Well, here we are my darlings, another day of planning our way out of this mess. This will be a joy-scroll, buckle up, it’ll be fun.
So, let’s get the bad news out of the way. It’s not good times on the injury front for Thomas Partey. If he’s fucked the same thing he fucked before, he’s going to be out of contention for maybe 8 weeks. That would be a huge blow to the project. You can understand why Mikel and his team took the chance. A willing player and a shit situation, but the reality is, they took a huge risk on a game we weren’t likely to win. Short term thinking to save a sinking season. Now the ship is sunk, then gamble looks a poor one.
The shame is that Gabriel M will be back early. He safely passed through 45 minutes of football and he’s well on his way to the first team. A huge moment for the team. He is the exact profile of player you want to see Arsenal stock up on going forward. He’s young, he’s hungry, he’s terrifying because he works like a dog, he wants to grow with the team.
As we move into December, Mikel Arteta needs to reshape the way he operates. He needs to bin the players who let him down, even if they’re the good guys behind the scenes. The fragility in this squad is both attitude, and sadly, functional purpose to the system.
Thomas Partey exiting the starting 11 should not be another opportunity for players that have been given countless chances under countless managers. It’s time to try something new.
The most obvious candidate for a run in the side is Ainsley Maitland-Niles. I can not longer tolerate the idea that he isn’t the correct choice for our midfield. I have seen the others fail, I know what the best is with them, it’s time to give someone a career here and coach the bad bits out.
Ainsley has the correct athletic profile. We’ve seen him pocket Traore. We’ve seen him control City attackers. When he is on, he is something we don’t have in the squad at Arsenal. He’s mobile, he’s dynamic, he has an underrated passing range and he should be developed.
The mistakes Arteta has made are clear. He wanted to shortcut to the Champions League and he made bum decisions that should have been rectified by a strong Technical Director. David Luiz, Auba, and Willian were not good decisions. Thinking he could take a squad where the senior players were either dreaming of their retirement or Bosman signings was fanciful.
The first stage of rectifying bad phase in the workplace is to identify the biggest problems you have. I don’t think Mikel has looked at himself, I don’t think he has people in his staff that are correcting him, but if he wants to escape this moment, it’s time to admit where it’s going wrong.
If you put 100 problems up on a wall at Arsenal and found the core patterns, you’d land on:
- Senior players letting the club down because they don’t give a fuck on and off the pitch. Auba is in the mixer I’m afraid.
- The wrong talent profile of players to operate a coherrant system so it’s functional
- Young players not ready to hit the heights of the ambition the club promised in the summer
Now, clearly it’s an oversimplification, but I write a blog, I don’t run corporate workshops of beleaguered football clubs.
But solve those three problems and you steady the fanbase, you show true leadership by admitting your vision wasn’t right, and you give people a taste of where things are going in a lower pressure environment.
The young players aren’t ready.
That’s a major problem if you are kidding the world Arsenal will be more than a midtable side this season. If Arteta starts dealing in truth, namely, the squad he enabled for another season is not fit for purpose, we can move forward.
If he sets out a new plan, one that works to his strengths, the fans might buy it. Arteta is a great coach, he will work better with kids than senior players who don’t care for developing, so focus on the kids.
At this point, most of us would be over the moon if we shifted to a Hale-Enders project. Fuck the players that never change. Give me a kid that sees Arsenal as the biggest opportunity in their world. Fuck the players thinking about their retirement fund and unauthorised weekends away with Salt Bae. Fuck the player that think they are too good for Europa. We are tired of those that think their seniority and past achievements mean they don’t have to hit the required level.
Being honest gives Arteta permission to play the system he wants to play. Will it make top 4? No. Will we get spanked occasionally? Yes. Will there be days when we turn it on and everyone salivates? Absolutely. The mission here is to show the fans where the football could go when we bring in more quality players that can do the things required.
The Hale-Enders aren’t perfect, but they sure as hell give more of a shit than the preferred starting 11 on offer now. You think Balogun is going to fuck his chance to be a big player? You think ESR would be static when a midfielder breaks the lines from deep? You think Reiss Nelson isn’t going to bleed to be a part of Arsenal’s future?
