    Declan Rice doesn’t come near him in Class or Midfield abilities.😕
    Also, Lost Faith in Gabriel Jesus today. He CAN’T just be a Number 9 despite wearing the number.😏🙁
    Too Wasteful and can’t Concentrate in Matches.
    Wishing we could get a Copy Gakpo in January.
    We need a Tall, Centerforward!🙂

    1. Hi Vinny – mostly agree with a couple of caveats:
      Partey is superb but only plays a third of every season.
      Jesus wasn’t great but nobody was, and he was played as a LW not a CF – Nketiah was the CF.
      Rumours that we have a pre-contract with Toney for January abound…

  14. Lots of fairly bright but unimportant fan opinions.

    To my mind, what is MOST IMPORTANT and is now plain to see , is that AFC are NOT going to win this seasons Prem.
    City are well clear, both in points and in quality from ALL the rest.

    We are all, playing for second place behind City, the certain four in a row Prem champs to be. To argue differently is to refuse to face reality!

    We WILL achieve top four but not the title. Our squad has too many holes STILL.

    1. Spot on.

      Except some unfortunate this gs happen to MAN City like injury woes to key players or terrible lost of forms.

      They are on their way to lifting the epl fourth time in a row

    2. Not just holes in the squad, but holes from management this year.

      Tactically we have regressed from last year, slower play, questionable selections and positioning.

      Think it fair to ask “why not strengthen last year’s play and approach” rather than this futile attempt to reinvent the wheel.

      Klopp sticks to his system and has a PL title and CL title to show for it.

      Pep makes a minor tweak to his tactics; traditional striker broght in, or Stones playing as DM.

      Don’t see the benefit of Arteta’s overhaul early this year. Partey as a RB, Havertz out of position as a CM, why the unnecessary reinvention.

      I agree that we are out of the title fight, we will have our hands full finishing in the top 4.

      1. If we cant compete with city this year it has to be down to Edu and Arteta. No manager in Arsenals history has had more money thrown at it. Second most expensive squad in Europe. Still time but im not impressed at the “improvements” so far.

    3. And the problem comes from how poorly we went about this past transfer window. We are wasting some of Saka and Martinelli’s years when we don’t put an elite forward in this team. I’ve said all I’ve needed to say about another certain player being signed so I won’t beat a dead horse.

    4. Fair enough. If we are not competing to win the league, I am afraid my interest has diminished significantly. CALL ME PLASTIC FAN, I DON’T CARE. I am fed up of pussyfooting around top 4 as compensation. The only other thing that will interest me is WINNING the champions league. Apart from Tottenham, we are now the only top six club who have never won it. Chelsea twice recently, Man City last year. We just seem to have no ambition at this club. For Arteta fans, I have a suspicion we will win no significant trophy with him.in charge. This is the last season of grace he should get. Anything worse than last season he should really a go.

      1. Why publicly announce that you are simply a fairweather plastic fan? Are you not embarrassed to admit that?

        I actually feel really sorry for plastic fans who attach themselves to a club as you do but have not the slightest real idea what being a REAL fans entails!

        As you yourself say, if we finish below second this year you wil be off.
        I cannot see ANY real fans missing you and the club will surely not be at all concerned either Still I expect you will find something else to occupy your time and energy!

        1. Embarrassed. You should be more embarrassed supporting repeated underachievement by this club.

          Frankly, it is because of emotional and unreasonable fans like yourself that this club has achieved nothing.

          There is nothing shameful to say I support Arsenal but will not lose sleep if the club or manager fail to do the right thing and keep coming up short.

          I really pity you Jon fox.

          1. Jay, I suggest you stop trying to dig yourself out of the hole your honest but disappointing to read admission (above) puts you in. I agree it is not SHAMEFUL, by just not being a true fan. Some might , incorrectly, think it is but I DO NOT THINK THAT AT ALL

            Countless billions around the globe dont even like football or sport, let alone AFC. They are not shameful either and nor are you. iT WOULD ONLY BE SHAMEFUL if you claimd to be a true fan whiole not being one But you freely admitted not being a true fan, so no shame applies, even if embarrasment will do, as you have wriiten on an Arsenal site as a fan, even though simply a plastic one.

