So we’ll start today with a video from Rio Ferdinand.
Rio talking about Arsenal after visiting the training ground. 🔥
Via @Amuel_7
— Le Grove (@LeGrove) November 25, 2021
It’s hard to deny one of the best Manchester United defenders of all time their opinion on the culture brewing at Arsenal. He played for the best, he did it with young players, and he likely knows what a good training ground feels like.
Why does he feel this?
Culture. You can feel it in a business that has it nailed down properly. A good sign of culture is that everyone knows what the plan is. Rio specifically says he spoke to a load of the coaches and they all knew where they were going.
There is no more powerful tool in business than clarity. The same for sport. Clarity of vision tells everyone where they are going. Clarity reduces friction in an organisation, because when it’s not there, other people fill the clarity vacuum with their version of what it is. Once you know what the vision is, you can build a culture around it and set out the principles for how people operate within the system.
Arsenal hasn’t had clarity for 10 years.
Reengineering decline (rot) of that magnitude was always a big job.
This is how it usually goes:
- The vision is set
- Certain folk complain about the vision and explain why it’s not for them and they can’t do it
- The new leader is challenged because the ‘can’t do’ folk spread negativity. Everyone else in the business grabs the popcorn to see if the new leader caves like a coward or stands their ground. ‘Can this person be fucked with’ is the question everyone wants to find out.
- If the new leader stands their ground the arsonists that don’t want it to work are weeded out. This is painful, because arsonists in business can be popular and often are. Removing influential arsonists always rocks the boat. Especially if they are talented (Netflix talented dickheads conversation)
- When you remove big names, you have to show that it was worth it. In business, you just fire people. In football, you have to drop people to the bench or take their squad number away, which is way more painful. If you’re doing that while losing, which is what happened, things can get really spicy.
Every new vision needs proof points.
It took until December 26th for those proof points to happen for Arteta. He was on life support by the time those came through. But he made it.
Well, this season, the vision is clear, the culture has been set, the dickheads have been moved on, and now we have new foot soldiers that believe in what is going on.
There are also results. They are early, sure. But whatever is happening is delivering points and belief at the training ground that things are progressing.
That’s powerful. It’s even more powerful when the person telling everyone that is Rio Ferdinand on a Youtube channel desperate for that NOT to be the story.
Is a great culture the end goal? No. Top-tier trophies are. A culture is a rallying tool that creates the right environment to get you there.
Isn’t the attacking output a bigger issue?
Yes and no. Culture doesn’t solve tactical or personnel issues. But it does make it more likely we’ll find a solve because there’s desire from everyone to fix it.
Example:
❌Mesut Ozil is not going to solve the lack of pressures when out of possession
✅ Auba, for all his challenges, is trying his harder to adapt his game. He’s one of the top strikers for pressures in the league. Why is he doing this? Because he believes in the culture and wants to lead it.
Look at the issues Poch has at PSG. All the players, but no culture. The players run the show there and if they don’t like the manager, then that’s how it’ll go. There’s no desire from them to fix the issues. It is AMAZING to read people call him a bad manager. He’s one of the best in the business. PSG is the problem. No top manager wants that job, which is why they end up with people like Unai Emery.
Patience is key in all of this.
As a fan, you’re going to have to accept that we are operating a recruitment strategy that has inconsistency baked into the plan. This current squad of players hasn’t had an attacking revamp yet. The only true attacking player Arteta signed was Willian. Everyone else is Wenger or Emery. We tried for Tammy in the summer but couldn’t make the one-in-one-out work. There’s still more that can be done with what we have, no doubt. We’re below par attack-wise. Our best striker is not at his peak. Our young players are in and out of form. The team still doesn’t really know each other and they don’t have the ability to deliver full performances yet.
… but it’ll come.
As I wrote yesterday, this season is a messy bitch. We started the first 3 games with a subpar defence that we changed out after the international break. There was also a covid outbreak and a load of injuries. Arsenal can’t handle 9 players out, most teams can’t, so that was a mitigating circumstance.
We’re 9 games in with a new team. We’ve accrued the 2nd most points, scored 2 less than City, and have the 3rd best defence. The players have largely won over the fan base. Could there be a correction coming? Maybe. It’s unlikely we’re going to be accruing the 2nd most points over 9 game periods all season, we’re simply not that good or experienced enough… yet. But, it is weird for people to criticize consistency when the flow of points has been so consistent over those 9 games. I’d also re-up yesterday’s comment. Arsenal has been remarkably consistent since Boxing Day last year. People keep saying what we’re doing right now isn’t sustainable, ignoring that we’ve been doing it for nearly a year.