I have consistently written about Arsenal not being honest about their situation over the years. We have constantly let our ‘rep’ get in the way of the rebuild. In messy business rebuild, you have to go to the bottom to build back up. The foundations need to be set properly. You need good process. Then you build the right talent density to move things up a level. You get some things right, some wrong, but if the mission is clear, your rectify mistakes early and move incrementally forward on a quarterly basis
Arsenal has been unwilling to do the hard work. So many of our decisions are half baked. Ivan goes? Give the job to two unqualified people. Sven Mislintat quits because he was horrified by the antics of a horror show of a Football Director. What do we do? We let that soiled director carry on and replace scouting expertise with a coterie of shite super agents. We then hire a Technical Director that arrived via a super agent. Hire an inexperienced manager, watch him do some great work, then PROMOTE HIM almost immediately to a manager on the same level as the Technical Director people don’t rate.
Wow… the banter of that paragraph was intense.
Arsenal do not like hard work. They do not like a plan. They cannot be honest about the path forward being hard, so they shortcut it over and over. The hardest thing to do in football is to admit to fans that things are going to be shit for a bit, to show patience, and commit to something that makes sense.
We should be re-upping Project Youth. Imagine that team with the spine we have now? We’d be a top 3 side.
Arsenal should move to a Dortmund+ model. Come to Arsenal, give us 3 seasons, we’ll give you game time at the best stadium in London, and we’ll make you famous. Then you can fuck off for £100m.
Sign athletes. Sign players that care more about self-improvement than money (Balogun is agitating for game time, not £90k a week). Sign players with high ceilings. Make Arsenal a destination for progressive football.
I would buy that vision. You would buy that vision. It’d be exciting. It’d allow us to get back to an identity. It’d bring in a new fanbase. It would mean when we do make the Champions League, we’d actually have a squad that could compete for it, not disintegrate because they were injecting themselves with horse placenta to make it to the team bus.
Strong leadership is needed to admit that what is going on right now is not taking us the promised land. We need a new direction. Tough decisions need to be made around staffing, players, and the hard work ahead. The only way Arteta gets back on track is to do something different. He fucked the summer, his ambitions were too big for his belly, his idea has no chance of success, he has to change that now and craft a path forward and save his career.
Time to roll up the sleeves. He can do it. Does he have the cajones to? Jury is out…
LISTEN TO OUR NEW PODCAST. Matt and I talk about the root cause of our issues. Leadership, hard work, and lack of strategy… still. We also talk some positives as well.
Mikel Arteta; ““He [Partey] got injured in the same area, not exactly the same spot but the same area as before. He will miss the next few matches,”
“not exactly the same spot but the same area as before”?
Distinction without a difference, nice try Mikel.
Interesting…
https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/13429343/mikel-arteta-max-allegri-arsenal-manager/
Dissenter, ““He [Partey] got injured in the same area, not exactly the same spot but the same area as before. He will miss the next few matches,” It is a minor distinction but a major deflection. If it was the exact same spot, then it is just aggravating the same injury which clearly had not fully healed. If it is the in the same area, it meant that it is a new injury. It is just that he has not had the time to fully rebuild his muscle. In the first scenario it is clearly the medical department and the… Read more »
Wenger Eagle
Thanks
Valentin Dissenter
It’s a thigh injury and thighs have muscles with names, not spots.
It’s either the same muscle or it isn’t.
Anyone who played professionally knows basic anatomy and especially muscle anatomy.
Arteta is being full of it there.
If it’s Allegri let’s hope they give him English proficiency test.
What’s good ebening in Italian ?
Half of them are two losses away from joining an Idaho militia.
LOL I can see that!
Players will raise their game to avoid playing under a winner.
I remember watching the WEC and enjoying the fights back then. Then UFC bought them and it was over.
I still watch UFC but I hate Dana White
Allegri,
Like a brand new Ferrarri…. ready to go!
I like Allegri, but he must demand that Stan fund the team or he should would walk away again.
Of course this is all click bait
Graham
True winners don’t want top 4, they want to win. Our owners, our board, Wenger and Gazidis are the reasons for our fall from grace.
So before Wenger we were serial winners were we? Year after year raking in those trophies?…What is this era of grace you refer to?
https://youtu.be/0zY0RSUA224 11 hours without a goal from open play in the league…what a waste of a creative talent.. His awareness on a football pitch is so apparent, one and 2 touch football done with effortless ease. Pass and move , one and 2 touch football…we don’t even attemp it nowadays. Guaranteed he will get our strikers firing again they want the ball to feet and in the channels. A crazy situation that we have such a talent going to waste because he missed a pathetic zoom meeting.. Bring the fans back and let them have their say, they want to… Read more »
Guns of SF
“I still watch UFC but I hate Dana White”
Dana White has to have the persona of a first class douche bag to deal with those fighters under the UFC umbrella.
