Arsenal lost their first game since Manchester City away at Anfield to a team that has lost 1 in 27 games.
It was brutal.
A lesson in the true meaning of elite.
Fear not. This won’t be a blog post catastrophising the result because we have moved well beyond that sort of stuff. We’re not at the end of the journey with this squad. We’re at the start. Unbeaten runs are welcome but don’t think they will be the norm for at least a couple of years, there’s still a lot of work to be done.
Losing 4-0 to any team is always going to sting, but it wasn’t the same as City at home, there we real positives. The first half was very good as far as I’m concerned. We competed with Liverpool, there was good structure, and everyone was up for the fight (including Arteta on the touchline).
The game didn’t turn on the first goal. We came out for the second half firing and we looked like a team that was going to have a crack. Sadly, the game turned on the second goal. Nuno Tavares, a player that has been very impressive, won the ball in defence, broke forward, and passed directly to Jota who did extremely well to finish past Ramsdale.
Everything went downhill after that. We saw firsthand the difference in experience and quality. Our heads dropped, the game plan fell apart, and we let Liverpool happen to us. Getting spanked like that always hurts, but remember, this Liverpool side turned around a 3-0 deficit at Anfield to a Barcelona that had Messi in it… they’ve been together 6 years, they are a team at the peak of their powers, we are a team at the start of our journey.
There are certainly some areas of concern. Our senior players didn’t really show up when we needed them.
We need to talk about Auba. I love him, he’s changed his game this season, the pressing is notable… but it’s not enough. He can’t become the striker this system needs. He’s not present enough because let’s be fair, his game has never been about that. We’re trying to turn him into something he’ll never be. We can ride it out against lesser teams like Spurs, but we’re always going to struggle in big away games because he doesn’t have the power or the game to be devastating against clubs like Liverpool.
The trouble with Auba and Lacazette is you need one player that adopts the strengths both currently share between themselves. Our team is crying out for a striker with the aggression and link-up play of Lacazette combined with the pace of Auba in his prime. We also need someone that can dominate like Adebayor or Olivier Giroud. Two of our most experienced players aren’t quite right and our younger strikers just aren’t ready. It’s no use shouting ‘GABRIEL MARTINELLI’ because we’ve seen him blow his chances this season against lesser teams. It’ll be baby steps with him and Liverpool certainly wasn’t the game for Arteta to drop on him.
Our biggest problem was midfield. They weren’t brave. The same issues we suffered against Brighton and Palace fizzed up in relevance again. The first half was compact, Thomas Partey and Sambi Lokonga did a really good job. They still didn’t play through Liverpool though. We didn’t really open up the game to our forwards the way we know those players can. We let Liverpool get into our heads, that made it hard for us.
I don’t want to say it, you don’t want me to say it, but a game like that needed a peak Xhaka next to Thomas Partey. He always shows, he never cowers, and he will move the ball forward. I’m actually really looking forward to having him as an option because in certain games, he gives us experience and skills we’re lacking a little bit at the moment. That’s not a sleight on Sambi Lokonga, there aren’t many 21-year-old midfielders in world football equipped to hold their own against Liverpool. It’s just part of our reality. Sambi is going to be a great in 2 years. This season, he’ll be great in certain games, because inconsistency is just part of the mix. If you need reassurance, just read what one of the Premier Leagues’ greatest defenders in Premier League history said about him recently.
‘The first thing I did when I saw Sambi is I went to Mikel and said, ‘You’ve got to watch this guy, he’s the new Yaya Toure.’
“What I like with Sambi – and it’s rare in football, what Yaya did have – is he wants the ball no matter what.
“If the teams not doing well, give the ball to Sambi. If the team’s doing well, give the ball to Sambi. He will never hide away from his responsibility.
“He has things he has to improve… if he remembers the conversations we’ve had, he will know exactly what he still has to work on but at the same time… Yaya was a finisher and that’s a very rare thing to have. I don’t know about that [with Sambi].”
“The point is you need players who are not afraid to have the ball when the going gets tough. As a centre-back, your job stops at a certain point on the ball.
“And you need to be able to give it to people who see the next pass, see the next move, take responsibility, take people on and put that tempo in when there’s no tempo in the game anymore. For me, that’s what Sambi has that makes him special.”
I’ll take his view over @Registorama⁰⁰⁷, 2000 Twitter followers, working at Carpetright in Slough.
Our defence conceded 4 goals, that’s not good, but I do feel confident that the group is going to get better and better. One thing is for certain now, we can play the ball out the back. Everyone is really comfortable. Ramsdale is just so, so elite. What a player. Hopefully, he doesn’t have too many games where he’s that busy. The rest of the unit is raw, but there’s a lot to love about them. Again, remember, the oldest player in our back 5 is 24 years old, there is SO much growth.