We have 9 big games coming up right now against some very beatable teams, plus some very tough games that on our day, we should be winning. Then we’ll see where we are. If we’re still 5th, we’ll be able to make better conclusions about the data. If we’re 7th, but within spitting distance of top 4, we have to be ok with that, because the back half of the season looks good for us. This time last season, we were 10 points off 4th. Now we’re 3.
Progress happens in spits and spats. It’s not linear. That’s why it’s good to look at how we’re doing across phases, versus wetting the bed over a Liverpool game we were always likely to struggle with.
So I’ll leave you on a short post today (short when I started). If Rio Ferdinand is telling you the culture and vibes at Arsenal are good, you should see that as a positive. He doesn’t need to say that and it’s especially amusing when it’s through gritted teeth. It’s yet more context for you to wrap around those xG numbers. When Arsenal were ‘flying’ under managers of the past, the vibes at training were not great, which is why I wrote with such confidence about the incoming correction.
Messy data tends to correct in a good way when players are engaged.
Let’s see.
If you haven’t, please check out the excellent interview we did with ex-Head of Medical Services, Colin Lewin. The man has seen it all, he’s one of the best around, it was a total pleasure talking to him. It’s nice to know a man as humble as Colin has staff still at the club. Good culture doesn’t happen without good people.
You can check out his clinic here, his team will help you if you are an elite athlete like me. He might even help you if you’ve pinged a hammy reaching for the Percy Pigs. Enjoy, leave us a rating on itunes, or subscribe to our Youtube Channel.
Morning
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Tr4phy
Pedro Let’s stop talking about xG, positive/negative signs, what things MIGHT mean… we all know how you feel, some of us agree, some disagree, and many stand somewhere in the middle. Let’s just see where the season goes from here. If we continue to play well, win games, then great. If we start to fall apart and slip down the table, then none of it really matters. We all know that Arteta was lucky to keep his job at the end of last season, and especially after the first few games of this season. It looks like keeping him is… Read more »
I did comment on Twitter about that very thing….
With all respect, would I pay attention to Rio if he was critical of the club?
Nope.
So, I will do the same to what Rio says now.
Not because I disagree with it.
I don’t need Rio to validate what is blatantly obvious.
Change is happening at Arsenal; and change for the better.
change is gonna come, praise the lord, and if you do not know the song i am refering to youtube it.
I see the change on the pitch, I see it with the fans in the stands, hell i even see it on le grove now the bed wetters are hidding.
This is the beggining of something different, whether that is going to be a catalyst for trophies i am not sure yet, but optimism is rel finally at the Emirates.
Can i get a haleluyah lol
Very well stated DM
Arteta was never going to be sacked after the first three games of this season.
Fhere were mitigating circumstances and he had a raft of new players to come in.
3rd best defense!
If it wasn’t for Ramsdales heroics we would have let in probably 6 goals last weekend.
Anything can be made up to fit an agenda.
We are simply miles behind the top teams and we have no chance with this owner an manager to ever catch up in the near future.
spanishdave we are miles behind the top 3 granted but anyone else no we are not
Agree with Leeds.
Usually Rio talks complete b*llocks. Doesn’t mean I don’t agree that the camp isn’t much happier and more together than it was just that Rio Ferdinand is usually wrong on most things so he’s not a good advocate to have.
Even a clock is right twice every day I guess.
DM
Tripe.
Of course Rio’s opinion matters. He’s been a top pro, football is his scene and, dare I say it, he knows more about the game,, the mind-set at cclubs, etc than anybody on here. And what counts is that he is ex-Man U, not ex-Arsenal.An unbiased view.
Will his opinion change anything? No – but neither will anyone wlse’s on here. If you use that as your yardstick – what we say is an influnce on the game – then we might as well give up discussing anything on here.
It seems to have passed unnoticed, so i will repeat a post made yesterday:
Stan and NFL have settled for $790 mill with St Louis. Is that important to Arsenal and its future? It might be..
englandsbest I’m not saying the opinion of a football professional isn’t interesting, especially one who is unbiased. My point is that a few months ago pretty much everyone – football pros included – were totally writing us off, saying Arteta didn’t know what he was doing, etc. Look how quickly that has changed. It’s great to see, but it can change back just as quickly. I’m also not saying that we shouldn’t discuss things, it’s just so blatant atm that Pedro is looking for every and any tiny thing that he can use to add weight to his argument. But… Read more »
englandsbest
I saw the headline yesterday about Stan and St Louis and $790m but didn’t look into it properly. What’s the deal there? What actually happened?