Have you seen him with the fighters, he doesn’t mince any word nor withdraw an inch.
Guns
We have a reasonable good team, bar 1-2 attacking midfielders
“I still watch UFC but I hate Dana White”
The people I know at ESPN say they have to shower after dealing with him, and are pissed because he currently has so much clout. None of his people got hit during the 350+ employee layoff a couple of weeks ago.
The one guy who had the sack to call him on his shit — Dan LeBatard, whose incredible podcast gets a million d/l’s a day — just announced he’s leaving ESPN at the beginning of January.
Oh man.. I take a few days off from the usual repetitive stuff over and over….. And what’s the first thing I read…
Another love letter from Pierre to Ozil.. Fuck sakes. It never ends.
“Have you seen him with the fighters, he doesn’t mince any word nor withdraw an inch.”
That’s what you can get away with when you run the only game in town. A mid-level female featherweight would kick his teeth down his throat if he didn’t have to power to end her career.
Pierre
You’re not making a very good case for Ozil with this link.
The first two minutes ( it was all I watched) it was all simple short range, leading to nothing passes, which is what most Ozil detractors have been saying on here.
Tom
The reason Pierre is not making a good case for Özil is because is no good case for Özil.
Arteta
“We have some really good examples of things that have happened in the last few months and not only players that are starting football matches in different competitions, but as well, players that have taken the spot of somebody senior in that team or that squad.”
https://youtu.be/wjxPqYxDt-o
Bojangles
“The reason Pierre is not making a good case for Özil is because is no good case for Özil.”
11 hours without a goal from open play.
I rest my case.
Pierre,
I’m sorry and I know this hurts, but he’s gone. He’s not coming back.
You can make an argument that the Europa League represents our only chance of making the Champions League based on current form. Assuming we are clear of relegation fears at the end of January we can move to a new approach. It will benefit everyone even if the senior players get their noses bent out of shape. I’m not sure what the regulations are but when we can revise our squads mid-season then I would bring back both Ozil (Europa League squad) and Saliba (Premier League squad). We can drop Mustafi off both squads as he’s leaving in the summer… Read more »
Mid west
Its a total contradiction on Le Grove …Le Groaners whinge all day about our lack of creativity but celebrate the fact our most creative player has been ostacised for missing a zoom meeting..
Fools.
Pierre- “there are no trophies for coming third. It’s all about the trophies”
TROLOLOLOL
That’s exactly what you were saying when we had a roughly decade long trophy drought, wasn’t it?
Absolute muppet you are lol. You can’t even be bothered to pretend to be consistent
For the record I’d rather be a good cup team that wins lesser trophies but fails in the league than a team that always comes top 4 and never wins anything, but you can’t have it both ways when you defended wenger for a decade without trophies. Get serious
Bacaryis god
You miss my point ..i don’t want him back , i want someone, anyone who can get the attack firing..
I’d be more than happy to see Eriksen come in or ESR given a chance ..
Szoboszlai and Aouar are massively over rated from what I’ve seen .
China
You will never find a comment of mine that will say i would rather finish top 4 than win a trophy..
Mikel Arteta; “We had an incredible performance at the derby but we lost the game”
Yup, you heard it right.
Good morning Graham “The present owner is uninterested and, to be honest, an embarrassment, whilst our board are set in the Stone Age.” Speaking of stone age is there any truth to the rumour that ES’s posts here are being monitored by Tim Lewis and the board as to ES’s inclusion to the board? News emanating from the board members was concerns about flip flopping and toeing the Arsenal company line. However, on further inspection it was deemed that ES was extremely proficient in both, and thus will be invited to the directors’ Xmas party to be further vetted. A… Read more »
This is America
https://twitter.com/alanheathcock/status/1336702939977588738
https://twitter.com/Phil_Lewis_/status/1335766211687313409
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYQm9H7tWI8
Diss
Honestly can we stop slagging off Wenger.
His successors have done more harm in 2 years that he did in 12 years, at least with Wenger he left you some wonderful memories.
That had Pierre running for his sock draw.
Never had you down as a Troll/baiter.
That was straight out of Pierre troll book.
Pierre
The problem is you rarely talk about anything other than Ozil. I actually think bringing him back for Europa wouldn’t be a bad idea. He’ll be motivated to play for his next contract (not with us, of course) and maybe even reignite Auba.