The investment this summer will pay dividends, but to move forward, we likely need a revamp of our frontline. If you have a DCL, Isak, Oshimen or a Tammy A in that starting 11, we’re a different proposition.
Games like Liverpool also show you the limitations of a project strategy like the one we’ve embraced. ESR and Saka weren’t at their prodigious best. That will happen. They are incredibly young to be occupying such important positions. That doesn’t mean their lapses don’t hurt us. Bukayo found some great spaces in the first half, there were three occasions when he had a choice to make that could have opened the game, each time, he picked the wrong one. Those moments change games. Simple as that. That’s part of the learning experience and the deal we do as fans when we have exciting kids in the squad. He’ll get better because of it, but that’s the difference between Arsenal and Liverpool. Salah and Firmino are both 29, ESR and Saka are 19 and 21. Want some context on that? Sadio Mane was starting his first season with Metz at 19 years old. He managed 22 appearances and 2 goals that season. Saka had made 85 Premier League appearances and started in the final of an international tournament by the time he was 20 in September. Mo Salah? He was playing for Al Mokawloon, he hadn’t made it to Switzerland or spent time with Jose Mourinho who would bin him to Roma. I really, really don’t want to be reading shite commentary that our Hale-End boys don’t have the skills to hit the highest of levels. You cannot treat Saka and ESR like they’re seasoned veterans, because they are not.
Arsenal is currently a very naive outfit. Liverpool isn’t just an outrageous squad from a technical perspective, they know the dark arts. Sadio Mane is a cheat, that’s why he riles everyone. When he’s firing into challenges, he’s a warrior, dropping elbows, crunching limbs, all under the guise of innocence… when he’s on the ball, someone brushes past him he hits the deck and screams like he’s been hit by artillery shrapnel. Arsenal don’t do that. We’re too honest. Tomiyasu is case in point, he’d stay on his feet if someone was clubbing him with a boot. Most of our players operate that way. We need to grow some fangs and find that edge that all the best teams have. It’ll come, but that sort of instinct for the game needs to be taught.
I did see a few people complaining about Arteta kicking off with Klopp, some journos suggested the game pivoted on that. Honestly, grow up. That for me was a ‘my manager’ moment. The greats kick-off and fight for their players. That’s the first time I’ve seen him do that. I loved it. Wenger did it. Fergie did it. Mourinho did it. Klopp and Pep do it. For 40 minutes, that game felt like a classic Arsenal game of the past. Everyone was up for the fight, the temperature was off the charts, and it felt like we were competing. It didn’t end that way, but look, Klopp doesn’t get that riled for games he thinks he’s breezing. It’s also extremely amusing that the crowd that whines relentlessly about the winnertivity of Guendouzi for having a go at Maupay AFTER a game had finished, are the same complaining about Arteta decorum. For the record, Simeone, Ferguson&Wenger, Pep G, and Mourinho have all been up to worse. If your moan today is Arteta stuck up for his players against a cheat, you need to get in the bin. Also, reference the last paragraph, it’s amusing that a segment of our fanbase is as green as our players. If you’re moaning about managerial decorum as Mane brings Masters Degree levels of shit-housery to the game, I really have to ask if you’re even paying attention.
Losing to Liverpool away at Anfield stings. We haven’t won there since 2012, so plenty of experienced Arsenal teams have dealt with this sort of defeat. We can do better, we will do better, but today we couldn’t do it. The internal target has to be to right the wrong at The Emirates.
The bigger job now is the next game. Arsenal, for 25 years, have always been awful after a great run of ‘unbeaten.’ Wenger’s teams were always clunky after a big run ended, Emery’s 21 game unbeaten run ended and the bad form didn’t stop until he was fired, Arteta had a good start last season, then sunk into hell. We can’t let this game kill our momentum. We have to react. That’s what big teams do.
We’re in Phase 4™ of the season. Arguably the toughest. This phase lasts until January 1st. It’s brutal. It happens fast. It goes a long way to deciding how a season finishes.
Saturday 20th November: Liverpool (A)- Saturday 27th November: Newcastle United (H)
- Thursday 2nd December: Manchester United (A)
- Monday 6th December: Everton (A)
- Saturday 11th December: Southampton (H)
- Wednesday 15th December: West Ham United (H)
- Saturday 18th December: Leeds United (A)
- Sunday 26th December: Norwich City (A)
- Tuesday 28th December: Wolverhampton Wanderers (H)
- Saturday 1st January: Manchester City (H)
There were 30 points to play for. We’ve dropped 3 already. 27 are available. Our target for this phase should be 20 points. If we can deliver that, I suspect we’ll very much be within spitting distance of top 4.