I think that the major topic of discussion today should be the major compensation cost [US$750 million] which Kroenke and NFL [and its constituent clubs] will have to pay the St Louis and State of Missouri. What will be the the cost and impact on the finances of Kroenke, KSE and Arsenal Football Club? Originally Kroenke personally offered US$100 million to settle case, which was refused. So one suspects that his personal liability is going to be well North of that figure and could well be two or three times that figure. I am not going to express an opinion… Read more »
DM
I believe what Pedro is saying is that the process is long-term, the vision is there, progress is steady, and – in a sense what you are saying – let’s wait and see.
On Stan, the case St Louis brought against him and the NFL Clubs for moving the Rams to LA was settled out of court. How much of the $790 mill Stan has to pay I don’t know.
EB -790million USD is just the settlement – Stan has had to pay legal fees on top.
EB/DM/ES – The settlement may have been agreed (plus legal costs as mentioned) but what hasn’t been agreed is who pays how much. What I mean is that the legal action was against Kroenke, The LA Rams (owned by Kroenke) and the NFL itself. My understanding is that Stan hasn’t been able to agree with the NFL how much comes out of his pocket and how much the NFL itself will chip in. So we may have to wait a while longer to find out exactly how much Stan is on the hook for and how that might impact spending… Read more »
Stans family fortunes is in the billions he is marrid into the wealthiest family in the entire world, that $750 should not impact us
EB:
I’d be a bit careful about bigging up Rio’s opinion. here’s what he had to say about Mikel’s spat with Klopp the other day:
‘I watched the game and Liverpool just turned the screw. They turned the screw after Arteta and Klopp’s spat on the touchline, that Arteta started,’ Ferdinand told Vibe with FIVE.
‘That was naive, for me. At Anfield you don’t want to be gassing up that crowd and whipping them up.’
As I said, ninety-nine times out of a hundred Rio talks crap even if he is an ex-pro.
ES Could Arsenal be put up for sale to raise funds? The current situation at Arsenal is that KSE are having lent substantial sums to enable the refinancing of the stadium debt case of Barclays KSE have had to use its Arsenal assets to secure a significant loan. For me the time that KSE would seriously consider selling their shares in Arsenal has passed they probably will be trying to return to that self sustaining model and from their perspective they probably will be wanting the loans to be repaid because almost certainly if they sell at5his point in time… Read more »
The settlement isn’t a major talking point and won’t affect much because of what Andy said. As I said all along.. it will be settled out of court because the NFL doesnt want to air their dirty laundry. The NFL is basically a billionaires Club who tend to stick up for each other. What Stan is personally responsible for isnt a big deal because whether it’s public or not the good ol’Boys Club lead by Jerry Jones will help Stan cover the costs if necessary as he is the one who convinced the NFL and the other owners to vote… Read more »
Would be safe to say ,at a guess,that Stan will have to cough up at least half,say $350 million,approx £260 million .Don’t think he’ll wet the bed on that one.Fairly loose change for Stan.Seeing as the Investment value has already increased four fold,if you believe the figures.Won5 be flogging Arsenal anytime soon,unfortunately.
But what Rio said about Arteta’s farcical hold me back I am going for him cameo , the crowds at Anfield erupted and Liverpool went into next gear. 4-0 will partly say it, since Ramsdale absolute monster keeping kept about 3 goals out.
Maybe , during visit Rio was playing guest and gaslighting those alibi seekers.
Yes, agree Rio duplicity
Yep the better,far more experienced, ( dark arts included) team won clearly in the second half.Going in 1-0 down at halftime was no disgrace.A fairer perspective me thinks.Rather than a wet the bed approach………
Rio Ferdinand famously said to give Ole the contract , after a fluke win against PSG (if i remember correctly ? ) How did that work out ?