            Being embarrassed need not make one feel shameful. I prefer to use words in their correct and specific meaning, as I have done here.
            Embarrassment is a common and natural human condition that we all have at times . It is not a crime either, so pray dont disturb yourself.

      2. Jay, you follow a club through thick and thin, good times and bad you stick. Many of us who have followed Arsenal for a long time (61 years in my case) have seen worse teams than this one and remain true.

  15. Nobody can convince me that Ramsdale should have been dropped for a loan player especially after Raya’s performance today. Raya’s performance wasn’t bad but it wasn’t special either.
    I am sick and tired of Chelsea reject’s weakening our squad.
    We were poor today and dreading the Man City game in a few weeks time.

    1. Totally agree. It comes down to Arteta thinking he’s so clever yet again. Nobody can give a good reason Ramsdale has been dropped and nobody can say we look better with Raya. He does the same thing Ramsdale does. It’s a redundant signing and all he’s really done is just piss off a big character, and important character in the squad. Besides for Rice and Timber I am just rolling my eyes of the other signings because they’re so pretentious from a manager who only has 4 years experience and is trying to show everyone how clever he is already. He’s done so much right, so why does he insist on these weird signings.

  16. We need to tell the truth. We have some players who are not good enough. Nketiah, Havertz and Viera are not up to EPL winning standard. Just reality, nothing personal. £65 mill for Havertz when we could have got Maddison for £40 mill. We must be totally bloody mad.

      1. 👍Reggie, £65 million would have gone a long way towards bring in a class #9. Couldn’t see the rationale of Havertz then and my opinion has not changed.

  17. I had commented elsewhere before the match that it would be a tough game for Arsenal given that Spurs had a whole week to prepare for it. The injuries to key players didn’t help matters.
    Gabriel Jesus had two glorious chances in the first half which weren’t taken. Would have been a different game if he did.
    Can’t really blame Arteta for the team he selected; I think that was his best available.
    But what I will continue to question is what he saw in
    Kai Havertz that he spent so much money on the player. I haven’t seen anything in his game: no pace, no strength, no…..

  18. Today we met the toughest opposition yet, and we appeared light weight.
    Our team looked softer than Liverpool, Spurs and ofcourse ManCity.
    We always look vulnerable during counter attacks. Arteta has to fix that if we hope to get somewhere near the top. Yes, Arsenal needs steel.
    It was obvious today with out Rice.

    1. Tony, many on here denigrated Spurs’ midfield and overrated Arsenal’s midfield, particularly without Thomas Partey.

  19. The manager decided two Chelsea rejects were the answer and the manager let’s us fall back and give space to the opposition when we are ahead. The spuds were average at best and any title contender would have put them to the sword. Todays game was a disaster and even though its a long road until the end of the season we are just going to be in a battle to get CL football and nothing more.

    1. Reddb10, Spurs versus Liverpool will be another test of their short term progress under Postecoglou. Who will seriously contend with Manchester City for the title?

  20. Losing Rice at halftime (and without Partey on the bench) was pivotal in the second half. Georginho made a mess of thing early on (never really trusted his ability as a stand alone 6).
    Overall, it was a reality check for us. Maybe we should stop being overtly confidence.

  21. For team selection, I can’t blame Arteta. But for subs, he got it totally wrong this time.

    Obviously, Havertz has nothing to offer as a midfielder, Esr should have been the right sub.

    Also, Nketiah should have been the sub instead of Jesus, but it seems Jesus is yet to be 💯 match fit.

    Raya over Ramsdale, I’m sorry is a no no. He’s a top goalie but not better than Ramsdale. He’s perfect for 2nd choice.

    I’m not happy with the result because we should have sealed it from 1st half but it’s ok. Let’s move on and unto the next. COYG

    1. Havertz has nothing to offer in midfield, upfront or from the bench.
      It’s such a shame it was Timber injured. He would have offered Arsenal so much more.

  22. I can only blame arteta, really poor substitution havert and jojhinho as your midfielder nketia for 90min and jesus off

  23. No steel in the team ok. Nketiah was woeful, had to make sure to check if he was still on the pitch. We handed spuds the two goals, Saka poor to let cross for first and as for jorghino!

    The gulf with city now appears bigger than last year

    1. I blame White more than Saka really for that goal. Dude was sat on his heels in the six yard box apparently forgetting that he’s the right back. He should have been closer to Saka and would have mopped up the ball after Saka’s tackle.

