via @Arsenal Instagram
Well, there we are. Liverpool look quite good and Arsenal have some work to do. Who knew?
We were downed 3-1 away from home to the best team in Europe. It was a less than cohesive performance from Arteta, but certainly more worthy than some of the embarrassing post-game shite-takes going around.
I thought the tactical setup for the game was pretty much spot on. It’s easy to have the exact solution after the game, but I think most of the selections could be justified. Ceballos, fancy haircut and all, couldn’t control the midfield against West Ham. If he was in ‘hold-on-to-the-ball’ mood last night, it might have been worse. Auba through the middle is a tired debate, we’ve seen why he’s on the left and we don’t complain when it works. Saka? Not sure he’s making the world of difference. Gabriel? I think experience wins out and Luiz was pretty decent. Plenty more trips to Anfield for our younger Brazilian.
We went there to win the game with limited possession, good defensive structure, and experience in our front 3 to take advantage of the counter-attack. Call that negative all you like, but please, tell me the starting 11 we have that could have gone to Anfield and bossed a game of expansive football, clue: it doesn’t exist.
Liverpool were utterly sublime at times. Their pressing was debilitating and their movement on and off the ball was masterful. We couldn’t match them, though we tried our best. The fact that we went 1-0 ahead said a lot about our doggedness. Lacazette working wonders to turn in a miscued Robertson clearance after we dropped a familiar ‘play out of the back moment’ again.
We couldn’t hold on, Liverpool retaliated with absolute brutality twice within 9 minutes. First, Mane tapped home a spilt Salah shot. Tierney will be having nightmares about the absolute roasting he took in the build-up. The second, Robertson was found totally open at the back post, and he duly obliged. Willian really has too much experience to be letting great players ghost in without a challenge.
The second half we were all expecting the worst, but Arsenal came out swinging as hard as they could.
The two big turning points were Lacazette misses. The first on 59, he beat the offside trap to latch onto a Willian pass, he opted for an optimistic chip, which was thwarted because the chip didn’t go higher than Alisson’s waste. The second, he was slipped in by Ceballos, he tried to cut some space outside Alisson, which he did, but he snatched at his shot, hitting the keeper. Really poor. You felt for him hiding under his shirt when he was subbed off, but a £180k a week 29 year old international should be doing better than that. Pretty sure Eddie would have converted at least one of those chances.
We didn’t have much else on after that. When you play Liverpool, they don’t gift you much. We didn’t make the most of our important spells in the game, then we were punished late on when a Luiz clearance found the Jota on the edge of the box, the exWolves star buried his shot.
So what did we learn?
Well, beating Liverpool 3 times in a row was always going to be tough.
What is clear from all of our performances so far against them is we need better players if we want to play at their level. We simply didn’t have the talent to beat them in that form without a huge dollop of luck. Over those three games we’ve averaged 20 shots a game against us and we’ve only averaged 6.3 shots per game and somehow managed 4 goals.
The criticism of the tactics still feels rich to me considering we’ve not moved the squad forward. I appreciate there’s an inquisition every time we lose a game, but going to the Champions to play the Arsenal Way™ hasn’t exactly been kind to us over the last 10 years. We set up correctly. We played to our strengths. We were always going to have to defend well and deal with the fact there would be an element of us getting battered. My ask in games like these since Arteta took over is that we’re competitive… and we were. We stayed in the game for a long time but we fluffed our lines this time.
Individual errors cost us and hopefully, that won’t always happen.
Tierney isn’t going to get rolled like an u18 every game this season. I also suspect on another day, Mane is red-carded after a rough challenge on Hector followed by a clear forceful elbow to the face of Tierney minutes later. Those are the margins that change big games. If he’s off, we have an advantage, unfortunately, he stays, and maybe Tierney was rattled in the process causing the lack of focus for his mistake.
Bernd Leno might rekindle that form that had us calling him world-class under Bu-mery. I thought he looked fragile again today. He’s not a catcher, which makes him a weak point in our defence. He looked panicked on the ball, it seemed like Liverpool players were roughing him up from corners. His step back from the cross that led to their 3rd goal wasn’t something that would have happened under Emi Martinez. We have to have a solid keeper if we’re going to play the way we play. Bernd has not looked close to the level of Emi this season.