Renato Sanches, a former Golden Boy (best teenager in world football) winner, so his talent is not in doubt and he seems to have rebuilt his career at Lille. We are heavily being linked with him for the past week. When he plays he’s explosive, clever and wonderful technically and at 24, the right age and experience profile for us… and the player himself wants to come. The big negative? Horrible injury record. 71 games missed via injuries. Yes or no? I’m swerving to no, but if we solved his injury issues you would have some player on your hands.… Read more »
Sofi stadium in LA will be hosting the World Cup, The Super Bowl, the Olympics, The College american Football championship and the World Cup all within the next 5 or 6 years. That should cover any litigation costs.
Oh, and happy Thanksgiving day to our North American friends.
We need bodies for the time when Elneny and Partey jet off the African Cup of Nations.
If we signed him up to a strict pay when you play deal… would it be such a bad thing if we signed Wilshere on say, a temporary 6 months contract, which we can extend if he comes through the season unscathed.
It would provide cover… and he wouldn’t need time settling in.
Better than spending millions we don’t have to if it allows us to get a top top player in the summer.
*** Goes and Hides ***
andy1886
Apart from ‘Arteta started the spat’, I think Rio was pretty much on the ball. It did ‘gas up’ the Liverpool crowd, and maybe the Liverpool team too.
But equally, Arteta’s ‘naive’ behaviour will ‘gas up’ the Arsenal crowd (and team) in the return game at the Emirates.
Thanks Andy.. Hope everyone has a great weekend regardless of where they live. For me Thanksgiving always kicks off the excitement of all the games in the PL upcoming over the holiday breaks until the end of this year ending with the opening of the January transfer window. Whipping Newcastle and getting everything back on track this Saturday. would be a good start.
I dont need Rio Ferdinand to tell me about the culture , I know it has changed . The questions are solely related to Arsenal attack this season , which has not clicked since last season . Even if you pick up the stats from that Boxing Day turnaround game , we still havent scored enough . That is the same attack as last year , Odegaard / ESR / Saka / Pepe + Laca & Auba . So I dont know what miracle needs to happen here but it should happen soon because the AFCON is coming and we… Read more »
Leedsgunner
“I’m swerving to no, but if we solved his injury issues you would have some player on your hands. But that’s a big if.”
Since we have such a great track record of solving injuries? 🙂
Kronke is the 4th largest private land owner in the United States. His wider family own Walmart.
$790m is a notable amount but it’s nothing they can’t handle.
If anything, it will no longer be a distraction and might encourage them to invest in Arsenal more since they know what the liability is.
More than likely I suspect they probably have repackaged that liability and sold it on to the appropriate markets already… I doubt they would be dipping into their pockets.
Fedda
I know, I know. 😁
Leedsgunner
Yes, a big if.
But I remember a similar ‘big if’ with Overmars that came off. And another with Diaby – which didn’t.
Leedsgunner
I like Sanches too but rather have his teammate Jonathan David .
Middy – Big NFL day today isn’t it? Beer, turkey and (American) Football isn’t a bad combination. Sadly as a Steelers fan I’m not expecting much joy from the NFL this season so Arsenal had better pull their finger out and make me happy.
“If it wasn’t for Ramsdales heroics we would have let in probably 6 goals last weekend.”
Is Ramsdale not an Arsenal player?
The NFL has just signed a new broadcast deal with multiple media partners for about $10 billion a year for the next 11years. I think they just might be all right covering that StLuis lawsuit.
Pedro, Willian wasn’t the only attacking player brought in by Arteta.
Odegaard is his second attacking option signing and so far his performances seems to mirror those of Willian’s. Considering he’s not new to his teammates it’s a concern.
It’s not a good look that the player he was brought in to replace has scored 4x as many goals and he’s been semi retired.
Andy – Yes big day today.. For me, mostly just getting to see all my family.. But it does usually end up as a huge discussion about sports and bantering about all our favorite teams. . Including in the PL. Split in my family between Chelsea and Arsenal. Also forgot to add .. regarding Stan’s fine.. Stan’s new stadium is also the new home of the LA Chargers who pay him rent essentially to play there as well part of the agreement of the NFL letting him stay . So because it effects 2 franchises not just the Rams the… Read more »
*NFL letting him “move”….. not stay in St Louis. typo.
No manager wants the PSG job?
A quick google search revealed only Mourinho turning them down twice, allegedly.
If a bum like Emery could win them the domestic quadruple then how difficult a job could it be?
The pressure with PSG is most likely because winning their League is not the goal.. Thye have to win the Champions League or bust.
” We all know that Arteta was lucky to keep his job at the end of last season, and especially after the first few games of this season. ”
Do we .. you mention especially start of the season.. Do you realize we had half a team out for them games..
