The busy weekend turned out to be busier than I’d imagined forcing me to miss the game and I wasn’t able to catch it till late on Sunday night. Apologies for the delay in this report but as you understand sometimes personal issues have to be prioritized.
Watching such a crunch game after knowing the gut-wrenching result is not a good thing. When you watch it live there is always some hope. Every good move brings forth a wave of positive emotions. Once you know the result you just wait for the chances to come and go. It’s heart-breaking in more ways than one.
Like midweek, I thought this was quite an open and entertaining game. The first half was evenly fought. Bolton had three decent chances and took one. Arsenal hit the bar, were denied what looked like a penalty, and wasted some opportunities by taking shots from distance.
The goal was conceded from a set-piece. It is difficult to pin-point the blame for this one. I wasn’t sure whether the team was marking man or space. Some players like Koscielny were marking their man while others like Van Persie were marking space (near post). Unfortunately, no one was marking Cahill or the area right in the middle of the box on the six yard line. The defender was able to get an unchallenged header on target and Nasri’s clearance was headed in by an alert Sturridge.
I have discussed Arsenal’s problems in defending set-pieces at length. It seems like a problem with the set-up that can only be improved by a fresh pair of eyes and a specialist coach. Earlier it was easy to blame the likes of Almunia, Squillaci, Sylvestre, or others for the defensive woes on set-pieces but I wonder how many fans now blame the likes of Szczesny and Djourou.
The second half was extremely encouraging from Arsenal’s point of view but that also made it that much more painful at the end.
It started with a horror moment when a Sturridge dive resulted in a soft penalty. Davies bottled it and Szczesny was able to save after guessing right. After that it was all Arsenal. The equalizer came moments later after some excellent work by Van Persie on the edge of the box. His one-two with Cesc and the finish were sublime.
For rest of the game the Gunners were camped in the Bolton half and created some excellent chances. The most notable ones all fell to Nasri who couldn’t score due to some good goalkeeping and poor finishes. I wonder how long before the misery brigade starts shouting Nasri is useless and should be sold!
The sucker punch came in the final minute of regular time. Djourou misjudged a header and that set Elmander through on goal. His strike at the near post was saved by Szczesny. From the resulting corner Djourou again missed his man who attacked the ball better.
A few weeks ago many fans claimed that Arsenal’s season was over because of an injury to Djourou who was supposed to be the best defender in the team. Now I have no doubt some of the same fans will change their tune.
Similarly, these fans were talking about Szczesny being a good organizer and a Keeper who talked to his defenders. Why didn’t he do it in this game?
I’m convinced the real problem lies in Arsenal’s approach to defending set-pieces. Wenger has a blind-spot here, and while his tactic of overloading the box might work on most occasions, it will leave the team open to such critical losses. I don’t buy the argument that buying a goalkeeper or defenders will change this because the new signings will still train the way Arsene wants them to and it will affect their performances. The only solution seems to be a change in the staff. The Gunners need a man who can bring in a different/better approach to defending free-kicks. It’s not guaranteed to work but it is well worth a try.
The title hopes are well and truly over now, whether it affects the players in any way remains to be seen. They can play without fear and truly express themselves in the coming games or they can fold and crumble. In that regard there is nothing better than a game against United to see the response.
I do want to make a note of a couple of interesting and relevant points. The ref was not to blame for this result in any way but some of the decisions are worth discussing. Walcott didn’t get a penalty in the sixth minute when he was fouled by Taylor (not sure it was Taylor). Sturridge got one from a nothing foul. Muamba wasn’t booked for a shocking foul on Cesc just before the end of the first half but we have seen Arsenal players get a second booking for much lesser offences. For a supposedly big, strong man, Kevin Davies went down far too often at the half-way line and won a number of free-kicks. Van Persie and co get kicked and fouled from behind in each game without getting a call in their favour. Wilshere was booked for an intelligent tackle where he won the ball and kept his feet folded whereas Steinsson got away with a tackle from behind where he won the ball but caught Nasri.
To reiterate, I’m not saying the ref was particularly biased or poor in this game, or that he was the cause of the result, or that Bolton didn’t deserve their win. But one has to acknowledge that the Gunners have to work/achieve a lot more than some other teams have to. If someone is able to do an honest analysis of decisions over the season, I’m convinced Arsenal will have lost at least 8-9 points due to the refereeing decisions when compared to the eventual winners.
Individual Performances:
Szczesny: Looked shaky on occasions and dropped a couple of easy catches. Made two or three decent saves including the penalty. Can’t be blamed for either goal.
Sagna: Usual effort on the right.
Djourou: Very disappointing. Made a number of mistakes. Lacked concentration at key moments. Unlucky to concede the penalty.
Koscielny: Can’t blame him for the goals. Was pretty decent for most of the game.
Clichy: Mirror image of Sagna.
I thought Djourou had a poor day by his standards. The others were not so bad.
Song: Not a great game but wasn’t very poor either.
Cesc: Has been off his game ever since the Champions League tie. Hit the bar, drew a good save, picked up an assist. For others it might be a good return but from El Capitan it isn’t enough.
Wilshere: Pretty much like Song. Should learn from the chip passes played by RvP for Nasri. If he can provide that from deep on a consistent basis it will add a lot to this team’s attacking potency.
The midfield dominated the ball but could have offered a lot more.
Walcott: Was very effective in the first half. Unlucky not to win a penalty. Put in a couple of good crosses. Bolton virtually played two left-backs to stop him.
RvP: Excellent game. Wonderful goal. Lovely passes for Nasri. Superb movement and work rate. Not sure why his free-kicks and corners have lost some quality.
Nasri: Can’t blame his for his effort. Could have done with better finishing.
I was happy that Walcott and Nasri tried to swap positions. The front three were moving well and that led to a lot of gaps but the finishing let them down.
Subs: Not sure why Chamakh was introduced after being on the sidelines for so long. Arshavin offered some threat down the left but most of the corners he won were ineffective. Ramsey hardly got any time to make an impact.