      1. I totally agree with you Ceettree,It was White job to stop Maddison on that position.Saka let him to run freely on the line and made the backpas.

  24. Our attacks was not fast and brutal. We usually wait and allow our opponents to regroup and organize before striking.

    Arsenal attackers can make a poor defense look decent.

  25. We were simply not good enough on the day. Yes, not having Martinelli and Trossard is a big loss, but we still should have done better.

  26. I can see fans are already throwing their toys. I must admit i’m dissapointed as well given the fact that i expected us to drop points post int’l break but to mikel’s former side Everton but unfortunately it was against spuds who are the least teams i’d rather we drop points against. anyways the points have been dropped to continue our planned slow start to the season No time to feel sorry for ourselves, gotta get our acts up and keep the faith. Next stop Brentford,COYG!!!

  27. Declan Rice never missed a game for West Ham. Mr Reliable for the Hammers and never injured.
    5.5 games into the season for Arsenal he is quickly picking up the habits of the rest of the squad and is due for an extended spell on the sidelines.
    Still – he might be able to pick up a good bargain for a few weeks on the beach now that the holiday season is about to close.
    Arsenal have little hope of anything this season…

    1. I think Partey’s return is imminent. just in time for the City game plus Mo is back along with well Jorginho, we are good to go against Brentford,Lens and Bournemouth.

    2. You appear to know more about Rice’s injury than the AFC medical team have yet decided!

      How do you come to the conclusion you do without any ACTUAL knowledge whatsoever of the severity, or otherwise, of his calf injury?

      I HAVE NOTICED WHAT A CONFIRMED PESSIMIST YOU CONSTANTLY ARE.

  28. Tottenham were rubbish at the back in the first half, City would have put 3 in the back of the net. What coaching school you need to attend to see that Nketiah is very poor, and it’s my oppinion for the last couple of years.
    Not sure Arteta is the coach to win the title. A lot of money spent, not very wise, the team is predictable, slow, scoring from own goal and penalty.
    Tottenham were moving the ball nicely at times and it’s just few games under Postecoglou.
    I would play Nelson more.

  29. I would look at it as a point gained rather than 2 points dropped as the spuds IM0 were the better team .
    Some disappointing performances Vieria ,Odegaard and Eddie the standout ones .
    Very odd substitutions again ,not sure what ESR as to do to actually get a run of minutes .
    Maddison was quality and a complete bargain for what spurs payed and son was son ,best 2 players on the pitch .
    I don’t think we look any stronger than last season while others look better ,going by today our first real tough game top 4 looks about right .

    1. We looked lightweight today DK. Very disappointed. Lacked ideas and lacked a CF. Worryingly, this all after spending 650 mil plus.

  30. We sorely missed Xhaka today. Ironical isn’t it? A very watchable game of football with mistakes on both sides – a draw a fair result.

    1. Please stop pontificating over Xhaka? What major trophy did we win with Xhaka at the club – Champions League or League title. No. We needed a player levels above Xhaka or Havertz. If the £65m had been spelt well we would have achieved this. Sigh!

  31. Against Spurs Martinelli was always going to be a big loss. That’s simply because for Spurs Porro at right back is far weaker defensively than Udogie at left back. So Saka was always going to find it harder going. I’m not sure trying to play Jesus as a winger was smart although I understand the logic. Tactically both teams play a similar style and it resulted in end to end football and a lot of turnovers. While I enjoy the intricate passing I do wonder if the kind of end to end pass to isolate a defender one on one with an attacker that Liverpool employ isn’t sometimes a better option. For the neutrals it was a terrific game to watch. Obviously it was a better point for Spurs considering where they were last season. Postecoglu has done an amazing job in a couple of months, I wonder what he can do by the start of next season.

  32. Today, I would have played Nelson for Nketiah and Smith Rowe or even jorginho for Vieira. Our midfield is the problem.
    When Partey played there, we always became more progressive and our frontline used that to get goals.
    todya, Rice is really playing great but not getting the same results. Please. play them both when available.
    Forget about Havertz. maybe he will deliver in the future but for now it’s not just happening

  33. Arteta needs to shoulder a lot of blame for this one. Nketiah was embarrassingly bad today, back to par really in his case; typically invisible, wasteful, and no impact.