This team will improve and where we are in the table, i think most fans would have taken that before season started
“The pressure with PSG is most likely because winning their League is not the goal.. They have to win the Champions League or bust…”
Where’s Roberto DiMatteo when you need him? 😂😂😂
Middy – I pity you having to tolerate Chelsea talk on a holiday (all fur coat and no knickers that lot as we say over here). Luckily my brother is a Norwich fan so football rarely gets a mention when we meet.
Also forgot about the Chargers. As you say it’s all one big exclusive club and I doubt Stan will suffer much hardship at all.
Midwest, of course.
The point being no manager will turn them down because of what not winning the CL with a star studded squad might mean to their managerial careers………..when mostly everyone realizes any cup competition is usually a crapshoot that comes down to one or two plays or ref decisions.
$750 m divided by 32 = $23.5 m per club. End of.
The key issue is what percentage of the compensation package and costs has to be covered by Kroenke and KSE.
The fact that Kroenke attempted a settlement on behalf of all the defendants suggests that he may well be responsible for the lion sized share of claim and costs.
If that is the case he will be forced to finance the package or sell assets. No-one even billionaires of the size of Kroenke’s wealth is not going to be impacted by such a large bill.
Taylor Swift
Highly unlikely that the 32 Clubs in NFL have equal liability for the debt. If that was the case
why did Kroenke [not NFL] offer to settle personally the claim for US$100 million?
Kroenke and KSE could well be liable for at least 50% of claim. After all they made the original
decision to move their club to California. The NFL sanctioned the decision.
Just looking at the RVP highlights. Got goosebumps.
When will be the next time we get a striker of his technique and quality.
Miles better than sanchez (who I loved in an arsenal shirt) in my opinion. Better technique, finish and link up play.
Auba and laca not fit to polish his boots.
Awhile ago I got off the Arteta merry-go-round and started looking at Arsenal as whole and what I saw was was a cultural change at all levels of the club led by the principals of Vinai, Edu, Arteta and Josh Kroneke with his finance. The signing of 6 young players in one transfer window was audacious and Arsenal took the opportunity of no Euro ball to front load their recruitment in one window. This is a pivot I don’t think we’ve seen before. I’ve almost forgotten that we were once the Chelsea Pensioners. And the recruitment is not over yet.… Read more »
BBC REPORT.
Arteta trying to find a way to get Wenger back to the club.
Where DOOMED DOOMED DOOMED.
The same wavy lips Rio that called Ronaldo personally to join ManU instead of City and said , now Ronaldo would push ManU to the title!!!!!!.
Pedro, now that’s desperation. It’s not any more about what’s best for The Arsenal, it’s what’s best for an average manger and your agenda!.
The same wavy lips Rio that called Ronaldo personally to join ManU instead of City and said , now Ronaldo would push ManU to the title!!!!!!.
Pedro, now that’s desperation. It’s not any more about what’s best for The Arsenal, it’s what’s best for an average manger and agenda!.
Sorry for the double post.
“BBC REPORT.
Arteta trying to find a way to get Wenger back to the club.
Where DOOMED DOOMED DOOMED”
Care to give further interpretation for this or just the usual blood-rush reaction?
It’s already all been said TEE
Surely you remember.?
“Thanksgiving day to our North American friends.”
Its an American holiday, Canada already had their Thanksgiving back in October.
DM – summarized how it should be. If it’s good in front of eyes, take the praise. If it’s not, bye..
“”I think he probably *should* have been fired, and was very lucky not to be… but now that he’s stayed, it looks like he might be turning things around, and maybe keeping him was the right decision. “”
No one’s bedwetting..
Pedro, I agree with you in regards to Arteta changed the culture after uncle Arsene, and I applauded him for it. He’s done great job with all those unwanted players.
Still, he’s a dim at working out attacking strategy. He’s the Spanish Chris Hughton. Loved and speaks well, but just an average manager.
I thank him for sorting out the culture. Now, it’s time we hire a top manger that knows what he’s doing.
Pochettino failed, it’s the players not the manager that won nil. Emery failed, it’s the average manager that won 4 EL trophies.
Only Pedro’s brain could work this out.