Wenger: Really has to find a way of defending set-pieces that is better than just crowding out the area.
Agree agree agree.
Defensive issues :
1) Same cuplable mistakes from set pieces. I didn’t think we were poot defensively in this game but Djourou had an off day and we got punished.
Come next season, it is a presumption that Vermaeln/Djourou will make a strong partnership. Assuming it is, and that the back up partnership of Djourou/Kos has been at least bloodied in combat this season, supposing Djourou gets injured, will the Vermaelen/Kos partnership be as effective particularly with set pieces?
Either way, a defensive specialist coach to sort out and focus on key issues at the back will make a lot of sense.
Offensive issues:
1) Our current formation of 4-3-3 whilst being best suited to express our strengths in midfield, does leave us short with a finisher in the box. Whilst RVP has virtually guaranteed a goal every next game or so, we could be far more lethal(and unforgiving) if we find a way to accomodate a second striker right up top (at crucial moments). Often times, our wing play ends up threading back into the middle simply because there are no options in the box.
This particularly because RVP is a hybrid between a striker and a playmaker. IF Cesc decides to pack this summer, I wouldn’t mind seeing if we could have another lethal player up front (say benzema) to have RVP play off and create from deeper ala Bergkamp. But that would entail having the midfield duo able to hold a 4-4-1-1. Will Song/Wilshere be good enough?
2)Our set pieces. Again it strikes me as odd that RVP has to take our corners. Surely we have midfielders equally decent at putting in a cross (RVP’s aren’t that much better. In effect, we are taking out our one predatory striker from the box when he has to take the corner.
3) Free kicks. Is it just me or have we seemed to have lost out threat from this department? This was an area in which I felt Denilson could have staked a claim in the squad in offering a value added. Alas. Perhaps in the summer, we could get a good Brasilian (somewhat like Ganso) who can help elevate our strengths in this department.
4) Shooting. I read in another blog that statistically 9and I’m always very wary of this), our shooting average has not been too shy off of United’s. Yet per shots on goal, our conversion percentage is much less.
Again, perhaps we also need a offense coaching specialist to help us become more lethal in front of goal. Our shots often seem uncommited sometimes bordering on feeble. We also have the issue of (as perusual) trying to thread the ball into the goal when a quicly taken shot (hopefully accurate) would be better.
I think we’ve been a little better than last season in this regard but we can still offer more threat from range which would invariably open up the packed defenses thereby affording us better options to pick our way through if need be. The two things should feed on each other and should not be seen as mutually exclusive.
And as Ruud GUllit once said : ” If you don’t shoot, you don’t score” (unless it’s a header from a corner against arsenal of course);)
Other thoughts,
I still think we transition to attack a tad too slow. We need to move from point of winning over the ball to point of attack much quicker.
We like t to pass the ball on the ground to suit our technical strengths which is fine.
But sometimes I feel we need a little variation to catch the opponents defense off guard before they get the chance to regroup.
Point in case, how United are adept at switching play from one flank to the next very quickly with a long (and accurate) diagonal ball.
Finally, we should utitlise our players better. Chamakh’s strength is in the air. Whilst we were getting better at delivering him some service just before the return of RVP, I do think we have regressed in this area since then simply because we haven’t quite played Chamakh enough since.
Anyway end of season and certainly end to our challenge
BUT I do think we have(with a few exceptions) the talent in the squad to get closer next season yet.
I do however think that we have been punching above our weight because of the talent inherent through Wenger’s astute purchases (on the whole).
What we do lack is the variation in tactics and the focused coaching to erradicate certain perrenial problems.
It is a good time for Wenger to revisit refreshing his coaching set up. Wenger is brilliant at seeing the woods but he has missed soome trees.
super reply
I think we can spend a lot of time in the summer discussing some of these issues in more detail
Some excellent points there.
First time I’ve been oon first! Where is everybody?
Side thought, completely agree that Fabregas was no where near his best and that he has been flat for some time.
Makes his interview with Don Ballon sound rather hollow (Why wenger bothered to respond is beyond me)
BUT dare I say if for the right price from Barca, he might be moved on?
he hasn’t carried quite the same threat which he did last season occupying the hole behind the striker.
I wonder if RVP can be re-roled for that position with variation from Nasri and AA.
In which case we probably need more options out wide too to add an alternative to Walcott as our sole speed merchant.
Don’t break the bank Wenger but Hazard’s worth a bobble with his trickery, speed and ability to play with both feet (both wings). Did I mention he’s also quite young still?;)
Even I have been leaning towards that thought, blasphemous as it sounds. Cesc is an incredible talent and easily the best midfielder in the League even at 60-70% but if he is going to have such drops at key moments one has to wonder. In some ways it is similar to Henry having a negative influence on the team in his final year or two.
Agree with you about his interview as well. His comments have been a bit surprising considering he was the one who conceded a stupid penalty at home to Spuds, gave a goal away against Barca, and has had a few other lapses.
I’d love to have the real Cesc back but it’s a huge risk to keep him. Undoubtedly a tough decision for Wenger.
I am saying the same thing over the last month and now you sugarcoat it……….otherwise you can call me arrogant stupid or getting tricked by sensationalist journalism…
Sorry Desi, this is not related to your comment more more inline with something you said near the end of your article, “If someone is able to do an honest analysis of decisions over the season.”
Have you had a chance to read Walter’s ref reports done after every game. He is a ref from Belgium and an Arenal fan and there are some very interesting stats regarding bad calls against Arsenal.
here’s the link.
http://blog.emiratesstadium.info/archives/11926
Hope this is what you’re looking for.
