Theo Walcott has expressed concerns over Arsenal’s growing focus on set-pieces, suggesting it has detracted from their traditional free-flowing style of football. His comments come in the wake of Arsenal’s 2-0 loss to Newcastle United in the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final at the Emirates, a result that has seriously jeopardised their hopes of reaching the final.
Newcastle has been in exceptional form of late, and their ability to capitalise on key moments was evident as they stunned Arsenal with a composed and clinical performance. Despite expectations that Arsenal would approach the game with a well-prepared strategy to neutralise the Magpies’ threats, the Gunners seemed off the pace throughout the night. Missed opportunities compounded their struggles, as Newcastle showed greater hunger and efficiency to secure the win.
Theo Walcott, analysing the performance, pointed out a worrying trend in Arsenal’s recent approach. Speaking to the Daily Mail, Walcott said: “What worries me for Arsenal is they are getting excited about set-pieces all the time rather than free-flowing football, which they are known for. We are shying away from it. It was a very lacklustre performance in the second half. It’s going away from free-flowing football and creating chances. It is a lack of confidence I think. I think there were a lot of nerves in the stadium.”
Walcott’s observations reflect a growing sentiment that Arsenal’s emphasis on set pieces might be undermining their ability to create opportunities through open play. While set-pieces are an essential part of the modern game, Arsenal’s identity has long been tied to their fluid, attacking style—a hallmark that appears to be waning in recent weeks.
As Arsenal prepares for the second leg, the challenge of overturning a two-goal deficit looms large. A return to their dynamic, confident attacking style could be crucial, not only for salvaging their Carabao Cup campaign but also for restoring faith in their ability to perform under pressure.
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Agree. We look over-coached these days. Players are micromanaged from the sidelines and afraid to take risks.
Reason we have excelled at corners is because of Jover. So what is MA exactly doing for the team performance?
I will obviously support the Gunners all the way to the end.
However, I have lost that enthusiasm to watch when we play the way we do now. I obviously watch but I won’t stay up to watch those late midweek games anymore (most mid week games are 10PM here in South Africa). It’s just not worth it, not as exciting anymore.
Walcott is spot on.Quite frankly I wish I had watched one of my favourite TV programmes Silent Witness rather than another typically drab performance from our team under the leadership of MA.
Theo’s right GD I gave it a miss and it looks like it was a good decision. We’re set piece city right now.
There were genuine chances made last night Jax and unfortunately for Havertz his miss was the worst As far as I was concerned it was the frequency of the tortuous build up so that Newcastle could then flood the box that annoyed me the most.
Sue
Apparently, our one more direct attack involved just three passes and Martinelli hitting a post. Arseblog has a good article on this today.
Without wishing to sound like an AA (Arteta apologist) had Martinelli scored I think the game may not have been the disaster it has been portrayed as. I’ve written what I thought was bad and Grandad has given his excellent insight as well. It was the fact that the striker everyone has been crying out for got the goal aided and abetted by poor defending on our part.
Your dead right Sue.It’s not as though Newcastle played us off the park.They took their chances while we not only missed ours, but we’re unfortunate in that a number of our goal bound shots were blocked or scrambled away by the hugely committed Newcastle players.What annoyed me most of all was the failure of our over hyped central defenders to pick up Isak who seemed to find space in dangerous areas on numerous occasions.Gabriel and Saliba need a kick up the backside from their Manager to get back to the form they showed earlier in the season.The goals we conceded were eminently preventable in my opinion yet it’s the likes of Martinelli and Havertz who are getting the flak for our defeat?
Top post Grandad, totally agree with you. A special player like Isak needs watching all the time.
I don’t entirely agree but don’t entirely disagree either. We have become a real threat with our set pieces, but not deliberately reliant. That said, we often look to win the corner rather than beat the defender. We are lacking real penetrating flare at the moment. Odegaard is off, Saka and even Nwaneri are not available, and without them we just seem to be going through the motions without any real attacking intent. I am not even enjoying watching them at the moment- and that’s not results driven by- it’s football driven.
It’s hard to enjoy these matches. Not only the lack of goals but lethargic pace we play at almost seemingly on purpose. This is just not the Arsenal we know. Relying on set pieces and timewasting ESPECIALLY is beneath us
Theo’s talk of shying away from free flowing football and creating chances, not sure what he is talking about but that game yesterday displayed all that except for the fact that we were unable to score, which is where the frustration is, definitely not what he is trying to make out here.