The back half of the season will see our big games played at home. Our young players will have adapted to the Arteta system and will have learned more about each other and the expectations of The Arsenal. The benefits of no European football should start to pay dividends as some of our rivals move into the next stages of Europe.
Arteta needs to pick the players up from this heavy defeat. Newcastle arrives in 7 days, then we have a really big test against a United that I suspect will have no coach by that point. That’s a chance to make a dent in their top 4 challenge to make it impossible for their next manager and it’s a chance for the coaching staff to earn a little fan capital back.
This season is still on track my friends. Leicester lost, West Ham lost, Palace drew, Brighton lost, and United lost. Spurs can’t go above us tomorrow, nor can Everton. We are still 5th in the table, 3 points behind 3rd, 5 behind 2nd, after a game we didn’t really have much of a chance to win. The most important thing now is winning our next game and making sure we stay in the pack.
Ignore the catastrophisers that had nothing to say during the 3-month unbeaten run. If you are a person that thinks there’s an ‘I told you so’ moment after an away loss against Liverpool, you are a f*cking idiot. If you see people calling time on the project today, just think about how sad their Arsenal existence is. Their love is not with the club, it’s with their dead agendas they are trying to resurrect because they’ve forgotten what being a supporter is all about.
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Literally just in the middle of watching the game back on MOTD when the post went up
That game sucked…
Actually thought we could get something from it
Stupid me
Not read the post yet but yesterday was a real mixture for me. Tale of 2 halves.
First half wasn’t perfect by any means (especially because of the goal) but we showed real positive signs, we held our own against an excellent Liverpool side and generally gave a good account of ourselves.
Second half was disastrous.
Such a shame, as very hard to know what to take from that game.
Tavares… ouch
Oh, I got the tr4phy….
4th?
7th is what you get for reading the article first……
Quite agree with most points, a loss to Liverpool however painful is not the end of the world, still plenty to play for and we have been quite good these last few games. I wouldn’t draw to much from the loss.
Arsenal don’t do that. We’re too honest. Pedro Some good stuff there except for the little nugget above. Hypocrisy much? I thought I’d have wait a few weeks to catch you but this opinion is the polar opposite to the hard nosed, fuck ’em attitude you were holding after our goal againsr Watford. You defended our right to be uncompromising and cheaty if it meant three points. Now you’re whinging that we don’t carry out enough dark arts and that we’re somehow victims. I told you Liverpool would be in full cheating mode – they always are til the win… Read more »
Brilliant Pedro 👍
Absolutely nailed it, brilliant post, full of common sense
Bang on Pedro, it’s all a learning curve and to see MA giving it to Klopp was a joy. Mane is a cheat, Klopp is a narcissist. Trust the process
“I don’t want to say it, you don’t want me to say it, but a game like that needed a peak Xhaka next to Thomas Partey. He always shows, he never cowers, and he will move the ball forward”
Huh? Do we have two Xhakas? Is there another Xhaka whose existence I’m not aware of? cos you can’t honestly be talking about that slow, sideways passing cunt.
@Kroenkephobe
That is why winning at Anfield in 89 and sticking it to the bin dippers will always be my favourite game
For some reason I believe the coveted T4ophy is up for grabs this season unless Utd go berserk and bring in Zidane
West Ham will surely falter in the final stages.
We just need to keep winning against all the teams that are not named Chelsea , Liverpool and Citeh
That wasn’t a fumble. It was a good hiding. Again. What exactly did the coaching team do to prepare for the Liverpool game? Because once again we went to Anfield and looked clueless. Other sides go there and come away with something and even give the bin dippers a scare. But we go there and come away with only the risk of a back injury to our keeper to show for it. How do a team like Brighton go there and avoid a hammering? Are we really to believe our players are less than the sum of the parts of… Read more »
Also ,sorry to admit it, but I loved seeing Arteta go mad. Shows how much he cares. Not saying he’s our new Wenger, but I have no complaints about his tussle with klopp . But with Ole getting the sack ( or about too), I think this could put the pressure on Arteta and the board and they’ll be looking closely at the next 3-4 games.
Just to add for those who think the dial has been moved, that apart from the FA Cup wins, we can only judge ourselves against the top sides by what we are currently producing. Chelsea, City and Liverpool so far this season. Scored none, conceded 11.
Xhaka is of the same type as Harry Maguire. They are always one step too slow. In a game like that, he’ll more likely get a red card.