I’ve been thinking similarly. I think if cesc were to move on we could move back to our old 4-4-2 model with moved to a wide right role, and with nasri on the left. As impressive as he’s been in centre mid, Jack has always looked good in the wide position, as long as he’s got freedom to cut inside. We could also then use theo’s or vela’s pace up front, feeding off of van persie or bendtner. I think that role is rvp’s secondary position really, but overall it might be better for the team, and this formation would really suit a lot of other players, particularly vela and bendtner. Vela has only ever looked really effective as a pacey striker feeding off of a support striker, and bendtner has only ever looked really good when he has had a partner up front. You also get the feeling theo is at the stage now where he could really take it to the next level if used as a striker, as his threat to the opposition could be more constant – they can’t double up on him so easily if he plays through the middle!
Also clichy and sagna were voted the best two fullbacks in the league in 2008, and I think the reason was that they had better protection from players like rosicky, hleb and flamini than they seem to be getting in this formation.
We only changed to this 4-3-3 formation to accommodate fabregas in truth, because he’s not on the level of gilberto, vieira or edu defensively, but when he’s not at his best, there’s no real benefit to it that I can see.
*”with *wilshere* moved to a wide right role”
By the way desi, another brilliant article mate – keep it up!
@Davi,
I used to like 4-4-2 but the world seems to be moving towards a variation of the 4-3-3. All top managers are now using that. It’s difficult for me to argue against the collective wisdom of these guys.
I do however feel that Arsenal need a lot more flexibility and the ability to adapt the system based on the needs of the game. Right now the attack is flexible and Wenger does make changes late in the game when he brings on more strikers but it doesn’t seem to be enough.
@CanadianGooner
I read Walter’s analysis after almost each game. He has done some great work but I do feel there is a little bit of a bias in his analysis. Even then it is by far the best and most reliable piece of work we have had on this topic. I’d also have loved a comparable effort for United, although I understand it’s extremely unfair to expect it from Walter.
But unless we have that kind of an analysis for comparison it is very difficult to say how the ref decisions have affected the two teams relatively. Nonetheless we will get an idea of the officials’ impact on Arsenal’s season. I’m waiting for Walter’s season end summary.
Cesc did not pick up an assist…
Who got the assist for the goal?
Cesc did get the assist…
Anyone other than this Santori gonna say something, he is talking complete bolox, I love the way every Arsenal fan has the solution to all our problems, always comes down to the same old question, if you know sooooo much, why are you not a football manager?
At the end of the day Arsene know a hell of alot more about football than any of us, just trust the man, and to all you idiots who think he should be sacked, just look around at other premiership managers who have lost there jobs, 90% of the time the club goes down hill afterwoods, if anyone really thinks this club would be better of without mr wenger your seriously deluded, Arsene made this club what it is today, before him we were boring boring Arsenal who ocationally won the f.a cup but finished 13th every season, you all have small minds and short memories, just wish you would all shut up and support your team!
I was wondering when the rest of you lot would show up.
Here’s more bolox.
We’re not saying Wenger should go but that the coaching staff needs a refresh. In particular it owuld be sensible to create a specialist coaching position each for our defense and attack to get rid of common problems (or at least work/focus on them)
You sound like a fine fan of Wenger and I agree with you that the man is brilliant but not in all departments.
When it comes to tactics, he can be found out. What he needs to do (and he has hinted at this end of last season) is get himself a new tactician to work alongside him and give him better options.
We simply need variation in our approach. currently we are too predictable and easily frustrated.
As a point in case, we don’t even use some of our players to their obvious strengths (Chamakh)
I’m not saying this is the be all solution but I believe that we will not completely resolve our problems without a serious look into this side of things. Buying from market is not the full solution either.
Anyway it’s obvious you haven’t quite read through what we’ve been writing. I would do so before weighing in with mere criticism.
Hey desi,
I am a desi as well… I completely agree with you on everything except ur Cesc statement. As a playmaker 1 assist is good enough, especially when our finishing is pretty average. He is not Superman…
When our title challenge ended last time, I posted an analysis of our season. Here is my assessment for this season:
http://thoughtsofthelittlecalf.blogspot.com/2011/04/and-so-arsenal-begin-again.html
Please read and let me know what you think…
P.S. I have only played as goalkeeper as an amateur and like most Indians know about football only from watching TV. So my analysis may not be spot on…
I think that cesc set the bar extremely high for himself last season, and by that standard he’s been playing nothing like to his capability. He was scoring and making goals for fun, but it’s just not happening the same for him this season. If he had even played to 75% of last season we would have won the last few games and be right up there still. He’s been playing pretty well by most standards, but compared to last season, probably 50%.
As Desi mentions, he is still at his lower capacity easily one of the better players on the pitch with his range of passing and vision but he just hasn’t seem quite completely commited since the defeat to Barca.
This affects our attack as when he is less affective going forward, we have a problem breaking teams down.
Last season he was adept at making forward runs into the box in support of the strikers. I don’t quite see that as much this season (although Nasri has picked up from hims omewhat this season but that means him cutting in and us going invariably narrow again)
I don’t quite no what the solution is as the current 4-3-3 that Wenger employs plays to our depth of strength in terms of attacking midfielders (a surfeit)
At the same time, we do not quite as yet have that complete midfielder who could sit next to Fabregas in a deeper role (4-4-1-1).
Song is positionally good but slow. Diaby has strength but (understatement) lacks focus. Frimpong will be graduated to the first team pending a good summer but he is still wet behind the ears. jack is about the only player IMO that has the lung capacity to do this but he is a bit small. Next to that maybe Ramsey if he returns to where he left off.
I hope the current crop continue to take strides forward and one ofthe above will truly be able to fulfill as a partner to Fabregas in the middle offering us an option to switch to 4-4-1-1- if need be.
Other than that, we could get someone from the market but that would then have an impact on the possible natural progression of the players listed above and I just don’t see Wenger doing this.
NO1GOONER
Deluded cunt.
Bit harsh mate.
I think that Arsenal do need a bit strong and tall players in squad. Kevin Davis is a beast in the box who sap a concentration and stamina via fouling etc.
Arsenal players looks exactly like Barca’s one fast and nimble but they lack of height and strength. Just look at old Arsenal clip.