    Arteta should answer why Nketiah was still on and stinking up the pitch.

    We have regressed from last year, Arteta busy trying to reinvent the wheel to prove his cleverness, and our key players still struggle to step up when the team needs them.

    Jorginho should get a long rest on the bench, a veteran player makes an amateur mistake, no excuse for him.

    “Havertz wasn’t bad” is the highest praise for him and likely the reason he will start in midfield next game.

    Vieira should be a sub, he seems to have an impact at least that way.

    Subpar performance from Arsenal, a shadow of last year’s squad. Josh needs to give the players and Arteta the hairdryer treatment.

    600 million spent to repeat mistakes that are never addressed, and our form continues to be up and down like a boat in a storm.

    No excuses this year; not injuries when we sold & loaned 2 defenders after losing Timber for the year.

    Not depth either, or lack of experience of players or Arteta. They must deliver or face consequences.

    1. Right on every point, Durand.
      I’m not a believer in using sale prices to judge players – once a player comes they are just another squad player to me and should be assessed as such (the same goes for who we bought them from), and I also personally don’t care how much they cost (it’s not my money) BUT if the spend prevents us from buying another player then we must be concerned.
      I have no agendas and really want Havertz to succeed, but ith every week that passes with no improvement my hope is fading, and I really think that Arteta’s determination to keep playing him in this form is shattering the little confidence he arrived with. One player seems to have got on that Lufthansa flight to the UK in 2020 and another one got off at Heathrow. Arteta’s great belief in his ability to reintegrate lost souls, which certainly worked with Odegaard, may have met it’s match in the German “Wunderkind”…

  34. ESR must be a poor player now for Arteta to start the lightweight Viera in front of him. Haverz is so far proving he is just a waste of good money and ESR is sat watching the dross in front of him. Why oh why would you play Viera in the battle that is a North London derby. Just not upto it.

    1. Add the fact that we loaned out Tierney when we have defensive injuries.

      In today’s game I could not understand why we could not bring on Tomiyasu for Vieira and push Zinchenko into midfield and bring on ESR for Nketiah and keep Jesus on.

      Arteta rating for today’s game is 3/10.

      On the whole this season I have been more impressed with our away performances than home games.

  35. It’s down to the squad. With Viera and Eddie we are not going anywhere. We need at least two more top players in mf and attack to compete.

  36. Arsenal fans should learn to be grateful. It is too early to start complaining other teams will drop points

  37. I wish you all a speedy recovery, i can hardly believe we are still unbeaten though considerin fans’ over the top reactions.

    1. Um I respect your positivity but isnt what the supposedly “negative” fans are saying also valid? The game started well for us, we fizzed out then and handed over initiative to them, needed a world class Raya save to bail us out, fluffed our lines more than once and missed the chance to put the game to bed. On top of that forced errors from us, Romero played his best “closet Arsenal fan” act lol, and almost looked like winning the game at the end. Having said that it was a pretty even game against a developing and admittedly exciting Spurs side while our team has been playing together for a lot longer and the manager has more time to establish his philosophies so I would say we were definitely inferior today and while not a disaster, questions should be raised regarding the performance and the decisions as a lot of the people above have done.
      Cheers!

      1. I see you have started noticing the Arteta members based on your replies to Vamos and David above.

        Just to remind them the realists and thinkers among us called for Havertz to be dropped but the members defended Havertz and Arteta decision to their last breath.

        After the gaffer did what the realists wanted the members are trying hard not to mention Havertz. The ceased support made one wonder if it was sincere in the first place.

        And you will notice the support is always in good health and winning games only. If we go on a bad run of form you will find only silence from the members.

      2. Much of the negativity is over the top as Vamos says. Of course we are all disappointed and wanted to win. However, this was a challenging game against a rival team that is also very good and currently riding high. Son, for example, has been one of the best players in the league for a number of years and Spurs have a number of other good players including some exciting youngsters.
        The Arsenal team is still stronger overall but has clearly been disrupted by injuries over the last few weeks and days; and even during the game. Yet we could still have won.
        Several players did not play at the levels they are capable of but from some of the criticism you would think we were completely overrun and not in the game. You may believe we were inferior but I doubt any balanced independent analysis would agree.
        Some fans are far too eager to wallow in pessimism; with some demonstrating a complete lack of any kind of balance or semblance of reasonable perspective.