When the hell are the repubs going to give up trying to somehow over turn this election? They try and file blatant lies in court every day and keep getting kicked in the teeth.
Its amazing…. these losers will stop at nothing….
Bacary
Probably a decent call as our Europa group is about Ozil’s level where he might last more than 60 minutes.
However, a resounding no for the PL: he’s too much of a coward for the PL.
If we get Erickson in the winter Edu needs to be fired.
We need a rebuild- losing about 6/7 players.
Jan is part of our overall rebuild…. please no more freebie aged journeymen who were once good.
If that is what Edu wants to bring in, what the F does he do all day? honestly can someone tell me what Edu does
Tony-that’s why I’m saying drop Mustafi from both Europa and Premier League squads and have Ozil play Europa and Saliba play Premier League.
Ok, I’ve figured it out.
Gasperini as new manager and Bergkamp as his assistant (Dennis speaks fluent Italian).
Sorry SF but america is fucked. Its so broken. A dumpster fire
It is no better than “the shithole” countries drumph was talking about.
He has ruined your rep all over the world and is turning you into a laughing stock.
Hes going to take the whole country down with him.
Hopefully Biden will bring some normalcy back but dont know if thats possible with the like of Lindsey, McCo.nnel, ted cruz etc
With all due respect
Arteta never used to play Martinelli when he was fit. After Chelsea, he was never played again except once on the right wing.
The key to saving Arsenal is quite simple and it is:
ARTETA OUT
Since day dot Arteta has been poor tactically, in terms of team selection and also via choice of substitution. It’s usually a lot of like for like changes.
Until Arteta is sacked expect the downward spiral to continue.
Snowkid-I love America and it’s been good to me but it might just be broken beyond repair right now.
Its called democracy. its when the loser packs their shit and leaves because not enough people voted for them. You pack your stuff and leave and try harder next time.
Why cant republicans get this simple concept?
I can understand the cowardice of the Republicans in the House and Senate. Trump has 95% approval in the Republican Party and one word from him could sink their political futures. So they all keep their mouths shut. As they say, democracy dies in silence.
Thank god local Republican election officials (especially in Georgia) and Trump-selected conservative judges have shown more integrity.
All this talk of Allegri is probably his agent trying to stir the pot to get him noticed again… Fella has not worked for 2 years now.
Not sure I would appreciate his defensive approach tho.
That is the last thing we need to turn into…. I mean its happening already with disaster results
Give me a coach like Bielsa…. a smart, modest and wedded to attacking entertaining football coach.
Guns-here’s the scariest part. Any Republican that has shown any integrity will get voted out in the next set of Republican primaries. They’ll then vote in Trump radicals who really will break the system next time.
Last month Maradona. This month Paolo Rossi. Not a good month for World Cup legends. If I was Mario Kempes I would be worried right about now.
So tonight I watched Boca Juniors v Internacional in the Copa Liberatodres.
Tevez while still aggressive is a shell of his old self.
The level of refereeing is obnoxious. Coaches and bench players getting yellows, Yes on the field its like attempted murder with some tackles with no cards….
No wonder players and coaching staff are always yelling and screaming. The shit show affects both teams
There are some good players but the level is not like Europe. The good players you immediately notice in these teams…
Boca won on penalties, coming from behind.
A different world, South American football….
Haha Bacary!
I agree, these republicans eat each other every time …. no such thing as loyalty… its all about looking out for number 1 with them….
Trump wants to re run in 2024, I hope he is dead by then.
His offspring might try but I dont think folks will but into this wanna be presidential dynasty family.
Biden cannot turn a blind eye to Trump, It will hurt him…. he needs to go after Trump for the serious crimes he committed in office…
Bacary
Rossi a real Italian Hero!
however, I will always feel Brazil 1982 was the best world cup team ever to not win the title…
Zico is hands down the equal to Maradona.
The other day I watched a few hours of Brazil 82 team. They dispatched Argentina with Maradona with ease.
Eder did the most atrocious free kick in that game I have ever seen in my life.
Maradona karate kicked the Brazil sub about 5 minutes when he came on… got a RED card.
He redeemed himself in 86 tho
That was the football I love.
The talent was crazy…. they do not make players like that anymore…. technical geniuses and all out attacking football, along with toughness not seen anymore.
Heaven forbid you try and dive back in those days. you might get knifed or beaten after the match…
Just a different era….
