So after a rough start to the season, we’re now 3 wins on the bounce and we have an FA Cup semi-final against City to dread. The big smiles are out in force; now we get down to the real business end of the race for the top 8.
Wolves, Leicester, Spurs, then Liverpool.
That’s a beastly run, but for me, it’s perfect. Being able to smash Norwich 4-0 doesn’t tell you much about the coaching or the progression of the team, extracting any sort of points out of the next 4 games will.
Nuno has done a terrific job at Wolves. He’s made them a feared outfit, he’s built a squad using the dark arts of super-agent love, and it looks like it’s working out very nicely at a club that is just happy to be back at the top.
Arteta was very complimentary of the squad they’ve built and how they play.
I think they have shown in the past few years how consistent they have been with their performances. They are a group of players, and a club with a manager that have been doing exactly the same thing for many years and you can see their style of play, and a very clear identity of what they want to do,. They have been recruiting exactly the players they need in the positions to do what they want to do. They are a really difficult side to beat.
He’s obsessed with identity, probably because he inherited a club that was severely lacking one. I think in this case, it’s absolutely clear what Nuno is doing with his team. They defend very well, they have a lot of intensity, they are extremely disciplined and they are outrageous on the counter.
They also have a lot of good players, Jorge Mendes is clearly a better super-agent than the two clowns we have making reccos at Arsenal. Jota, Mendes, Jimenez, and Traore would all walk into our squad. They will all be problematic for us tomorrow.
We have some very good players ourselves, but arguably, none better than Auba. Arteta talks about him like he has the deepest football crush of his life on the players.
I don’t know, it is the way that I feel, the way that I communicate with him, the conversations that I have with him and the people around him. It is the energy I sense. It is just my opinion, things change in football very quickly but when you ask me in that moment how I feel about Auba’s future, in this moment I feel that he wants to continue with us and keep developing and help us to become a better team.
He’s also doubling down on him staying.
I think so, he needs to feel he belongs somewhere that he believes we can achieve the goals that he has individually and collectively for a long time. He is very settled in the city, his family are really happy here as well I think, and he is loved, respected and admired nay his team-mates, which is a huge thing to have at any football club. So that’s what gives me positivity, as well because I see the enjoyment he is having, the work-rate that he puts in all the time, and the decisions that he makes every time. So that is where my feelings are coming from.
James Olley at ESPN reckons the player wants £250k a week for 3 years. It’s expensive, but as a few pals in the Whatsapp Groups have said, players go on for longer now, Auba wasn’t brutalised as a young player, making his mark later in his career, he’s also very, very fit.
From a player perspective, he seems bought in. He looked very happy in the stands the other day. Arteta says he thinks the player can match Thierry for goals and trophies, I think he’s being serious-ish. He’s not here to be a top 8 manager, he wants to challenge. Whether you think that is jokes or not doesn’t matter, that’s the way he’s thinking about the project. He’s looking at Liverpool, not Wolves, as the benchmark for success.
Why the fuck not? Give me that over someone who has a Europa League comfort blanket. Ambition has strange ways of infecting people and convincing them they can do more than they can.
That sort of chat isn’t for now though, in this moment, we’ve just got to work out a way of moving through this section of the season unscathed with more than zero points.
The two things we have to deal with tomorrow are fairly obvious. How do you create a team that gives you zero space? How do you stop powerhouse players like Traore eating you up on the break?
It’ll be interesting to see whether he’s tempted to bring Torreira back into the mixer. Full back decisions will also be important. If you are going to be low on chances, you have to make sure the people in those positions can make the most of any space they create. You also have to be sure they have the right mobility against the power and pace. Could we see a start for Soares? Will he bring AMN into midfield? Would he risk starting Dani against a team that won’t afford him the luxury of space and time like Norwich?
I’m sure whatever we offer up tactically will be close enough, the big question is whether this squad is ready to deliver a 90-minute performance. There’s always a dip. There’s always a moment where the gameplan drops off the radar. If that happens tomorrow, we’ll be lucky to survive it.
So fingers crossed we see big response.