Sorry, but NO. Aerteta is in his third season at the club, so under no circumstances could you call this “the beginning”. Last night proved he will never come anywhere near to winning the league. Finishing 4th and getting spanked constantly by so called “Big Boys” is not a progress. Also, Viera had lost half as many games as that ‘genius’ Arteta. Vieira is the man.
Great post Pedro.
Would like to add that people complaining about Tavares should take note that both mistakes occurred while he was trying to progress the ball, crucial against a team like Liverpool because both the midfielders and strikers weren’t giving easy options for the ball.
We desperately need a dribbling hold up striker and someone who can cause problems on his own rather than a weak and feeble Aubameyang or pace limited Lacazette .
At this point in time neither Martinelli or Nketiah are the solution either.
@Dolomite
In what fckng universe passing the ball backwards/sideways is seen as “trying to progress the ball”?
For Auba, not only his first touch is gone, for two games in a row, he got himself in an offside position at a critical time killing a counter attacking opportunity.
Pedro As you have posted today the priority for Arsenal in the next two transfer windows is the recruitment of a top class striker and possibly a replacement winger for Pepe. Whilst there are some posters who think that Nketiah, Martinelli and Balogun should be given a chance that is clearly not the short term solution. Nketiah has been on the fringes of the first team squad for several years and has failed to make a breakthrough. Okay he scored prolifically at U23 and Academy levels and has also managed to score goals periodically in Carabo Cup, but the fact… Read more »
” I don’t want to say it, you don’t want me to say it, but a game like that needed a peak Xhaka next to Thomas Partey. He always shows, he never cowers, and he will move the ball forward. ” Pedro what ? Are you watching the same Granit Xhaka for the past 5 years ? If Auba and Laca cant cut it in Arteta’s system , Granit Xhaka should never even be considered. But I hope you’re right cos we are gonna need him when Partey goes to AFCON. I fear thats the month which Arteta’s plan might… Read more »
This is the same Granit Xhaka we are talking about that we had to play him at auxillary Left back when Tierney bombed forward .
We can debate the merits of experienced guys like Aubameyang, Lacazette and Partey. However, the concerning part is that talentwise, I believe long term players like White, Gabriel and Lokonga aren’t up to the level.
I’ve been watching the post match manager interviews and was impressed by Gerard’s –a cool, balanced perspective that I didn’t expect…
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/59362296
Arteta was Mr Naive against Liverpool. He was to blame. He set a poor example for the young players. PEA is the one who needs to stick up for his team mates, to show some backbone, but he is more concerned about being ‘cool’. Arteta is the one to stick up for his players at the press conference after, like he did after Watford with the throw in dispute.
It’s a mental block, we have it in our DNA to lose to Liverpool and city,, we have players and to some extent a manager who has never won at anfield , they carry that mental scar, they don’t know how to get results there. Take Liverpool for example they never won the league with the likes of Gerard and carragher and their old guard , we also have to get rid of players like them in and around the squad, and have players going to games fearless and believing they can get a result at those places.
It was 0-0 when Arteta snapped.
Also, why do The Arsenal need to be in Europe to attract Haaland? The Arsenal weren’t in Europe when Bergkamp signed.
Pedro Sorry to say but you are talking out of your backside in defending Arteta’s touchline madness. Without a shadow of doubt the game changed from that moment on. Up until then we were coping reasonably well with liverpool’s sporadic attacks, the crowd had become subdued and we had a good footing in the game. I’m sure Arteta will question himself when he analyses what occured and will regret his loss of composure, i don’t suppose the Arsenal players are overly pleased with the action of someone who should know the importance of not inciting a situation that will create… Read more »
gnarleygeorge9 That was then. This is now. Haaland is a regular CL player at Dortmund. He’ll want to join a regular CL club. Have a chance to make 300k a week or more. In very rare occurrences do you see top.players join no CL clubs. Kanté.joined a poor Chelsea side. But they paid him high wages and won the title in less than a year. A better version of the Leicester.he was in. Pretty sure one of the reasons Kroenkes are going for a “young rebuild” is to keep.wages low. According to Miguel Delaney, Arsenals wage bill is half of… Read more »
The sad aspect of yesterday’s result is that there will now be a call for the return of Xhaka and Tierny and the previous performances of Tavares and Lakonga in the unbeaten run will be forgotten.