Liverpool away was always a write-off game. If you genuinely feel aggrieved that we didn’t win, you have expectations that far outweigh reality. They, along with Bayern, are the best team in the world. We’re nowhere near that level. The best we can do is hope to compete and catch teams like that on an off day (which we have shown we are capable of doing).
The good news for our season is there aren’t many teams like that in the league. I’d argue that there’s only one team like that: Liverpool.
What is apparent is that our midfield needs both Partey and Aouar. We lack creative guile and mobility. It’s been clear for a very long time, this isn’t new, but Xhaka and Elneny (4 forward passes all game) against quality sides is only going to take you so far. We need to do better. Our desired targets at least move us into a new realm of possibility. The starting 11 yesterday was basically the same squad Emery crashed to 8th with last year bar Willian.
Regardless of my upset at the result, I was still impressed with the way we came out for the second half. We showed fight and bravery at times. There’s a resilience Arteta has instilled that wasn’t there before. I was also pleased with how energised Klopp was with his team in his post-match interview when he threw serious shade at Roy Keane for calling his side ‘sloppy.’ We asked a lot of questions of Liverpool. He called their performance ‘perfection.’ They were made to think. You haven’t always had to reach perfection beat Arsenal away from home, you’ve mostly just needed to turn up. We might not be at the level of personnel we need to be at, but I think the coaching and attitude is there. Klopp has had 5 years to develop that sort of devastation, Arteta hasn’t clocked a year yet. Trust in the process seems a tired line, but let’s be honest, we have seen more than enough to justify it.
Plenty will disagree with me and I’m here for it… buuuuuut you need to be aware that the new ‘perfection’ merchants are generally the folk that had no standards over the last ten years. I suspect they have a work TikTok dance video they did for a ‘laugh’, think their best life stage was ‘the carefree years at school’, and they’ll have a ‘can’t miss’ opinion on home brewing.
Let’s see what Edu can do to move the midfield forward, then see how we play against the rest of the top 8. Nothing will be harder than that, until we play Liverpool again on Thursday. Then it’s a kind of clear run. Plenty of opportunities to pick up more points, regain confidence, and bed in two world-class midfielders (PLEASE GOD).
Yesterday was a slap back to reality. There’s still plenty of work to do to return Arsenal to the top. Some good recruitment in the next week will give Arteta tools to show he’s the man capable of doing that. We move from there.
Over to you, Edu.
P.S. If you are still enraged, this Phillipe Auclair tweet thread was good.
La sévérité de certains commentaires aperçus ici sur la performance d’Arsenal à Anfield ne devrait pas me surprendre: l’art de regarder un match (celui que possèdent ceux et celles qui vont au stade) se perd. Mais lire de telles âneries…d’où ce bref fil.
— Philippe Auclair (@PhilippeAuclair) September 28, 2020
*PREZZER*
Tea “Arteta is working absolute miracles with this squad” I’m not sure about miracles. It was great to see him win the FA Cup so early in his tenure but Arsenal have always been a handy cup side that can beat anyone on their day. It’s been the bread and butter consistency that is needed for the league that has been missing. Also Emery did indeed do damage to the morale of the squad in his last season but people go on like a relegation fodder team were left behind for him to take over. There is still much to… Read more »
https://www.football.london/arsenal-fc/transfer-news/arsenal-transfer-news-coutinho-zaha-19012754
Marc,
He may have said that to convince Willian, but with no money to spend he needs first to qualify for it.
I hope to be proven wrong, but this is one of the apocryphal stories that will haunt Arteta for the rest of his career if he never win it.
Smokey Arteta and The Miracles?
Not quite yet.
Aouar and zaha to replace Nelson and willock, would be a dream come true, the overall squad is weak, without Aubameyang’s goals, arsenal would be fighting relegation.