I was sent a press release from RunRepeat about the bias in football commentary. Alfred, my woke Swedish pal from The Arsenal Opinion podcast has been pulling me on the subject for 2 years, it’s now in a study format so you can read. The numbers are miserable.
- When commentators talk about intelligence:
- 62.60% of praise was aimed at players with lighter skin tone
- 63.33% of criticism was aimed at players with darker skin tone
- When commentators are talking about power they are 6.59 times more likely to be talking about a player with darker skin tone
- When commentators are talking about speed they are 3.38 times more likely to be talking about a player with darker skin tone
- When commentators talk about work ethic, 60.40% of praise is aimed at players with lighter skin tone
When you first hear about this, you think it’s just another woke agenda item, but then you start paying attention, and you hear it all the time.
This sort of study is important on two levels. Firstly, it shows that football commentary is too simplistic in its categorisations of players. I’ve said this many times before, the level of commentary and punditry is often not where the game is. It’s actually embarrassing if I’m honest. Compare Roy Keane analysing a game to someone that is actually working in the Premier League for a club. It’s chalk and cheese.
‘Bang his head against the wall if you can’t get a response’
‘They need a big man in the middle to make more tackles’
‘Not enough heart’
That’s before you get into the bias. So the learning for the TV stations for me is to first upgrade the level of the talent describing the game so it can better reflect what is actually going in the game or around the club.
It can be a bit of a grey area on describing physicality. This is a game that is built on power and pace, you have to be able to call it out, but you have to be equal. The fastest player in Germany a few weeks ago was a white guy call Lewandowski, but your rarely hear him described as a beast or a brute. Sterling, one of the higher-profile cases of bias, was vilified in the press for pushing his way out of Liverpool, or having a tattoo, or driving a nice car. Matteo G, lighter skinned, is genuinely a bit of a shit and fans are running to sympathise because he’s misunderstood and he just cares too much. I’m not sure Moise Kean was given that same benefit of the doubt.
The most important part about the bias in the commentary is the intelligence piece. Why? Because it filters down into coaching. How, in 2020, can there only be 5 bame managers in English football? There have been so many incredible black players, how are none of them coach material? It is a travesty. Work rate? Please. Intelligence? My word, look at the collective of dim white coaches that do the rounds over and over again. It is a collective blindness that needs addressing. There is no excuse, there is a huge talent pool, there are plenty of capable black players, and there is clearly a massive desire for them the breakthrough. Clubs need to be better about it.
Also, before I go, make sure you read these two articles if you’re bored. I write these with a lot of inputs, so the narratives are pretty sound. Share with your pals as well. Force your dog to read it, he’ll thank you later.
Raul: Bagman to Arsenal CEO. A story that gets to the heart of why Arsenal is in such a mess.
How LFC eclipsed Arsenal with less money + what we can learn
P.S. Jose Mourinho claiming he knew his fully fit Champions League Finalist squad wasn’t good enough to beat Sheffield United away from him. You hate to see it.
Also, I’ll just leave this here.
Small sample size but small signs of improvement under Arteta pic.twitter.com/i7471BH59v
— #TouchlineFracas (@TouchyGooners) July 3, 2020
The table since Arteta joined the club.
via @Artetasphere pic.twitter.com/0LM2pdb89F
— Le Grove (@LeGrove) July 2, 2020
Kola is such as bad passer.
10 more min practically. Can we just hold on??
We need another goal.
Torreira on.
Laca on.
Eddie and Ceballos off.
Ceballos has to tired by now. He’s played so many minutes in recent games.
Come on Laca get one
Kolac has been poor in passing for a while. Auba isn’t far behind at times. Look at that stupid hospital pass to AMN.
Is this really Arsenal? Looking really tight at the back
Good subs by the Art
Come on boys!
MF more balanced I think. Hope wed persist.
Wolves bombing forward leaves us chances. We only need one
Laca
2
Holy cow!! Lol COYG!!!!!!!!!!!
Willock + Laca!!! LETS GOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!
Yeah!!!