Importantly, Arsenal have unbalanced squad which is way to attacking minded only. Team need mixture of attacking and defensive minded player. All of Arsenal midfielder lack of defensive skills.
If you mena centre of the park, Song is 6 foot. Diaby is 6 foot 3 and frimpong is also 6 foot. Ramsey is 5 foot 10-11
I think we have plenty of height and sufficient strength to dominate play (which we do)
The other side of it is some of the best midfield enforcers are not big men. Think Makelele, Marscha, Essien etc.
Up front, we have CHamakh who is barely used for his strength in the air. Benndtner isn’t any shorter and RVP is 6’3
At the back, Szcezny is 6 ft 5′, Djourou is 6’3.
Neither Vermaelen or Kos are particularly for tall @6′ even but they win most of the high balls and (particularly in Vermaelen’s case) score goals from corners at the other end.
Kevin Davis is aggressive but neither tall nor as effective as you might imagine (unless it comes to garnering cards)
So I think all this nonsense about height and strength is a fallacy.
What we lack is concentration. We have the tools but we are not using them properly, or rather they can be made to be used better.
What we need is ‘mental strength’.
This is why the general prescription for us is ‘experience’.
I think there’s is an added medicine in better coaching and new tactical ideas.
Sorry, I forget one thing, Arsenal really could do with fullback can cross the ball which give team width.
Only Arsenal do not have this type of player and of course it make it easy to defend against via pack in central part.
We need practise in this department.
Part of the reason why we are so rotten at crossing is that we nhaven’t used this option for a long while.
With Adebayor gone and RVP up front(drifiting out of the box), we don’t have much to aim for and it has become a hail mary option.
BUT with Chamakh (and Bendtner) in the team, it is quite surprising that Wenger has not polished his full backs into putting in better crosses and using the two big men to their obvious strengths(in particular when we need to go Plan B)
did anyone see wenger remonstrating with the physio on the arsenal bench at the match V spurs. my contact at arsenal tells me that the physio has a loaded tranquilizer dart ready to let wenger ave it if as expected he goes totally loony
maybe that’s why wenger spends so much time arguing with the 4th official, staying away from the physio
I’ve always said this, what Wenger needs is Martin Keown on the bench as a remonstration buddy. In fact he could tag team with Keown who IMO would probably doa better job throwing bottles and giving a shout or two into the fourth official’s ear or to the lads.:D
I put this comment down before the Spurs game and I guess it’s apt to put it again
“Supporting Arsenal just isn’t what it was before. From the players to the manager, to the stadium to the supporters, to the lack of support and the frustration from the stands, to the dearth of leadership and presence of 4-5 muppets, to the absence of fight and ease of giving up, to the ‘funny’ refereeing decisions to the hope that something underhanded isn’t going on, to the fact that I want to believe that we’ve been cheated a lot this season to the fact that Old Trafford has always been the theatre of you’re-dreaming-if-you-actually-think-a-ref-is-ever=going-to-give-you-a-penalty but Titi, Vieira, Bergy and Pires could care twopence about that, IT JUST ISN’T WHAT IT WAS BEFORE.
I’m honestly done caring for this team. Nowadays, I think I only really appreciate Sagna, Song, Cesc (the few times he’s not injured nowadays and you realize that this boy is smth special), RVP (when he makes you wonder why he’ll never play a full season and not end up messing up our continuity), Nasri and Jack. I don’t even think the players care for the team anymore and it’s not all their fault, the manager and we (the supporters) are to blame. The stands always give off some funk of constant fear and it gets to the players. The manager gives off an attitude of fear and a willingness to blame everything else- this gets to the players too. And significantly, some players are not worth much and do not even show fight and this gets to players who are not that way.
At the end of the day, I look at everything and the majority of blame lies with the Board and Wenger and I point to 1 thing- we let too many veterans (actually all of them) leave way too early, this for me is the greatest failure and it’s bitten us in a big way. With all Wenger’s innovations in keeping players healthy and fit for long careers, I think he missed a big point in that the long careers should be with US! You don’t sell all your veterans just to get money and say you got value from their sales when they were finished, what value do you then place on experience and the concept of culture and tradition being passed on in a club. Literally every failure we’ve experienced in the past 4-5 years- and I do not count every part of our barren run because we DID get to a Champions League Final in the waning years of Henry and I honestly don’t remember a pervasive sense of failure in our mentality that season even though we weren’t as good as we has been a couple seasons before that; I actually felt fine after that heartbreaking final because I felt things were only going to go up- has been because up there (the head) where it matters the most, our team just doesn’t have it and you can only get that from watching, understanding and learning how people who have it behave unless you’re extremely fortunate to be naturally strong-willed.
We lost the Arsenal tradition when Wenger chose (purposefully or forced) not to retain all of stalwarts even to their dying days and this has literally killed us and potentially damaged his legacy. That continuity is what helped Henry, Vieira, even Ljungberg, Pires and Lauren. Now, all we have is a team that at best will only get that from a mixture of failure (very unlikely considering how they’ve reacted so far) or if we draft in experienced heads from outside to knock it into them (this is much harder than armchair critics including myself state so simply).
Thankfully, recent ‘failures’ (and it is very harsh for me to characterize everything we’ve been through as failures because that is an exceedingly short-sighted view of things) may be a blueprint for the near future and our possible resurrection (and I say this without a completely defeatist attitude towards our chances this season). You need brain and brawn, the artist and the artisan and especially experience and youth. To copy the works of that spectacular Ajax team in this day and age will be hard, near-impossible in fact given the obscene amounts of money thrown around by idiotic teams and owners.
We know now that Wenger is not at fault for not being a great disciplinarian but he is at fault for fostering a culture where players are taught not to challenge themselves other than in the area of expressing the beautiful game. He failed to realize that one of his greatest accomplishments as an Arsenal manager was holding the bastions of the Graham era (Adams, Seaman, Keown, Dixon, Winterburn et al) and drafting in players of his ilk who could learn the other side of the game from those players (no need to mention these greats again). I don’t know how this mistake can be remedied, I don’t know if he has the courage and humility to admit this error, push away his pride and struggle to fix this but I do not see things getting any better if this is not changed.