“Sead Kolasinac is close to joining Bayer Leverkusen. The transfer fee being talked about is €10m. (@SPORTBILD)“
Thank you Chelsea?
CC
They all get their Warhol 15mins, Tancredi, Pornstein, Kike, Balagué and now fucking Fabrizio… think they all just miss momma.
Manchester United have had a bid for Jadon Sancho worth up to £91.3m (€100m) rejected by Borussia Dortmund.sky sports,
I’m sorry this kid is not £91 million player.
Oh man Tancredi was the worst… He had Mario Ballo… In an Arsenal shirt 100% done deal about 5 times. If memory serves me right.
Swear this is your default whenever I say something to you
When we’ve been getting on well recently and I shit talk Xhaka and then you come in out of the blue with your bollox it’s pretty fucking obvious what your trigger is.
Specifically what’s childish about me bemoaning us not selling a 27 year old for 27 million and replacing him with a 22 year old for 18 million last January? Seems weird to be so upset by it until you factor in it was Xhaka mentioned and it’s you.
Saka is better than Sancho
Valentin “this is one of the apocryphal stories that will haunt Arteta for the rest of his career if he never win it.” I doubt it will haunt him. It will more likely be forgotten. And if people are bothered to look back at the quote it will just be said that he was being positive and ambitious and persuasive towards Willian Although Willian didn’t need any persuasion. At his age landing that wage at a club like Arsenal he has hit the jackpot anyway. So it was unnecessary bluster from Arteta. But of course the club made sure it… Read more »
Marko
Not sure how many different flavours of ‘don’t care about your Xhaka views’ I need to serve you. But you banging your head against a wall with that inane view won’t make it a reality so do refrain darling and get your Ugg’s and a warm brew on the go, last time I’m asking.
It’s the final week of the transfer window and your cramps are obviously starting, everything is going to be ok. Goosfraba
Mid
Tanc was the worst but one of the first in the age of twitter I Believe and still at it.
Regarding Sancho, Watzke knows who he’s dealing with Woodward needs to deliver a Galactico United style…. he’s going to bend them over further to the tune of around £100m.
Love to see it, Big Ed is going to run them into the ground.
If Sancho is so good, why is the any other offer for him? mam united, making massive mistake, like they did with harry maguire
United are so freaking daft
Dortmund are about to swindle them. Sancho isn’t worth more than the 50-60 million range. The fact that they are the only ones interested should tell them they are offering too much money.
Marko
Does this mean you two are no longer double pivoting?
Hate to see the Charko romance grow cold so soon.
Same. Getting frosty in Marko and CC’s shared kitchen.
Jay
If Sancho was worth that much then Sterling is worth 150 million. It reminds me of when Barca overpaid for Dembele.
Jamie
Be careful to stay away. It’s a lover’s quarrel.
Luteo/Jamie
He’s hard to live with, leaves his feminine products everywhere and tapes over my super manly recordings with Love Island reruns.
Breaking | Napoli have made a €30m including bonuses bid for Lille midfielder Boubakary Soumaré – talks ongoing, according to Téléfoot Chaine.
We can’t finalize Partey and now it looks like Soumare will be off to Napoli.
😂
We need to piss on Napolis parade again. Did it with Pepe and Gabriel already. Time for round 3. Not many other alternatives left for Partey and there’s no way we’re stumping up his release clause up front. Something has to give on that front asap.
Not sure how many different flavours of ‘don’t care about your Xhaka views’ I need to serve you.
If you don’t care then stop addressing me you stupid fuck or don’t get involved in what was a conversation that you had nothing to do with. Literally the only time we’ve addressed each other today is you butting into a conversation that you weren’t apart of
I did not know.. Marko and CC were the LG version of the odd couple remix. Fighting like cats and dogs and then back home to the shared apartment where comedy ensues, with a laugh track of course.
That would be some podcast. Should see if Pedro can give y’all a guest appearance on his.
Does this mean you two are no longer double pivoting?
Weddings off
I expect Aouar to be doing his medicals in London and taping the typical signing videos by Friday.
Lyon have blinked by getting his replacement on board…it will progress rapidly —possibly get signed for between 35-38 million euros.