        1. The point I was making was, if a 3-4 year mature philosophy is having trouble against a Manager new to the prem, then there would be 2 things which are possible: –
          1. Said new manager is a genius and given time might topple our gaffer
          2. Even after 4 years, our gaffer still has not been able to drill his philosophies throughout the team. Result – injuries directly result in some errors and lack of fluidity when non first team xi players come on the pitch.

          Dont you think questions are warranted from the fans? Its not like anyone is hounding out the manager or players. They are just demanding a show of accountability and improvement in performances.

  38. 5th game and no cdm. Poor performance. Why change psv winning team?
    Anyway No epl for us let’s focus on top four and a cup either carabao or fa coz the champions league has its owners.
    As for the coach he deserves his fate for refusal to strengthen squad depth with quality players and is rather impressed with mediocre below average players. ie Nketiah, veira, Harvertz.
    I. Don’t know what saka has been doing for 60 minsa game this season unlike last season. We look lost and confused. Hope partey will be back to stabilize our midfield coz. Without a good cdm we are totally done. We will struggle even against a championship callibre team.

  39. Spurs have been turned around by AP and were dogged and strong, and frequently comfortable playing out from the back. There were times when we looked better and the situation would then reverse. It was a fairly even game, which although was not of the standard that I had hoped for from us, was nonetheless better than some saw.

    The mistake for the second goal was a massive disappointment and overall in the mid to late part of the second half looked better from us.

    I understand the surprise that ESR didn’t get more minutes as I can’t see the point of bringing on a sub with so little time to go and to then expect them to make an impression. Eddie was a weak link for me as having possession and no end result won’t get a win. For all the criticism that Raya has taken from some posters, I am reminded of an absolutely class save in the first half and only noticed one dodgy attempt.

    I am trying to take a philosophical approach to the result. Some days you win and other days you don’t. I’d say that injuries played their part in our draw today. The players losing out through injury were not on the fringe, but integral parts of the main first 15

    1. 👍SueP, the save Raya made from Johnson was world class.
      Being Australian I have followed Ange Postecoglou his whole career and tried to tell people he was world class. You only had to listen to fellow managers like Pep (Ange was part of the City Group at Yokohama Marinos), Brendan Rogers, Martin O’Neill sing his praises prior to his arrival in Scotland. For the doubters, he constantly makes them eat their words.

  40. I just cannot understand the logic of bringing on a player for 2 minutes like MA did when ESR came on. 2 minutes, what is he supposed to do in that time.

  41. In Reality we need a fit Martinelli ,have made a serious error in not signing a marquee centre forward and are going to pay the price for Arteta’s stubborn belief that wing backs can be replaced by either centre halves or midfielders. Although they didn’t play, the fact that Elneny and Soares were on the bench also suggests a huge dip in quality.Why are these favorites being kept around? Outside of that it was a case of the usual culprits not being able to deliver when it counts.

  42. Jorginho is as rusty as a latrine door hinges, suprising Smith Rowe looks fresh and sharp.

    But I have been saying Arsenal needs another powerful midfielder, whether Partey stays or goes, the derby shows it.

  43. Waste of money on Kai $65 mill, Viera not physically able to handle the EPL, players dropping in practices and early in games.
    spuds looked good with a new coach 6 weeks in.

    AFC still do not know how to buy; hint, never ever NEVER buy cast offs from manure or chavs.

    Looking at Martin, Tross, Saka, Partey, Rice being out, and Timber gone for the season.

    Draw the next 2 and lose to the oil scum and we will be looking up at a 10 point deficit by week 10.

    Arteta better change something either in training, recovery, maybe both or he will be starting old, slow, and expensive for weeks.

    1. I am afraid this is the season for MA to prove himself. He got unprecedented financial support and built a team of his own. No more excuses can be found, it is all about him. Any owner spending as much as we did would expect the top spot or at least the second. MA chose to snub our need of a central forward and squandered major funding on KH. He is not AW who could sustain the club’s lifeline on a tight rope. I guess our imminent solution is to roll back to our last year’s plan, once this injury spell ends.