Sadly, I will dirty my thoughts using the unmentionables from Man U. Sir Red-nosed regardless of his faults is actually a weirdly humble manager. He caught whiff of an excellent manager (Wenger), learnt from him and copied his book (With some updates) to send himself to the Hall of the Greatest Ever Managers. He used our European-flavoured challenge to make his team better prepared in the Champions league and whenever he realized he had gone too far, he reverted to the parts of English football culture that will always make a strong-willed team. Wenger, please take a cue from that man’s book and change this team!!!”
All we need are a number of experienced, mentally strong heads to get us out of this never-ending funk (in addition to a mini-clear out of the ungrateful sobs who have not paid Wenger’s trust in them).
Really interesting comment. I definitely think you are right that he let too many of the “veterans” leave too early/quickly, and this is where ferguson has done it better by keeping a mix of youth and experience, and this in part seems to help their young players grow up quicker. It has been a foolish policy to only give 1-year contracts to over-30s. I also agree that ferguson has always taken the best parts from wenger’s ideas and used to to improve his teams.
I do disagree with your very short list of players who actually care for the team (I certainly see the right attitude in sagna, clichy, walcott, koscielny, squillaci, and even eboue and diaby – just because they make mistakes, it doesn’t mean they don’t care!), but I do agree the way that the youth policy has been implemented does tend to promote the careers of the individual players, rather than the growth of a team who will work together to win. Denilson is the poster-child for that in my eyes – a very talented player who I swear only ever sprints for the ball when he’s up against Utd or barcelona! This is really a result of the strange policy of giving young players like denilson, theo, bendtner, and presumably many others, with bloated contracts (40-60k pw) that you would expect to be given after they’d completed a season of really solid performances, like Jack has done this year. It seems as though they are being rewarded for mediocrity and sends completely the wrong message (especially when flamini was not offered parity with fabregas after what was an out-of-this-world season for him, in which he was clearly our most consistent and important player). Some players, like theo, seem to be focussed on improving nonetheless, but others seem to take it as a sign they have made it, and their effort levels declined.
“to the ‘funny’ refereeing decisions to the hope that something underhanded isn’t going on, to the fact that I want to believe that we’ve been cheated a lot this season to the fact that Old Trafford has always been the theatre of you’re-dreaming-if-you-actually-think-a-ref-is-ever=going-to-give-you-a-penalty but Titi, Vieira, Bergy and Pires could care twopence about that”
This I find difficult to accept. The way I see it, we used to be on a fairly level playing field with utd financially, as they weren’t going to spend £30m each on several experienced players – both sides were mostly signing players up to around £12m. Under these conditions, the players could handle the poor decisions which usually would net against us over a season compared to them. These days, we are still having to deal with that – if anything this has been the worst season I have seen from that perspective tbh – but at the same time, we are trying to be responsible and not spend beyond our means. It makes it twice as difficult. Imo, had it not been for the refs, wenger’s old sides would have won a couple more titles than they managed – so even they weren’t impervious to the poor decisions (imo at least) – but when we’re starting with this (partly self-imposed) handicap, I really think it’s amazing we are doing this well.
I will go further and say, in spite of our clear shortcomings, we have been the best side this year. United have had SO MUCH go for them, it’s beyond ridiculous. By my count (which I doubt includes everything) they have avoided 10 CLEAR red card offences, and the suspensions that would have come with that. I can’t believe that that wouldn’t have made a difference. If you include the numerous penalty shouts, I would guess that they are at least 10 points better off than they should be compared to everyone else. Conversely, we have lost points overall due to referees – that’s absolutely clear. The recent liverpool game is a perfect example, but even against bolton we were denied a clear penalty (apparently a second as well, but I wasn’t watching at that point). Then there’s the newcastle farce, and a number of others.
So I find it hard to really blame arsene too much. The team he has created is obviously far from perfect, and compared to the past sides, it’s pretty poor, but we have still been the best side in the league to this point (although I would concede chelsea probably do have a better team, but their major blip was of their own doing) and should in all fairness be fighting off a late challenge from chelsea more-so than Utd. I used to love it when our great sides would triumph over the adversities this league puts on us, but at the same time I can hardly blaming for failing to overcome the wrongful adversities, which end up as a double-benefit our major rivals (ie we lose points due to refs, and they gain them). I hope our manager can make the few tweaks which seem necessary to put us back on something like the level we used to be.
There certainly is something to be said about the lack of ‘competition’ in the first team or rather that some of our younger players take the automatic progression for granted.
where Fergusson excels is in striking the fear of god in his team. There is always a very real underlying threat that the non performing United players will be replaced from market if need be.
Wenger is good at nurturing the young talents coming through but he may have over done it somewhat in the interest of accomodating the pressure form the Academy and an effort in being frugal with the Stadium ‘debt’.
In that sense, Wenger needs to protect some of the non performing players a little less. sure we would not have known how the likes of Song, Nasri or Jack could/would have stepped up had we been to hasty in judging them but I agree that he should have kept a couple of the veterans (Gilberto) a little longer and had the younger players truly fight for their places.
As is, I am not sure if bringing in ‘experience’ at this stage will be the wisest course of action.
Remember that as much as the last 5-6 seasons have been dissapointing, many of the players are now close to entering their peak years.
RVP is 27, CHamakh similar, Arsharvin, Vermaelen, Djourou, Song, Clichy, Sagna are all in their mid20s. I won’t mention Squillaci or Eboue (oops I just did)
If they take the lessons these rcent dissapointments offer into account, it would easily translate into ready experience for the team.
I know Szczesny is young and will make errors like the ones against Spurs. Kos is now showing signs of fatigue and this is also expected as this is his first EPL season. Chamakh couldn’t play after Dec and its a miracle Kos is still carrying on.