Aulas is also going to tweet a lot more in the next 48 hrs to presumably put Arsenal under pressure.
Fucking Xhaka, he ruins all that is beautiful in the world. Just the mention of him is toxic. SAD
Arteta has made perfectly clear that returning Arsenal to the elite is a process. The one-note display that we saw yesterday was merely a stage on the way. He has instilled the obvious priority, obedience to a pre-set pattern. Last night both managers knew exactly how the other would play The next step for both is the emergence of versatility, the unexpected. For that you need the right additions to the ream. Klopp has acquired Alcantara for that purpose. He will open up new dimensions. Arteta’s most pressing need is an outstanding creative player. I am hopeful he will find… Read more »
What’s wrong with love island
I think martinez is a better keeper (really thought he was the complete package) than Leno but we have to give leno abit of breathing room here he is our number 1 and has returned from a long injury.
However if we don’t purchase any players and put that money made from martinez to good use I will be fuming.
Partey isn’t the end all and this won’t please Bati but lets raid Inter for Brozovic so Conte can have his Kante.
Jay Z wants a piece of that, checks in mail.
Marko
Yeh, but I’m correct on both counts.
Deal with it.
Dissenter
I have never seen sancho play, isn’t he supposed to be world class potential generational talent?
I wish people would stop beating up Laca over that miss yesterday.
It’s not like a missed the goal that could have won us the league or CL. Even if he had scored, it’s likely Liverpool would have cranked up their gears and still beat us.
Everywhere I look in goonerland, people are recreating the miss with diagrams and quadratic equations for the perfect lob over Allison.
I wonder if it’s very childish of me to get excited about Kolasinac leaving for 10 million. I don’t care
London
Is Sancho better than Sterling?
Was he better than Sterling at the same stage of career?
I think Sterling is the better player and I certainly think United are being fleeced by Dortmund. Remember Dembele tot was supposed to be that ” world class potential generational talent” when the sold him to Barca.
Dortmund have perfected the art of getting clubs to overpay for their players imo.
“Literally the only time we’ve addressed each other today is you butting into a conversation that you weren’t apart of“
I haven’t hacked a WhatsApp group chat you fucking spatula, this is a public football blog 😭 you want private chats then throw your BBM pin on the forum and talk shop with the other ladies.
“That would be some podcast. Should see if Pedro can give y’all a guest appearance on his.“
Pedro won’t want to pay someone to do the subtitles for him.
Is it true that Auoar performs well only against big teams which play a high line ?
“I wonder if it’s very childish of me to get excited about Kolasinac leaving for 10 million.”
It definitely isn’t. Scrape together another 40m for Guen and Torr and that’s Partey or Auoar paid for.
Watching Chelsea plays, you can’t help but envy their fans. Money for them is no issue. We have to sell our GK and still can get the players needed. Why no body asks KSE whether they still want the team to compete at all. Obviously, they don’t care.
If we get €10 million for Kolas then A) I’m thrilled B) the World’s officially gone mad.
Finish
Spuddies losing!
What a shot from Werner.
I’d love to see a fight break out between Mourinho and Fat Frank.
Frank and Maureen having a spat, chubster getting a bit delboy in the technical area these days isn’t he?
‘What is wrong with love island’
Best comment of the day.
I did advertising for a series of that.
Hoping for a draw here.
Mourhino is such a bore these days. He’s predictably thick, eve his insults don’t offend anymore.
London
I assume it goes to extra time then pens?
Dissenter
Agree Mourinho is washed up – the Spud’s have made a really expensive mistake bringing him on board.
CC, definitely getting ‘in the queue for a kebab’ post-Essex Lounge session vibes.
‘You facking what you double mug?’
Marc, best thing about their mistake is it was made out of fandom. Levy genuinely star-struck by him in All or Nothing.
Mourinho seems so devoid of happiness in that all or nothing show. I think he realises he is past it.
On other news we could actually top 4 of man united go on a bad run at the beginning of the season.