Goal
I told you, willock
All came from that thunderous header from Mustafi
Yes!!!!!! get the Fuck in. hahaha he almost missed…
Nice finish! Come on Reds
Wow wow wow
Wolves must be mightily pissed with this result. I’ll take it though!
Nice one laca, the useless one
LACAAABLUUUUDCLLLLARTTZETTE!!!
Game over.
Willock should be scoring there.
Arteta is getting better at subs
God job, very god in
Willock hasn’t hidden at all.
Willock assist. Laca goal.
Brilliant subs turns out.
3 pts and 3 behind wolves.
Willock c’mon. Smash it.
Yes!!! Nice shot Laca!!!
Glad to see us 0-2 up.
fuck willcok get it in
That was classy from Lacazette
Fuck in! Could have been 3
Stupid silly selfish willock
Wolves have been awful.
Boring Boring Arsenal…Boring Boring Arsenal.. Boring Boring Arsenal..
Hahaha will totally take it. Lets close it out.
Willock got to take these chances if he wanted to make it.
AMN showing some fight
Good performance when you consider that Wolves. can defend
Arteta masterclass
Clean sheets 💉
Pedro must be creaming his pants right now.
Marc, Receding and co you are going to get a column in today’s post.
Auba too casual there…no time to showboat..shud have been stronger
Fuck it all the SAUCE!
5 min
Willock didn’t do anything wrong there by the way.
It was goal bound, keeper beaten … until the clearance
When Xhaka goes to ground… yellow cards appear.
dont stop fellas….
This is a nice solid victory I am impressed..we did a wolves on wolves lol,played their won game on them.
Now we need Wolves to drop more points….
Azed I said today is about being tight and cautious and we were. This wolves team are built to counter so once you cut that off they struggle and credit to Arteta. We haven’t beaten them since they came back up so this is a great result.
Mistafi moment
I do like Willock.. What prat was it that said he was a championship player
Clean sheet + 3 points, is all we need! Couldn’t be happier.
Job done. Thank you.
Commentators saying someone hasn’t had 4 wins in a row in the league since 1972…
That has to be Wolves surely?
Now time to grill some burgers and hot dogs. 3 titos today. wooo hooo!
Xhaka has a good game
Someone has to say that
I’d still say this. Letting BHA off was a huge mistake.
That’s a huge win. Big statement in terms of the result.
OK won’t be negative, but Xaka has been 0.001 today . Not even accurate back passing
GET IN
A draw with Sheffield and wolves would go nicely
RESULT
Another aways win, clean sheet 4 on the trot.
Up the fucking Arsenal.
Portugal 0-2 Arsenal
Comedy gold reading the negative comments from the experts on here at 0-0 and even at 1-0. Then we go on to win. Away from home. Against Wolves. Plus a clean sheet.
Love that Result… makes my holiday better.. 😀
If only we hadn’t botched all those easier games, CL would still be a possibility
Got to be one of the best if not THE best performance. Clean sheet and a superb performance.
Hope to see more of this in the rest of the season.
COYG!!
Well done boys well done Arteta
Shame on you kola!🤣🤣
Great result come on boys.
Brilliant win. Top notch from Arteta and the boys tonight.
Professional performance
Well done Arsenal.
After that 1st half, i did not expect us to not only hold on, but score a second goal as well.
Hats off to the team and to Mikel.
Come on The Arsenal!!!
Onwards and Upwards.
We controlled that game, they didn’t threaten properly at all which was nice to witness.
Good subs from Arteta to keep the fullbacks fresh and introduce Willock for his energy, paid dividends.
Clear structural and defensive improvement, and a big LOL to those bigging up the game as a “real test” who will no doubt move them goalposts to Tuesday. On we go, expect a quiet Le Grove.
Where will ozil play if we continue to play 3 at the back. There is no room for him
G
“I do like Willock.. What prat was it that said he was a championship player”
Could be one of many ..
Willock changed the game when he came on v Norwich and changed the game today.
His confidence is growing with every game.
Excellent win.
Thought there was too nuch doom and gloom on here at half time.
Arsenal aren’t going to outplay Wolves at this time away from home. They are higher in the table for a reason.
And for plenty of the ball Wolves saw they didn’t c reate that many clear cut chances.