About Djourou: I wonder if anyone is thinking why Wenger is playing half-fit Djourou over Squillaci? Djourou has the shoulder injury at the back of his mind which is showing when he goes for headers.
Some promising noises were made after the match but to see Wenger totally down made me sad. After the match he shook Coyle’s hand and we knew it was over. If I remember right, Wenger said something about this being the last year of his project. He might one or two players in the summer and some might leave. No points for guessing that.
I agree it was really guttering to see Arsene like that. Others see it as weakness and seem to be repulsed by it but I think it just shows the passion and pride the man has in his players. Don’t forget that this team had to take on the world, to say we have been on the end of some really unfair calls for the last 3 or 4 years is an understatement. Van Persie’s sending off was the epitome of an era in my book. Hopefully Arsene makes the right signings and next year we will come back a much better team again i’m sure of it.
Djourou. I don’t think you can fault the gaffer in taking the risk. He has been the more solid Cback of the season. It was unfortunate that he had a bad day at the office against Bolton.
Szcezny. I wasn’t convinced at first that he was ‘experienced’ enough to warrant the post but in recent games, I think he looks solid and more importantly confident. If he keeps playing, we might have a top keeper on our hands.
I don’t see us needinga keeper with Szcezny. Fabianski is a reasoble back up. The third spot is up for grabs as Almunia will leave (pending a buyer). Possibly keeping Lehman on a rolling contract (and as an assistant in the coaching dept) could be a good option. After all, we need experience from somewhere, mad as it is.
I agree with most the article, Walcott’s was a stone cold penalty honestly for the ref to miss it is beyond criminal… but to then go down the other end and award a soft, soft penalty it is the infuriating stuff that means I cant help but to think something is very dodgy in the land of the refs…
About the Cesc debate, I’d like to see us keep Cesc for another year. I can’t help but think we will not win the title next year if we take out the core player in the team. Although he has dipped he loves this club and he will come back a strong player next year after a proper pre season.
About the balance of the team, I agree we are imbalanced between attack and defence. Tactically I think it is stupid to have such an attack fullback to cover for Sagna, we need another tall strong back up Centre back, and we need more defensive midfield cover and experience. Our attacking half doesn’t need too much tweaking it just needs a solid base behind it so that it can concentrate on what it does best, scoring. If Bendtner leaves i’d like to see Walcott convert to striker at least half the time. this means we are left with Nasri on the right and Arshavin on the left. As back up to them Miyaichi is a top, top signing. Another right winger is a possibility but only in a back-up role. Nasri needs the spot on the right as he seems to thrive there.
Sorry to talk about signings but I disagree on the whole if we had different players we would have the same results. If Arsene were to be ruthless and sell off all of the players who have shown they will not become superstars then we will free up a lot of space and funds in the team. This means that if Arsene can’t see the player being a starter in 3 years they should be shipped out. I stress that these players will all go off and do well with their respective clubs but we need more competition at Arsenal for our youth project to work completely. Arsene has completed 80% of the job and I disagree with most who are adamant that Arsene wont sign 3 or 4 quality back-ups. Last year we got Chamakh who imo has been a master stroke signing. He will come back next year a stronger player even though he has dipped at the end of the season. Koscielny too has been great imo and next year I wouldn’t be surprised if he started next to Vermaelen over Djourou, especially in Europe. Squillaci has been a good back up towards the end of the season but in my book he’s not quite what we need in the sense that he is the oldest Centre back yet cannot compete for a starting berth so in my books thats reason enough to go, same with Eboue. To show how strong our squad can be next season I will add in four players and then i’d like to see someone tell me thats not a title winning team.
~~~ Van Persie/Chamakh
Arshavin Fabregas Nasri
~~~ Parker Song
Clichy Vermaelen Koscielny Sagna
~~~ Fabianski
~~~ Bendtner
Miyaichi Ramsey Walcott
~~~ Wilshere Rodwell
Gibbs/Botelho Vertonghen Djourou Wiel
~~~ Szczesny
That is obviously putting the team into two generations but the point is that there is an experienced team and then a hungry second squad all with the potential and long term goals of displacing the player in front of them. To people who say theres too much quality on the bench I think thats the difference between a top top team and any other. In the top team players are prepared to wait for their turn and accept that competition for places is vital to the squad, just look at Barcelona’s bench or Chelsea’s, Inter’s etc. If you disagree with me please reply as I am always interested in others valid opinions and sorry No1 Gooner for having an opinion but its not like anyones going to listen to our opinions anyway so who really cares? Its also not to say that we don’t get behind the team just as much as you either because I give our team my heart and soul. Come on Arsenal glory is imminent!!!
Absolutely. We should have more experience in the squad next season out of pure natural progression.
What we need (reinforcement) is to get players to enchance our capabilities in areas we need.
I think we will need LW (additional speed, Hazard is good on both feet and tricky), up top (someone more pacy, like Benzema) and maybe if Fab leaves, another to groom in the middle but someone preferably with some talent in delivering set pieces (I like Ganso)
With regards poor decisions, I think Wenger needs to train the team to play expecting this disadvantage much like some teams train to play with 10 men (did I mention Mourinho?)
The sooner we can get over this as an ‘excuse’ however legitimate, the better it will be for our mental ‘strength’.
Perhaps we should train to play with 10 men and always be at least one goal behind.
Mental conditioning.
The commentator said during one of the El Classico’s that Mourinho trained with 10 just because he knew the possibility might arise. I think this was after the sending off of Raul Albiol.
Wenger also trains with different number of players if my understanding is correct.
What makes Wenger think by buying player/players the gunners will start firing again. Of course it’s better to get some experienced guys than some fellows from the lowere grade football leagues. A case in point is the the two French defenders.
Having said that,Wenger better go for the tried and tested and battle hardened ones from the major leagues ottherwise come next May another tragedy will start to unfold.
Btw as he said he has no one but himself to blame. He better change strategy. In truth the problems were there but hee was too arrogantand condescending to the fans. Let’s hope he doesn’t make the same mistakes again.Istrongly he is in the last saloon before the train leaves without him.