‘Dortmund are about to swindle them. Sancho isn’t worth more than the 50-60 million range. The fact that they are the only ones interested should tell them they are offering too much money.’ Laughable stuff Dissenter, the lad is putting up elite goal/assist/dribbling/chances created numbers in the Bundesliga as a teenager. Sterling was good but Sancho is a different level at age twenty. Nobody else is in for him because the Euro elite are all already set for wide players/forwards and Dortmund aren’t budging for less than 100m. Who outside of PSG, Man City, Barcelona, Real Madrid could even afford… Read more »
Pedro
It would be a bad mistake under normal circumstances – add to that a billion quid stadium to pay for and it’s a terrible mistake. Put COVID on top and it’s catastrophic.
London
The Spud’s are away at ManU on Sunday. Could be an interesting match.
Wenger eagle
He’s doing all these in Germany, the same league where Loka and Xhaka made the team of the season.
My point is that Dortmund are behaving like medieval profiteers thinking anyone would pay 105 million for him.
You said the same of Dembele too when Dortmund sold him to Barca. Sancho wont look as good in a a stronger league like England. I can think of 10 clubs with full backs that will keep him quiet .
I just read that Song is out for 6-8 weeks with a strained hammies
That FA cup we won helped to send Spurs into a tail spin – added more EL qualifiers for them.
‘You said the same of Dembele too when Dortmund sold him to Barca.’
No I didn’t, Sancho is a better player than Dembele ever was.
And yeah the insanely difficult PL compared to the Bundesliga farmer’s league, tell me this how has Pulisic done in the PL since the move? And he was nowhere near as good at Dortmund as Sancho.
Last time I checked, Sancho is in the top 6 of goal+assist in last year 4 European major leagues. Pepe, not so much!
“added more EL qualifiers for them.”
3 to be exact. They have another one this Thursday.
Dortmund must despise Ed Woodward at this stage.
You do get the feeling that they’ll get him across the line though given Dortmund’s history of bending over as a selling club and with the fan discontent bubbling over a United after their crap start to the season and only VDB in the door.
Too bad Spurs! take that
By the way, the draw will take place this Friday. Hope we get someone close by.
I like Sancho and I think he will be elite. But the premier league is a different beast. I am pretty sure he won’t put up those numbers here. The only young player I can see transfering his form with out any hindrance is Mbappe. Sancho is good but he still has to develop his game. He would need time. France and Germany are different leagues to England. The likes of Gnabry who rely on power and Pace would succeed here but for sancho who is more about trickery and dribbling and placing a shot, It will be harder. He… Read more »
Nelson
Really? Wow Sunday – Tuesday – Thursday – Sunday is a brutal run of fixtures.
I would feel sorry for them but they’re cunts.
WE
Dortmund have stated their price ManU have either got to pay up or shut up.
It’s hilarious that we’ve done this to the spuds and we’re straight into the groups.
That power and pace stuff is as cliched as it gets Habesha. How many players have we seen thrive over here in the PL that aren’t physical monsters? Sancho isn’t as rapid as the very quickest players but he’s definitely fast enough to consistently beat defenders in one vs ones and break away in counter attack situations. And he’s got that stocky frame with a powerful lower centre of gravity, Pulisic for example is more lightweight and he’s done very well. And he doesn’t have to replicate his numbers over here either, if he even puts up 15 goals/10 assists… Read more »
Lucas Torriera will be gone . Leverkusen about to take kolasinac for 9 mil. Now we just need some one to gamble on one of Guendouzi, Chambers and Mustafi. There is also Balogun. Sokratis doesn’t have any value.
And I am reading rumors that we don’t need to raise funds for aouar. But we do to fund Partey. As I probably expected, It will be a transfer merry go round. Lyon got Paqueta, Athletico get Torriera. So it will come down to the wire for partey. Get him and I will be sure of a decent season.