I made a conscious decision the other week to refrain from nagging Pedro and actually apologised for some of my comments. Big mistake!! To defend Arteta for his tactics is woeful. There are numerous reasons why but the bottom line here is that it shows once again just how aloof of reality Pedro has become. Ever been to Anfield Pedro. Ever heard of the importance of the 12th man? They and Klopp love nothing more than a good old fight. It wasn’t the fact Arteta got annoyed, he actually totally lost it. It played into Liverpool’s and Klopp’s hands. At… Read more »
Going to say it, InsideRight nailed it solidly. Yesterday was not about young and inexperienced players, it was once again about a young and inexperienced manager who, after 101 matches, still delivers meh results and conducts himself like a windmill of naivety. What i took from yesterday was that Arsenal and Arteta were taught an abject footballing lesson and knocked down a solid and thorough rung by a far superiorly managed and disciplined club. If not for Ramsdale, this one easily would have been closer to 10 than it was to 4 goals against. Lots to take away from this… Read more »
Graham and Pierre are saying exactly what I was thinking.
There was a point just before that incident happened you could hear our fans singing.
I have refrained from discussing Xhaka, because he is marmite with many Arsenal Supporters. Many who post on Le Grove view him as a liability. However, I do think that Arsenal will keep him on the books for the foreseeable future for reasons expressed by those including myself who think that he can do a decent job if he plays alongside an athletic and quality central midfielder. Playing him alongside the likes of Elneny is of course a nono. I have maintained that Arsenal will not go out and buy an expensive central/defensive midfielder because Patino is on the horizon.… Read more »
Once I saw Chelsea absolutely spank Leicester I knew we were levels off. Not a disgrace to lose to Liverpool, but we are still a long way away. Goals are still at a premium. Sambi, looks decent but in the first half saw him turn back when we could have released in a rare moment. He had a shocker in second half. Young boy but we knew mf was light coming into the season. Ye I’m not sure on auba now. He’s also offfisode quite a bit. Has he started to doubt his pace? He had open forked and went… Read more »
The arteta fight thing only looks good if you go out and win the game. Otherwise it’s just silly, Klopp is the daddy, the tackle wasn’t that bad. Grow up and concentrate on the team, don’t crack
Pierre captured it accurately, post Arteta’s unexpected meltdown Anfield, which was relatively subdued, came to life and changed everything for Liverpool. Thats down to Arteta’s rank naivety and pure lack of awareness. But hey, he’s teflon in these their parts, so lets move on cause you must be a catastrophiser!
Arteta was wrong to react Klopp played him for a fool and he fell for it.
As usual we played ok for 30 mins then we had our lapse in concentration which changed the game.
How does anybody think we will make top 6 scoring a goal a game on average?
Toothless up front and Arteta has not addressed it . Martinelli gets no game time so how can he progress?
The midfield are two deep so when an attack builds up there is little support.
Auba and Laca are done for costing us 500k per week.
Going nowhere
Delighted to see Arteta go for klopp, he’s a right nasty bully prick. The young lads playing will come good but odegard was a waste of money because he was mediocre last season. Martinelli is nothing special he’s gone backwards. However we need to get rid of Abu and laca now because they are useless and finished. They will not come good. Priority now needs to be a top young striker.
Ramsdale easily was POTM for Arsenal, he really is beyond ridiculous with some of his saves. Benn a long time since anyone had such command as a keeper.
Great post Pedro and I love your podcasts, follow you on Twitch, Twitter, Instagram and am subscribed to your YouTube. I’ll give the YouGov bubble a go later on. I also interact with your Facebook page but am currently on day 3 of a 30 day Facebook ban so I thought I’d come back here for a bit. Two things I want to talk about. Number 1. Xhaka, no. Just no. He’s slow, cumbersome, slows our attacks down, gives away far too many dangerous free kicks and is always 1 stupid foul away from a red card. If Xhaka was… Read more »
Pedro I’ve only posted on here a couple of times and never directly to you but that post was so spot on. After watching the match yesterday I could have written the same report as you. Arteta was furious at Mane because of the 2 previous fouls that the ref didn’t punish, when the third foul was committed Arteta lost it and so did I on my sofa. Mane and Liverpool have learnt the dark arts of football well – remember how they complained when Salah was injured by the dark arts of Madrid in the CLF (Ramos I think).… Read more »
Xhaka will be back and he will bring with him a calming influence. He also will come back that much slower (those injuries usually do) and that has to be accounted for as it also affects game plans built for speed.
Good post Pedro !!!
Manchester United have sacked their manager.
It will be interesting to see who they recruit to replace him. There are not too many options
around at the moment.
Drat, its now official, OGS has been fired. The good news is that they will likely still be a lousy club when we meet them in a couple of weeks time.