I thought it was an overall mature performance from Arsenal.
Well, well! Thank goodness, Saka is signed up.
Excellent away win there, one of our best in ages. Most of the players did well, not too many brain farts by Xhaka and Luiz. Only bummer was Kolasinac who’s complete shit.
Finally. Great great in game management from Arteta today. Tierney was coping well against Traore but Amn completely shut him off. When Laca came on ,the way he was moving , passing I told my brother sitting beside me that I think Laca gonna end his drought tonight. And what a goal it was. Torreira bought a real bite in the midfield. Missed him . 4 clean sheets in a row. 4 wins in a row . 2 of the best youngsters tied for the long haul with Auba looking closer and closer Partey rumours only intensifying. The Arteta revolution… Read more »
I’m bringing back the boring boring Arsenal chant.. even if it is only in my living room. No fans in the stands, what you gonna do.
Anyhow Go Watford!
Very proud of the lads today! Disciplined and gave 100% for 95 minutes against one of the hottest teams in the league.
Luiz only plays well with 3 at the back. Because he wont have to be in a 1v1 situation. Arteta is getting the right system
Both the goals were top quality.
Traore missing it was the only chance I could remember.
Shutting down wolves in the manner we did is definitely commendable.
I think that was an excellent performance
@pedro
This is the first sign for me we are heading in the right direction with areta.
I was expecting the next klopp when really i think we have a pragmatic defensive manager in the mold of diego simeone
Also wolves really are a quality side oozing class so the fact we won that game and outcompeted them in all areas is a great plus in favour of arteta
If Ozil has any pride left in him, after seeing this performance today from the team.. he would just fuck off!!
Shoutout to Willock too. Cant seem to get a position down but made a difference with his running and his assist was very good. Should’ve had a goal to cap off his performance.
Laca looked like his old class self.
Juvenile comment as usual from a grown man.
It was a real test Because wolves were flying. Surely you can appreciate beating wolves and beating Norwich isn’t on the same level. This was a test and one that was passed. The clean sheet was a bonus too, Wolves didn’t really threaten cos they were denied the space they usually count on getting against us.
Very nice performance
Felt like a prime Mourinho performance. Tight at the back, played on counter, limited number of chances but were clinical with two of em. No complaints from me. Onwards and upwards.
Was just looking at the schedule. Spuds have to play on the monday and the thursday before we play them on sunday. We only have one game on the tuesday in that time. Hopefully that’ll give us a bit extra energy against them
I presume this site will be virtually empty tonight. The last thing a lot of posters on here want is a well deserved away win against strong opposition. Arteta proves to some of the resident idiots who wanted him sacked ( ?) that he is a top coach. NES got outcoached , far too cautious in the first half .
Encouraging revival . Martinez is almost as good as Ospina
‘ARE YOU NOT CONVINCED’
Hopefull, brilliant result considering where we’ve been as a club. Arteta showing his chops with a broken squad. Put proper players in that that starting 11 and we’d be in a much better place.
Martinez is brilliat, love that he’s a catcher
AMN was absolutely superb when he came on
LOVE to see Lacazette score
Only problem was how bad we were in posession when we started winning.
Regardless, the project being put under Mikel was the correct decision. What a great fucking day
I read that that was our first away win in the Premier League against a team above them in the table since beating Leicester 5-2 in September, 2015.
Pedro comments and next post predictable.
Enjoy your gloating…. You put your rep on the line.
1st goal Wolves conceded at home since Jan.
Wasi
4 clean sheets in a row.
———————–
Are you sure about that?
Torreira after he came on was massive I thought. Broke everything up , moved , passed forward.
As observed Emi was excellent, real challenge to Leno 10/10
Great result for Arsenal. We look more solid with 3 at the back. Still Kola should not play for Arsenal. AMN can offer more at his position.
Lovely win. Let’s spank Leicester and Spurs too.
Haha Pedders..
Enjoy mate 😊
Danny
Now that I think back I got carried away. 😂
Im happy
Shoulda been 3 clean sheets in 4.
Martinez is a monster defending high balls .