1:24 !!!!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0t7EH9vzRMU
Spudnik “On the football pitch, Arteta is key to leading and implementing that culture change. As Rio said, you get a sense that the whole club has shifted” Rio Ferdinand is saying something some people don’t want to hear. So he’s being discredited. Nothing new there. It’s a shame but it is what it is. The cultural change at Arsenal has been reported by many and has spread by word of mouth. Football is like that. Ferdinand isn’t the first to speak about it. Amy Lawrence did a great feature on this exact subject a couple of months ago, after… Read more »
Breaking now Rangnick to Manure for the rest of the season.
Will be interesting to see as my choice for DoF for us all last season does in the PL.
The remit process should be for Arteta top 6 next May or the tick tack…
AFCF – I agree that Rio is correct on this occasion but stick by my comment that 99 times out of a 100 he’s usually wrong. Wouldn’t be my choice to back up an argument based on his track record that’s all.
As for “Rio Ferdinand is saying something some people don’t want to hear. So he’s being discredited. Nothing new there. It’s a shame but it is what it is.” I say replace ‘Rio Ferdinand’ with ‘Thierry Henry’ and you’ll recall that Pedro has form for doing exactly this.
Lolz. If old fish mouth is being held up as a spokesman for Arsenal’s new found ‘vision’…I’m out. This is a man who’s IQ is less than a shoe size.
Also, this coming off a 4-0 thrashing?
Yeah, okay.
AFC, good write up. The key now is obvious – Arteta changed the mood and atmosphere at the club, so that appears fixed. Now he can concentrate on where it really matters, getting this team firing on all cylinders. Defensively this club appear well grounded and solid. Offensively, they remain offensive to the eyes and that is really where the work has to focus now.
Andy1886, I am an Arsenal and Steelers fan (used to have a season ticket on the 50 at Three Rivers stadium). I am more optimistic about Arsenal’s chances than the Steelers this season. If culture is the word of the day, then it’ll be interesting to see what Rangnick can do about the culture at Manure. I have enormous respect for him and believe it doesn’t augur well for our prospects for the fourth position. I’d love him to replace Edu but suspect that ship has sailed. And I really don’t get it with Poch. He has only ever won… Read more »
I’ll take Thierry’s opinions over Rio’s
Evening, There does seem to be some consistency with the team now. I don’t expect us to win against the likes of city Chelsea or the bindippers. Anything from those games are a bonus, but as far as I’m concerned everyone else is there for the taking. 32 games in a season where we could gain a lot of points. We won’t win them all and we could lose some but it’s about consistency outside of the big three. I’m backing arteta for now, I wanted him gone before the Chelsea game last year, and whether it was a fluke,… Read more »
@Serge
“I see the change on the pitch, I see it with the fans in the stands, hell i even see it on le grove now the bed wetters are hiding.”
No their comments get deleted as anything against Arteta is being censored here as it doesn’t fit Pedro’s narrative.
Oh SNAP Rangnick in the EPL with Gegenpress!
Time Up
You have a fair point w arteta if thats yer belief. Personally id wait to make that judgment until he is permitted an attacking player to add into the mix…
The Arsenal boss said: “I really liked the reaction we had in the dressing room at Anfield and how some players took leadership. This is something that didn’t happen before, I’m really pleased that it is happening at the moment.”
Lets see what happens. Newcastle not a bad way to gauge a reaction especially if we clobber them
Andy
Ive heard tons of insanely bright people make insanely stupid arguments. You tend to quote people who agree w your perspective. Thieerry and Rio he said she said. If thierry goes and walks the training ground today and is asked similar questions to give equivalent responses to Rio’s points, then there might be some substance to the actual argument
Zacharse, if you read my comments you’ll see that actually I agree with what he said, just wouldn’t hold Rio Ferdinand up as some sort of sage on anything football related. As far as I’m concerned he’s a United W*nker, wouldn’t use the term ‘legend’ even if he we shared an opinion word for word.
NJ Gooner, yup, we’re going to have to rely on Arsenal for any cheer this season. Fortunately things seem to be moving in the right direction.
As for Rangnick it’s an interesting appointment but I still have faith in United to make another balls up of an appointment because fundamentally they’re no longer a football club, their focus is on the ‘brand’ and the share price.
big congrats to tottenham tonight for losing to the lowest ranked team in whatever fucking league they play in thursday nights
better them than us
fuck the sp*ds
fuck c*nte
with u there andy!
hard to decipher yer comment i suppose
Happy thanksgiving!
U too pete. Fill yer boots
Rangnick is a big control freak, that’s why he didn’t get the move to Milan.