Does anyone still bother reading Pedro’s ramblings? I just jump straight into the comments, thats more fun
Im sure there is an answer, but does anyone know why some posters names are highlighted in red and others in black?
Ernst if you add a website in the Website colomn of the comment form it’ll add a link to your name hence the redness
Pierre How’s that title run you predicted going?….. People won’t forget the good things Tavares + Sambi have done, but this is what you get with young players still learning the game, when they come up against top class + experienced opposition Sambi + Tavares can both contribute, but they were always likely to be season 2-3 players, and have a few teething problems along the way Xhaka will brain fart a couple of times a season, but he has the experience to bounce back, and not let the mistakes get to him When young players make mistakes, it effects… Read more »
Great post Pedro.
It was fantastic to see Arteta go for Klopp. We need the team to follow suit when requited.
gunnersmith
November 21, 2021 11:35:56
Does anyone still bother reading Pedro’s ramblings?
—
Yes and I reckon most do, you got a problem with that?
What is interesting from Man Utd announcement is that they are looking for “an interim
manager” until end of season.
Does that mean that they have already found next season’s manager? If so who is likely to
be the replacement?
Yes and I reckon most do, you got a problem with that?
Lol
I hardy read Pedro post tbh. But that doesn’t take any credit away from his efforts.
“Does that mean that they have already found next season’s manager? If so who is likely to
be the replacement?”
If stories that i have read are to be taken as truth ES, it looks very much like Zidane is the target and he’s stated that he wants the remainder of this season for himself.
“Does anyone still bother reading Pedro’s ramblings?”
I do, without fail and for the record, they aren’t “ramblings”, they are passionate writings from someone who loves the club, our club.
Pedro i stopped reading when you mentioned a game like this needed a peak Xhaka!
Same Xhaka who got us to 8th heaven two seasons in a row
Joke Sunday!
Yeah I mean if xhaka had played he might have been almost as key and good as he was against Chelsea and city earlier in the season
Key contribution from him in both games
We haven’t missed him for the entirety of our unbeaten run. We have one white game and the Stockholm syndrome returns faster than you can say ‘professional foul’
One shite game*
No complaints, part of the process. I read a good article in the Athletic where Andreas Georgson pointed out that in a low scoring sport results do not necessarily reflect reality. “you have to understand the randomness of football to really be successful. If you’re constantly going to rely on the result of the game as your one provider of evaluation, you’re going to struggle to make an effective organisation” I was neither fearful or optimistic about our visit to Anfield, as Pedro says Liverpool turned the tables on Barca there so what chance ESR & Saka could prevail?. Despite… Read more »
Rich “How’s that title run you predicted going?…” Your words not mine. What i said was ( or similar), if we can remain in a similar position to where we are now come February, the other teams being in Europe will have fixture congestion and there is no reason why we can’t maintain our form with fewer games that we could maintain a challenge… However , i didn’t take into consideration that our manager would assist the opposition by inciting the crowd to change the course of a tough away fixture. If , as some think he should, arteta repeats… Read more »
Arteta rambling with klopp would have looked great if we could manage somthing out of the game, now we got spanked 4/0 with even Minaimino scoring, it looked foolishly humiliating!
Great post Pedro! Spot on, a game of two halves. I thought the guys brought good intensity and fight for the first 45, whereas the second 45 was where we struggled to keep up with the intensity for a full 90 and began to get over run. If anything I hope Arteta uses this game as a bit of motivator for the team, in so far as Liverpool are the yard stick, that’s where we need to get to. There is currently a gap, but for good portions of the game we were with them, we just couldn’t do it… Read more »
Spot on from Pedro
No, we are not a match for Liverpool. Not yet. And for me that means long-term was the way to go and Arteta is the right man for the job.
Auba is NOT the right man for his job. With luck, NUFC will take him in Jan. Meanwhile Eddie would do better.
Auba sleep-walked through the game. Liverpool defence hardly needed to pay him any attention. And when his sensor blinked and he became involved it was to no avail, or even harmful like the needless foul that led to the Liverpool goal
Not the end of the world as some of “ The Bedwetters “ would have you believe.Trust the process & lets hope it’s a case of “ fingers burned,lessons learned “.Move on.we’re still 5th with all to play for.If anything,we trust that’s it’s plain to see we’re far from the finished article.We know where the bar is set with Scousers,,citeh & chavs & that’s our target.Reinforcements required in January a must if there was any doubt.
How have you not picked up the fact we have the worst attack in the league. Goals scored etc?
Got a sneaky feeling Manure are in for a “ Rodgering”.
I’m starting to wonder what Odegaard’s role is in the team. Hasn’t started for a while, making little impact when he comes on as a sub.