Well, if he doesn’t look into tactics/coaching revamp, then the other only option is to add from market but given the strength of purchasing power in Chelsea, City, Real, Barca, we will realistically find it extremely hard to compete for top top (experienced talents), even with Kroenke onboard and willing to splash.
I’n not saying there aren’t good bargains (‘Arry got himself a good one with VDV) but judging by the going price of David Luiz (Would have been brilliant for us), you can see how we will find it hard to follow the remedy touted by pundits.
Wenger talked about financial doping. Well the red faced ,Chelsea and MC are in million euros in debt. Take the case of the rfc.He goes on to buy players knowing his club still owed the band trillion.billions/millions.That didn’t stop him from winning trophies.
The name of the game is winning games and trophies. It’s not about how many beautiful patterns and mesmerising movement you make on the pitch, it’s not about how profitable the gunners are and how many trillions they have in credit.
Btw nobody cares/knows Mu are in debt. Similarly for Chelsea. I e Wenger had missed the point and hopefully he will now focus on winning. And please stop the passing to eternity.Three to five passes will do before shooting.
I somehow feel Arsene should have made playing with 2 strikers upfront as his plan B . United almost always plays with 2 strikers upfront . That said I was actually relieved that introduction of Chamakh was kinda awkward as it was too late in the season to try that tactic . I think that tactic can help us sometimes when teams park the bus .
We should have this option at least for a Plan B (20 minute stretch at the end), particularly where it is reasonably safe to sacrifice one of the screening mids.
Having said that, he has deployed Chamakh with RVP on occasion but the two do not seem to have forged an understanding(as yet anyway).
He has also tried deploying Bendtner but seems fond for some inexplicable reason of banishing the Dane to the wings.:P
Sorry I meant it was kinda awkward to try that at the tail end of the season.
I would love to see Wenger play Koscielny as a defensive midfielder for a few games.I think that this could be a success.Koscielny reads the games very well.He makes a lot of interceptions.He is good in one-vs-one situations.He has a good pace.He is not clumsy like Alex Song.He can pass the ball very well.There have been at least 5-6 occasions in different matches where he has made some very good runs forward as well. It is worth a try.
Desi I disagree with you on Clichy how many times he got in good positions at the end of the game but even failed to beat his first man ….I was not pin pointing the defensive issues but the crossing whenever space has been available most of the times atrocious…..now that’s a first hand opinion….if u care mate
Desi on the premier league quality debate we all have our opinions my point was had Cesc or Rooney ,Drogba et al been near to their best you would have seen less upsets the points total would have increased at the top,the thing that is hurting me is imo we had the best opportunity in years to win the BPL,when was the last time we were in title shout for the last 6 games and this time we had the services of Theo Persie Fabregas Arshavin available ,as you pointed in January our defense was one of the meanest in the league but suddenly after that Carling Cup loss everything seemed to unravel,how come….and about your CEO example we are on our way to the coveted 3rd position now will you call this growth….as you pointed out…..secondly if the blame doesn’t lie on the manager since we had the likes of Campbell Toure Gallas at the back we were still frail will he change this summer backroom staff and all that what’s ur opinion …….
on the defensive issue don’t you think a world Class CDM can overcome some of our shortcomings …..Song on Song we were going gr8 guns but in the second half of the season we have struggled just as Song …..we can do better than Denilson imo….
Don’t you think you need to give this some more thought? Denilson hasn’t even played in the last three games! If the supposed first team had delivered Arsenal would be right up there. Why bring Denilson up right now?
I don’t want to defend Denilson. I’d love to see him replaced. But he is not the core problem at Arsenal. This is why I get annoyed. Earlier people found it easy to blame Almunia, Rosicky, Bendtner, Denilson, etc. Now even when these guys aren’t playing, the problems persist.
My point has always been that if the core issues are not handled, the team will struggle no matter who is bought or sold. Do you really want to sell all the fringe players and half the first team? If not then how can any buying or selling make a fundamental change?
If we buy a CDM, will he play instead of Song? or instead of Wilshere? Or Cesc? Do you think any of these three will be happy on the bench if a new guy comes in? As we have seen with Arshavin and Rosicky, any guy who isn’t first choice loses confidence and his ability to perform. As we have seen with Diaby, any guy who is in and out of the team struggles to get rhythm. So rotation is not as easy as it seems. It’s a very difficult balance to achieve. I’m not saying we should not buy. I’m saying it’s not as simple as just buying supposedly proven players.
My problem with your comments is that they seem half-baked and superficial. Every time I ask you questions to dig deeper into an issue the topic seems to get changed. For instance, I agree about the need for leadership but no one has told me what the leader can do on the pitch in a split second when something goes wrong? People say Vieira was a leader but how many times did he get sent off by reacting to provocation? Is leaving your team down to ten a sign of good leadership? That team used to win so no one noticed this stuff. If he did the same in this team people would have crucified him and called him mentally weak/unstable or unable to handle pressure!
I respect your intentions but am not convinced you understand/respect the enormity of the complications. And I don’t see any balance, it’s mostly just criticizing one thing after another.
I have always maintained that the buck stops with the manager. In the end he is to blame. I don’t have a problem with that.
But the incessant blame game is a pointless exercise that doesn’t add anything meaningful. I’m trying to move the discussion from the blame the manager … buy X,Y,Z player… to more relevant details.
I don’t want to defend the manager. If you have paid any attention I have plenty of things to say against him. But I don’t want to get sucked up into the routine where each day is about blaming someone and then cribbing all day long.
That is the reason I acknowledge the issues. And I try to get into the details.
For instance, I liked the stat that Arsenal don’t get enough points per game in the final few months. But it’s criminal to trivialize this by saying we don’t have enough experienced players and this is the cause of this issue.