Pedro It’s the straight arms down and back, chest popped up/out, that does it for me – I’ve seen guys refused entry to Chelmsford nightclubs, that’s the look right there. Frank is having none of it, he’s out shagging tonight and needs to get in to continue nibbling the ear off the one that looks like a Pete Burns in your peripheral vision. He’s promised her a line of Charlie and if he doesn’t deliver that’s him fucked for the evenings fanny prospects; now destined to go home with blood down his Armani Exchange polo following a Hail Mary effort… Read more »
Mourhino is the worst appointment for any club consumed on PR. Levi wouldn’t sign anyone for Poch and suddenly he opens the floodgate for the great moan.
He’s the epitome of anti-football
Anyone that can make Dele Ali the object of pity must be really bad.
With a match on Thursday as well there’s no way the Spud’s can afford to go to extra time.
Dissenter
All the signals point to Dele Alli being pushed out but there don’t seem to be many rumours.
CC
Fucking hell next you’ll be talking about hitting Hollywood’s in Romford!
My only regret about whats happened to Spurs by the FA cup win is that they aren’t traveling to Haifa tomorrow. But you can’t have it all.
Fulham have to strengthen their defense before the window closes.
Surely Chambers is the best fit; he’s premier league ready and has played under the Scott Parker before. Chambers would have read the writing on the wall- he’s finished at Arsenal. I expect we will get a very good fee for him this week.
He has to be weeks away from playing.
Marc
Hopefully that’ll be the case, just hope Dortmund don’t cave.
They don’t really need to given he’s 20 and will be worth more next summer and he doesn’t seem to be actively looking to get out of the club.
Wenger eagle I have seen him in the Bundesliga and I see him beating defenders that don’t focus. I think he would do good here but I don’t think he will grab double in both goals and assists. Pulisic is an anomaly for me. He has looked better in the premier league than he ever did at Dortmund. He has stepped up Jo’s game. And he is faster than Sancho. I see a lot of Sancho in Reiss Nelson minus the decision making and better shooting. Defenders in England kick players a lot. Fast players will always handle it better… Read more »
Test
I think that we get Aouar for about 40M.
I think ideally 45M Lyon would have preferred
whatever, just get him in.
I do hope for another surprise…
his game *
If Sancho was going back to man city I would definitely think he will do just as well though.
This new Chelsea GK, Mendy, is quite good, He’ll be their first GK soon.
Haha visions of Frankie rolling around in a jacked up Hummer with personalized Delboy plates.
Habesha He’s scoring and assisting goals in the CL as well. Reiss Nelson isn’t even in the same sport as this fella. It’s early days yet but look at how well James is playing at Everton, and he’s a snail compared to Sancho. He’s also lightweight and extremely reliant on his on-ball ability which is incredible. Pepe is rapid and look at how much he has struggled. Of course he has to develop his game but at age 20 he looks a generational talent, that’s why he’s commanding such a fee. When was the last time you saw a teenager… Read more »
This is quality:
https://twitter.com/_CFCBen/status/1311019817349062662?s=20
andy1886 and RT
“George Osborne was a disaster”
Actually the disaster was Gordon Brown who got the country in a total financial mess with
his profligacy and lack of fiscal and monetary control.
George Osborne was faced with an economic crisis not experienced since the end of Second World War.
Whilst no-one wanted to see austerity at least he took control of the economy something
that no labour government has ever managed to do. They know only how to spend and waste money.
Emirates
Whilst I agree with you you’re wasting your time.
How Red can claim Sunak has been a disaster is a joke.
Wengereagle Yes, There aren’t a lot of teenagers that put up those numbers for two seasons straight. But the team they are moving to also matters. Joao felix was performing to a high level too. But now he has transferred to a team that doesn’t suit him. He is struggling. Sancho is good. But there are also weaknesses to his game that he is yet to develop. For example he doesn’t track back much. And for a winger in the premier league that’s a necessity. In Dortmund he is afforded that luxury. I think he might possibly deliver double figures… Read more »
Why is Jose making such a spectacle of himself?
Has a Eric Dier left the pitch to use the gents?
zeus
Are you fucking serious?
Eric Dier went to take a shite
Don’t players wear adult nappies anymore?
I would say he will fare just about the same as Leroy Sane did when he comes here. But he is moving to a worse team and manager too.