Tierney should have come on for Tavares as the latter was having one of those games where he needed saving from himself, although he clearly still has high potential.
Hopefully this is one we will have long forgotten about in a couple of months, we need a convincing performance at home to Newcastle to restore confidence.
Saw this on Twitter this morning. It’s a shame Ole’s gone now but I’m sure this is a true reflection of the feelings amongst rival supporters because once Utd have a Ten Haag or Zidane in place they have a great squad of players ready to challenge.
https://twitter.com/zaac_da/status/1462329066434879492?t=NsgCdsJOeUg1hoS2KiwPHA&s=19
The great Christiano Ronaldo weaving his magic and getting Ole sacked 🙂
Woodward and Man U always play to the gallery and make outlandish decisions. No serious club would sign a 36 years old CR7 given how limited he is as a player now and honestly been nothing more than a goal poacher/hanger for ages. Pep Guardiola didn’t have a recognised striker and still didn’t go for him which tells you everything. Anyway great to see the United empire burning down.
Excellent post,Pedro. The bottom line is Liverpool are one of the best teams in Europe,we are just about starting to make forward strides. I am sure Nuno will learn from the wayward passing and progress,Sambi will also learn. I am still not 100% convinced about Partey and his inability to stay fit is troubling,we certainly need some new impetus up front and should be looking for a player with attributes like Ivan Toney,Mikael Antonio or Giroud from back in the day,so the ever excellent Ramsdale can kick it to them and the ball will stick,or someone that can manhandle and… Read more »
Ernest Reed 11.21.
Yes despite a few fumbly moments just how
much worse could that result have been without
those saves.
MOM.
“The great Christiano Ronaldo weaving his magic and getting Ole sacked 🙂”
Have believed for some time now that CR7 is a Manager Killer, TR7. For every bit as talented as he is, he remains ultimately Box Office Poison in his ability to alienate others with his “all about me” attitude.
OGS is a good person and likely should never have been hired to manage a club of ManU’s stature. His undoing was to try to placate a bunch of overpaid prima donnas instead of giving opportunities to those who truly deserved it.
Have to say Liverpool in the 2nd half were frighteningly good.. We really do need to find a way of beating the press instead of piss assing around with the ball at the back. We got away with it a couple of times towards the end of the first half and should have heeded those warnings for the 2nd half. Klopp obviously told his midfield and strikers to suffocate our defenders and midfield into making mistakes. At the start of the 2nd half Liverpool pushed up anotber ten yards and we had nowhere to go and Arteta never reacted to… Read more »
Imminently predictable…against sides who press Arsenal hard from back to top Arteta is clueless. He has no back-up plan and no answer to first and second ball domination as experienced previously against Brentford and Brighton. Arsenal undoubtedly have the makings of a good team which could most definitely compete with the best in the Premier League and fight once again for trophies and that all important CL place if it wasn’t for a Manager and Coaching Staff who are clearly not up to the task. In a similar fashion to Solkjaer at United…Arteta will continue to win batches of games… Read more »
I like the positivity Pedro but there is one flaw for me. As a second tier club currently its very difficult to build something because holding onto players is tricky. One of the big clubs will doubtless come in hard for our youngsters at the end of the season and offer them more money and CL football. No one in their right mind will turn down the chance to double/triple their money.
Interesting that some are pointing at Sambi for some shortcomings yesterday but i thought the real glaring problem in midfield was Partey, who literally was invisible for significant chunks of play. Midfield starts and ends with Partey and if he’s not there (literally and figuratively), you have a major problem on your hands with a club as good as Liverpool. The offensive performance yesterday was disjointed and i cant quite place it other than invisibility of key performers as an overall. Liverpool were solid in midfield and defence, but Arsenal’s front line simply didn’t exist and that remains a real… Read more »
Ernest “Have believed for some time now that CR7 is a Manager Killer, TR7. For every bit as talented as he is, he remains ultimately Box Office Poison in his ability to alienate others with his “all about me” attitude.” Ronaldo honours list Premier League titles: 3 FA Cup: 1 English Football League Cup: 2 La Liga titles: 2 Copa del Rey: 2 Spanish Supercup: 2 Uefa Champions League: 5 (four with Real Madrid, one with Man Utd) Uefa Super Cup: 2 Fifa Club World Cup: 4 (three with Real Madrid, one with Man Utd) Portugal Super Cup: 1 Supercoppa… Read more »
“To not have Eddie even on the bench highlights one of Arteta’s weaknesses in that he allows contract negotiations to influence his team selection, that should never happen.” You are a smart guy Pierre, but honestly you do yourself no favours with this. If Eddie were any better an option I’d like to believe that Arteta would have recognized it by now as he has with others. The fact that Eddie cant get a stint over a truly awful Auba and mediocre Laca is more a testament to his own failings to impress when it matters than anything else. In… Read more »
Had watched the game. Thought the lads would manage something , but was distressed to see Motormouth PRman at sidelines, then the blowup. Anfield exploded , the substitutions showed Arteta crumpling to his self. Rambosdale kept it respectable. Initially Gabriel, White had kept things tidy. Regarding ESR in particular, he appeared to be labouring under an imposed. handbrake, and hardly getting any service. Lokonga and Tavares are young and if someone capable was there would have organised a support system. Arteta is in his 3rd season, so can’t understand the view of another 3-5 games , as if so slow… Read more »
Actually Pierre, i am a huge CR7 fan. Love his game and pure talent, but never been a fan of his all about me attitude, which i guess is what drives him to excel. Its a double edged razor when it comes to CR7.