He’s top talent, but he’s never worked in a league like the Prem.
One thing is for sure, United will have an identity under him… and I’m not sure how all those superstar players fit into it.
Never particularly liked Rio F, but he knows a lot more about the culture of a team than any on here, especially the bedwetters.
Worth taking note. Might not amount to anything, but it’s an interesting take on things at AFC.
Compelling read too Pedro, respect for making every post a must-read
Spuds lost to a team with a home capacity of 5,500. A club that didn’t exist the last time Spuds won a trophy, the League Cup. National League level.
It’s a really humiliating result.
Just imagine the noise if we did that. They’ll get a bit of grief but nothing like we would get from the media. Jamie O’Hara is probably on suicide watch, to think he called us a banter club….!!!
Ernest Read
“Defensively this club appear well grounded and solid. Offensively, they remain offensive to the eyes and that is really where the work has to focus now.”
Yep, agree. Transition is quick but against the best teams you need to be able to hold the ball better. No denying Auba is a quality striker but he’s not good at doing the rugged stuff. Look at what Mane does to defenders, roughs them up with his physicality. That’s what we need, a player like that.
If we are going to play from the back we need to keep the ball much better and we need to move the ball quicker. Otherwise we just create turnovers and put ourselves under pressure. Which of our midfielders can best execute quick accurate passes at the moment? Partey and Odegaard. Partey is also trying to do everything. He needs to play to his strengths and sit in front of the back four and break up opponents’ attacks… and create the turnovers for us. Then having done so, he needs to recycle the ball quickly to Odegaard who can pick… Read more »
On the Totally Football Show podcast, Honigstein confirming that Ralf Rangnick is expected to be Man United’s new sporting director after he finishes his stint as interim manager.
I hate to say it, that is a very smart move. He will be a sporting director who will have direct experience of the first team and what they will need.
Ernest “Defensively this club appear well grounded and solid” I’m not so sure, we have gone from a team that conceded 10 shots a game in an 11 game period away from home at the beginning of the year, to a team that is conceding 17 shots a game in our 6 away games this season. Without a drastic improvement ib our defensive performance away from home , we will invariably lose games , Arteta needs to find a solution that works away from home .. Teams will know that we are vulnerable passing out from the back and they… Read more »
“https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/arsenal-news-mikel-arteta-wenger-25548706” The Mirror leading with Artea wants Wenger back to help after the Klopp spat. Why is the simplest answer? Isn’t Arteta capable managing us? He needs help after 24 months? Will them pairing up mean they are un-sackable? Arteta wants the man who let us drift and slide into obscurity for over a decade is now valued as a sage? A man that no club wants as a manger. Finally, is Arteta playing it clever so Wenger is the scapegoat for any losses and fallout? If Arteta can’t manage us alone, then he needs to find a level of… Read more »
Ernest,
Even defensively. Our xGD -4.9, only the bottom 6 has xGD worse than us. If we carry on like that, we’d finish around 10th no matter how much spinning does Pedro do to make this average nobody manager looks good.
Our Paddy at Palace has xGD -2.3 scored more conceded the same goals. He plays better football with lesser players and less wages. He didn’t need 400 million and the best young talent in Europe or 200 games and excuses to get them playing good football.
Pedro’s Analysis in short:-
Emery:- xG(In Emery’s favour over 22 games) -No; Context:-No; Eye Test:-No
Pedro:-
Arteta:- xG(In Arteta’s favour over 12 games)-Dismiss; Context:- Yes; Eye Test:-Yes
Tony,
Tomorrow head line will be…..
Our little great manager Arteta hires our greatest manager ever.
Both will need time to bring the CL trophy in 2042 all we need is to just trust the process.
As I posted earlier Ralph R has become manager of Manure. I was hoping for Ole or Carrick to be in charge when we play next week.
If nothing else the new manager bounce will be in play and the players will all want t impress Rangnick.
Is this why Arteta wants Wenger because he’s scared to go against Klopp, Rangnick, Pepe and Conte alone again?
It’s some stupid process if Wenger is required to complete it.
So what do we trust now exactly if Wenger comes back?
Another geriatric in he Boardroom who’s biggest idea since no club wanted him was to have the WC biannually.
If this happens Wenger will slowly edge Arteta out having the ears of the board with Stan & Josh and BS his way back to the manager’s vacant position after Wenger fires Arteta.
You read it here first,