I can watch Zico highlight reels all day. what a player
Eders free kick… from all angles… v Argentina 82 WC
the sheer audacity of this! I love it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJ1CnzGLc6I
Yeah, Maradona was only 21 at the 1982 World Cup and was nowhere near his 1986 version. It was that summer he left local football for Barcelona.
I think 1982 is still considered to be the greatest World Cup Finals. France, Brazil, Italy, Germany and even England had really strong teams.
Scotland had Dalglish, Souness, Strachan, Hansen etc and got destroyed by Brazil. Just looked at the Scotland team for that game and for some reason Dalglish was a sub.
Maradona was a pure prodigy. I cannot believe the abuse he took on the pitch,…. no wonder he was coked up after!
I love the last part of this video when he made that Madrid defender impale his testicles on the post… lol
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yv_JvjGdi34
Guns
I agree in regards Trump.
He has to suffer the consequences of his inept leadership and, as you rightly highlight “the serious crimes he committed in office”.
“I think 1982 is still considered to be the greatest World Cup Finals. France, Brazil, Italy, Germany and even England had really strong teams.“ Don’t forget Poland. At the tail end of its golden generation but with influx of some new blood, Poland were extremely unlucky to lose their best player , Boniek, to a yellow card accumulation and a suspension for the semis against Italy; If you want to see what Boniek did to Belgium (3:0 hot trick), and Peru (5:1) in earlier stages just google it. Peru came in as one of the best South American teams but… Read more »
* hat trick
I thought the Dutch were supposed to have been the best sids in 1974.
They weren’t.
Poland had the super fast golden boot winner , two of the best wingers , a playmaker only inferior to Cruyff , and a gritty supporting cast.
Germany’s Paul Breitner: “ They had a better team at that World Cup than Germany, Netherlands, Brazil, or anyone else for that matter. The poles had the best team in 1974”
Poland beat Brazil for bronze.
Breitner would say that as Holland ard bitter rivals to Germany.
Poland had the quickest players in that World Cup and playing on the waterlogged pitch against the Germans completely nullified their strengths.
Why would a World Cup winner say the team that lost to them in the semis was better that anyone ? Makes no sense.
If he wanted to put down the Dutch he didn’t have to do same to his own team,.
Anywho, water under the bridge.
I’m not saying Poland would’ve won it mind you.
Just that they were better that year than anyone else talent wise.
Rinus Michels’ Holland side was built on the principles that had allowed Dutch teams to win four straight European Cups. It was dubbed Total Football and while historians traced its roots right back to the legendary Jimmy Hogan a hundred years ago, it was Michels’ Ajax team and, later, Holland that came to define it. Germany 1974 was their coming out party at World Cup level and the globe was mesmerized. Players seemed to glide elegantly across the pitch, freely switching positions in a kind of choreographed footballing ballet. Opponents were stunned. Centre backs didn’t know what to do when… Read more »
No
I thought you had wrote that for a second calypso.
Calypso I think you’re confusing mine saying Poland had better players that year with Poland played the best football, they didn’t. It was a purpose built, very talented side put together behind the iron curtain that consisted of players with a fraction of international and European exposure the Dutch stars of the era had. No,one is question the brilliance of Dutch total football but I suppose this might come as news to you that even the most eye pleasing system can be beat by another. Also, if your gonna use someone else’s work to buttress your own opinions maybe try… Read more »
Yesterday’s player of the day had got to be Shakthar’s goalkeeper – Anatoli Trubin. It was basically Inter vs Trubin. And he’s barely 19 years old. Those are the kind of players we should be keeping an eye on.
Also, no Polish player under 30 was allowed to be sold abroad in those days and the quality of coaching at a club level in the communist Poland was far inferior to anything in Western Europe let alone in Holland.
This alone makes their achievements even more remarkable.
Arteta needs to win the next 3 games. We are 9 points from top 4 and 7 from relegation, so it’s make or break time. If we fail to win the next 3 games, I think the club will start looking for a new manager. Maybe get in Ted Lasso, at least he can fix the inter relationship between players and board even if he doesn’t get results, he leaves the club at a better place mentally.
Arteta needs 10 points in the next 8 games or I will be areta out
“Also, no Polish player under 30 was allowed to be sold abroad in those days”
I thought England had this in place during the last couple of the decades, but it’s turns out it was just because the players were so shit no foreign club wanted them.
I created a Twitter account to vote for your Oreos, Pedro.
Still only 43%, which suggests to me either they are better or else one of the creatives has an Arsenal blog which was anti Arteta joining the club.
London gunner
Can we get 3 points against Burnley?
That should be our first priority.