Ernest I believe CR7 is a top professional with a great attitude. So, I don’t believe he poisons dressing rooms. What he does though is he forces the playing style to be altered of the teams he joins. United were not very good last season but they at least had one pattern of play. With Ronaldo, it has all gone for a toss. You observe how Bruno, Rashford, Matic etc play and you will notice the game plan is to supply the ball to CR7. Ole got really undone trying to accomodate him. He was doing fine with Cavani up… Read more »
Great observation TR7. On that I cannot disagree, i perhaps chose my words incorrectly.
Found it interesting that Mane came into the match with sore ribs and yet he was the one shithousing Arsenal players? One would have thought it would be Arsenal who took the physicality to him rather than the other way around? On that Pedro is right, we are too nice!
For 3-4 days everyone on a consensus of having a strong midfield to restrict Liverpool. There is blaming of Partey who looked off-pace and not fit, which is a minus point for a midfield envisaged. Then after 2-0,, Lokonga appeared subdued realising his limitations and lost confidence. At that stage Tierney should have come for Lokonga. As stated before instead of playing a (-) Partey , ANM with Lokonga should have been a much earlier substitution. Odegard …was wtf from Arteta
Joel
Nice summary that’s how I feel.
We will just hover around 6th with no forward movement.
We seem to still make basic errors passing across our defense, and frustratingly slow moving forwards.
Scoring goals is a big problem this year and has deteriorated over the past two years, I wonder why?
Pedro
Losing at Liverpool isn’t the problem, the problem is we can’t score goals. We have scored on 7 goals from open play this season. We have a negative goal difference and the best player during our 10 games unbeaten run was the goal keeper.
If you still believe in xG and xGA, then you’ll know that we are currently out performing it and if s correction happens, we will be back to 8th.
For the record, we are 16th on the xGA table and 10th on the xG table.
This is worse than Emery.
I agree with most of the points in the post, except for one about Xhaka. All in all, we’re still in mix for 4th. I do feel this game exposed 3 tactical issues that are squarely on Arteta and that should be a priority to address. 1. We have no attacking philosophy. Last season, it was “give to Tierney”. This season, it’s “give it to ESR”. For a team that’s playing on the break, we have no systematic approach to it. We don’t break in packs. We don’t work the diagonal lines. There’s no second wave. Arteta needs to show… Read more »
The manager killer story of CR7 is true though , OGS takes Utd to 2nd place . He had a plan , they were breezing before the 1st break then they force Ronaldo on him who btw was aiming for City . Before Ronaldo they had clear roles and pattern of play and he was the one guy Ole couldnt bench either .
azed,
XG?
XGA?
You’re so last year.
According to the gods of football blogs and the New Football Intelligentsia, XG and XGA are no longer relevant. Those two metrics have been superseded by…uhmmm, errr,, ahhh, not sure, but something or other.
Yesterday’s matches, and Arteta’s mini-run, clearly showed that there is a huge gap between the top 3 and the rest. And we are clearly a long, long way from reaching the heights of Liverpool, Man C, and Chelsea. But we are still in the mix for fourth place. What is concerning is that we are not scoring enough goals from open play, and relying too much on the contribution of goals from set pieces. There is a small chance we get the covered 4th place spot, so long as Arteta can improve our attacks and goals scored from open play… Read more »
WOAB
The shocking thing about our xG and xGA is we are not playing in Europe. No travels to Moldova, no games on Thursdays and enough preparation time.
Getting into Europe will not do Arteta any favors.
“This is worse than Emery“
Exactly the sort of shit opinion that suffocates this comments section. My word.