If that were the case why did Liverpool blow their lead in 08-09? They had players who had plenty of experience in all parts of the pitch, they had players who had won the Champions League, surely players with a winning mentality? They had a tactical manager, they had a clinical striker, they had wingers, they had people who could shoot from distance, they had a world class goalie, a mean defence, they had everything people claimed Arsenal don’t have. So why did they fail?
The problem is when I ask such questions people assume I’m defending the manager or some other stupid stuff. All I’m trying to do is get into the relevant details. And unless people can show me they understand the importance of these details I can’t really care about their opinion.
Desi
Fair Play agree with you on some issues now please let me emphasize on the leadership front my point is that someone who can organize the team especially the back four in corners or free kicks from which we always seem to concede as I have no doubt Cbs we have are of great potential ,a Sol Campbell sort of from the invincibles era .
Who attacks the ball in the air (Gallas was a different type) a Terry or a player who can sometimes organise a team when the pressure starts telling , a player with presence that’s what Viera was all about opposition knew they are in for it (steely) in England where they play the game like a war captaincy has always been a major issue(thats what Capello also realised with xperience) ….Body Langauge of Cesc hasn’t been good we deserve a better captain and I highly doubt we’ll sign anyone at the back especially since Bartley will be back .So hoping for the best on that front.
On Denilson my point was we need competition for Song as he blows hot and cold so someone else who can fit in who is better than Denilson
athletic strong reader of the game just a bit of better competition .Diaby who is again out has struggled to play 3 games at a stretch this season is another worry, makes it difficult for him to play throughout the season at a consistent basis.
On playing regularly my point was players like Park Ji Sung et al who can do a job for us whenever the need arises and don’t complaint are the need of the hour i.e. utilty players…
We lack balance in the squad I believe
That’s my tuppence worth
I apologize if I offended anyone with my rants or criticisms cheers…
But Liverpool did not have players who’d had the experience of winning the premiership a number of times- we did since we’d been the only team along with Chelski and Man U who had ever won the premiership and we probably should have kept a number of players who understood what you had to do to grind out results come crunch time, instead we sold all of them.
There’s a general culture problem in the club right now and it comes out in the subtlest of ways- no one shouts at other players, you hear of a club where everybody is told to buddy up when in reality, that never happens in successful squads where you need strong personalities who are willing to put some players in their places when needed. See Denilson having the guts to respond to Cesc’s comments about him being unprofessional for conceding a late penalty about a month ago, that’s what the new culture has fostered. I do agree that its more complicated than everyone says it is but Arsene caused this complication by assembling an extremely talented young squad that sold itself extremely short on other qualities, now it’s a case of who should go when to an extent we should have fought against this thing from the start.
I love our 1st team and like Wenger, I don’t think it should be shaken but if the addition of some directness, professionalism and strong will at the expense of ball playing is needed, I’ll take it over the sole tip-tap one-dimensional soccer I’ve seen over the past 3-4 years.
Desi Liverpool failed to win the Bpl in 2008-09 was due to helluva no of draws in the first half of season almost double that of United they were easily the best team in the second half dismantled Manure on their own turf Benitez didnt go gung ho against the lesser teams at the start of the season that’s what cost them ..You have to hand it to Fergie he certainly knows the art of winning ….
Wilshere said Lehmann felt like an assistant manager to him at half time against Blackpool these are intangible and fine points but make a difference at the top..
I sometimes try to get the debate going ,being a devils advocate thats why I post some articles from online resources or other fans opinions .Thats what blogging is all about I believe and when Arsenal lose to get the anger out of the system
.. would love to read an article about El Classico from you..
The only major problem worrying me is that Wenger looks lost and hopeless as never before.If he is a top manager, he’ll come out of it stronger.
But if he’s not, then you wonder what would happen.
I’ve always loved the calm & composed Arsene but the changed Arsene is the one which I’m starting to hate.
That certainly affects the players who seem to be trying too hard at the moment.
Check my Arsenal blog:
http://delhigunner.wordpress.com/2011/04/25/a-spot-to-fill-which-players-should-arsene-wenger-buy/
Wenger must buy or leave. Board too. Hiopeless
if you dont mind discuss!!!
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1380535/Arsene-Wenger-shifts-blame-leaky-defence-Arsenal-seek-commanding-presence.html
Wenger is talking about a specific instance. The author has generalized it.
Even I mentioned this point in the report – Djourou didn’t attack the ball well enough. As far as that observation goes it is easy.
The real issue comes when the solution is to be found. Should Djourou be sold and a new guy brought in? Or is this more a problem of training? Arsenal have had so many defenders in the recent past including Campbell, Toure, Gallas, Vermaelen, Senderos, Djourou, etc. Did they all have the same problem? If not then why did the defence have problems no matter who was in it? Do these problems exist all the time or are they intermittent? Should training focus on technique or on concentration (because time is finite)?
This is how the manager has to think. He has to weigh in a lot of factors. These hacks misinterpret and/or trivialize everything so I don’t waste time on such articles.
i’d like to see fabregas go because of his mind not talent….he’s the best midfielder with short pass,long pass,ball retention and most importantly he PERSONALLY controls the speed of the game but if he wants barca let him go…WE NEED BLEEDING HEARTS LIKE WILSHIRE….who remembers how he kept running in camp nou even with his tank finished.
vela is speedy.left footed.tricky.
ramsey is cesc like
wilshire…chips and more goals plus defensive awarness will make him reach that final step…he already knows this
diaby…was this season the last chance saloon.
bendtner…although talented i am guessing the arrival of chamakh will see him leave either next season or the one after simply because he needs more time
rosicky,,, in my opinion should stay.he has the class and quality.mozart!!
arshavin…should be played on a 442 system…
i’ve got tired of going on……
in my opinion we need a player exactly like arshavin but taller and faster e.g ROBBEN(injury prone/JET(inexperienced) / CR7 / )…..BASICALLY A WIDE ATTACKING PLAYER WHO CAN CROSS/SHOOT/HEAD….MORE SELFISH
….FOOTBALL OPINIONS NEVER END