  44. we can look at this game and say injuries played a role or we can also look at this and ask questions:
    1. Why do we not have used the rest of our players to prepare for times like this?
    Having ESR and Reis and use them for 3 min per game does not allow the players to contribute.
    Giving Viera the time vs ESR is questionable at best and MA is walking a tightrope.
    2. Partey should have never been pushed around as a right back. He is top CM and we may loose him and pay 80 mil to find a replacement
    Why are we messing with that player ?
    Instead pair him up with Rice (have Jorginho as back up) and let it happen
    3. What is time limit for KH to start looking like he belongs in EPL?
    He along with Viera and maybe Odegaard cant hold on to a ball under pressure
    At least Martin contributes in creative play
    Havertz and Viera offer very little yet they pay ahead of quality players on the bench.
    $. Eddie at #9 spot?
    Why ? You have Jesus and Reis could have played right . He could have offered more than Eddie.
    Bring Eddie in at 75 min to rest Jesus if he is not lasting the full 90

    These are not hard observations and everyone is seen the same thing except the Emperor in the room. MA needs to put his feelings aside to realize he got to push city last year by using the same 11 almost. Noe he spent over 200 mil and we are looking a bit off the pace for now. It could be worse if we loose to city in a couple weeks time.

  45. Compared to last 2 seasons it’s a huge improvement. Last season we came very close very close if not because of key injuries.

    This season we started very well but so are certain teams. MA said before this season will be even tougher and Yes It Is. Having at least A Fit 90% key team is going to be critical component besides the strike rate of our forwards and bench performance of how far Arsenal will be in the Top or Getting The Epl.

    All along Arsenal need to have the killing part. Our forwards are good but we need someone who have a killer instinct in order to challenge and kill off games. Someone like in Napoli u know who we talking about. Get him here I m certain Opponents will b terrified and we can have a much much higher chance.

    1. Btw vieira is good player in certain games but I think he’s much better to be a sub who came in 2nd half and create threatening passes or attacking forward.

  46. Very bad day. Everyone was sloppy and looked tired. CL exhaustion? Jorginho was at fault but Jesus and Nketiah are to be equally guilty for missing those open chances in the first half. Arteta obviously setup to finish off Totties in the first 45mins but the growing concern about missing chances will continue to bite us if we don’t improve in that aspect. Massive points dropped. I wish the injured players for fast recovery.

  47. Question: Why did Nketiah not get a straight red for a late, studs up challenge on Spurs’ goalkeeper Vicario? Could have broken his ankle.
    I would have been livid if that happened to Raya.

    1. Corrupt refs Ozzie, lol? In all seriousness though even I thought he deserved to be sent off. Atleast one way or another he will be off the field😂😂

      1. Sid, if Nketiah had made contact with Vicario”s lower leg/ankle with that tackle, it could have been career ending
        I wonder what Ty on AFTV would have said to justify him not being sent off?

  48. Last season we played Xhaka and Partey in midfield ostensibly as DM’s, which allowed Odegaard to move further up field. It also solidified our Defence.

    I stressed this during the Transfer window, but it seems that was not a priority.

    It appears that Arteta thought Rice had special powers and could replace both Patrtey and Xhaka, making room for Havertz to play in midfield.

    It is plain to me that we need two defensive midfielders when we play against teams like Spurs.

    Man City play with Rodri in midfield, usually supplemented by Stone in their tougher games.

    We have Partey to play with Rice, but he is currently injured,
    and we have NO similar reserve to bring in.

    We bought Havertz instead of an extra DM, and in the Spurs game we paid the price!!!

    It is too lat to correct this problem until January, and I worry we might be out of contention for the Title by then.

    But hey, believe in the process!!!!

    I was not inspired by Raya’s performance either!!!!

  49. All these injuries are a tip of the iceberg until Saka is really injured then, we will appreciate what it means to have a stubborn coach. A coach that has foresight would always manage and protect his players from getting injured.
    Again, what offence actually did Smith Rowe committed that warrant the coach to continue to bench him. I said it earlier that, if arsenal make top 4, it’s a successful season. So, let’s forget about winning the title as long as Arteta continues with his biase selections.

  50. I think we were really lucky to come out with a draw, credit to the Spuds. However, we could have won the match in the first half if we had taken our chances. The Rice injury is a blow and hopefully, it is nothing serious. The season is still long so hopefully we learn and move on.

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