Friday 15 December 2017

Problems away from home continue

West Ham 0-0 Arsenal

points against West Ham on Wednesday night, as the Gunners played out a frustrating 0-0 draw.

The game took on a familiar pattern with Arsenal enjoying the lion’s share of possession against a side determined to sit deep and defend in numbers. Yet although the Gunners enjoyed up to 70% of possession, they did not do enough with the ball to create goal scoring opportunities. As their dismal away record shows, this is not the first time this has happened this season as Arsene Wenger’s side appear unable to break down the opposition away from home. In fact, the fine win away to Everton aside, Arsenal have failed to score more than one goal in any of their other away games so far this season.

This must be something that is extremely perplexing to Wenger as his side’s home form has been excellent so far. Apart from the recent loss to Manchester United, Arsenal have won all of their home games this season and it is not as if they face two completely different approaches from their opposition. Whether they play at home or away, Arsenal will more often than not come up against a side that will allow them to have the ball and will defend deep and in numbers. Yet while the Gunners have dealt with these tactics comfortably at the Emirates, they have appeared flummoxed when faced with them on their travels.

In general, the key to breaking down such sides is to move the ball quickly, with players tacking one or two touches at most, before releasing the ball. Movement is also key as the players must be prepared to give the ball to a teammate and then make a forward run to move the opposition out of position and create space in between their defensive lines. Movement also presents the man on the ball with passing options and therefore prevents him from dawdling on the ball and tempo being reduced to a snail’s pace as a result. The final key ingredient is to make the pitch as wide as possible by getting the ball out wide and attacking the opposition down the flanks rather than attempting to play intricate passes through the already congested middle of the pitch.

Unfortunately Arsenal have not been doing these things on a regular basis away from home and results ultimately speak for themselves. Wenger elected to move away from his system of three at the back against West Ham, elected to go back to a back four instead, but still there was little improvement. With Alexis Sanchez and Alex Iwobi either side of Olivier Giroud, in theory Arsenal could switch the ball wide and then get crosses into the box for Giroud to attack. However neither Sanchez nor Iwobi stayed wide and in fact kept on drifting inside, narrowing the attack and effectively playing into West Ham’s hands.

Up front, Giroud offered very little movement and it was therefore rather easy for the West Ham defenders to defend against him. The Frenchman didn’t hold the ball up well either and therefore could not link up with the midfield, who did not attempt to run on beyond him, in the hope of running onto a flick on, as a result.

With Iwobi and Sanchez failing to offer any width to the side, the onus was on the full backs, Bellerin and Ainsley Maitland-Niles. Although the youngster did perform rather well and did deliver a few quality crosses into the box, he tends to favour his right foot and therefore as he was deployed as a left full back, he would turn in to deliver the ball with his right foot which gave West Ham the opportunity to close him down. On the other flank Bellerin, who has performed far below his best so far this season, seemed reluctant to ever cross the ball without taking a touch first. Therefore whenever Arsenal had generated some space for the right back and switched the ball towards him, Bellerin would negate the space that had been created by taking a touch rather attempting to cross the ball first time. In such a congested area, with West Ham defending in numbers, taking a touch only served to provide the opposition with an opportunity to recover, having been caught out of position. A first time cross, delivered well, which in fairness has been beyond Bellerin this season, would have caused panic amongst the defence. Therefore even if Giroud couldn’t get on the end of the cross, the chance of a West Ham player deflecting the ball into his own net or executing a poor clearance, would increase significantly. Instead, Bellerin’s attempted crosses were blocked all night long, much to the frustration of the Arsenal fans.

At the final whistle the Gunners could at least point to a clean sheet which had been there undoing in their previous two league outings. However in the final minutes, Arsenal did their best to throw the game away, with Koscielny’s poor and inexplicable pass across the box, eventually falling to Javier Hernandez who saw his shot come back off the underside of the bar. Replays showed Petr Cech had done well to get his fingertips to the ball and divert it onto the bar but the goalkeeper had produced a poor performance up until that point. His punching from crosses into the box had been abysmal and only a goal line clearance earlier in the game had saved his blushes.
Ultimately Arsenal must do better. There is no point in dominating possession if you do nothing with it. The Gunners are simply not doing enough to create opportunities and there is a feeling that they simply expect chances to present themselves having dominated the ball for large parts of the game. That is not good enough for a club of this size and Wenger should demand more from his players. This poor run away from home will only continue if his players do not wise up to the basics required to break down stubborn sides who sit deep and in numbers.  


Monday 11 December 2017

Poor start costs Gunners again!

Southampton 1-1 Arsenal

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Arsenal were once again left to rue a poor defensive display on Sunday, which completely undermined their chances of securing all three points against Southampton.

Wednesday 6 December 2017

Clinical United punish sloppy Gunners

Arsenal 1-3 Man United


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As the final whistle sounded on Saturday evening, Arsenal fans around the World had the same stunned expression on their face. They had just witnessed an exceptional attacking performance from their side, against one of the best teams in the league, but yet somehow had still ended up on the losing side.

For several years Arsenal’s attacking play has been lauded while their defensive work has come in for severe criticism. However, there cannot have been many previous occasions when the disparity between the two units has been so vast during a single match. The Gunners were simply outstanding going forward, carving out chance after chance after chance against a side managed by Jose Mourinho, the supposed defensive guru who always knows how to stifle the opposition’s attack. By the end of the match Arsenal had registered 33 efforts on goal but unfortunately could only find the back of the net once as they came up against an inspired David de Gea who made a total of 14 saves to deny the hosts, the joint highest in Premier League history. The numbers themselves were ridiculous, the kind of numbers that would be impressive had Arsenal registered them against one of the smaller sides in the league, let alone one that has had vast sums spent on it during recent transfer windows and is supposedly fighting for the league title. Sure Arsenal were not as clinical as they should have been, but at times the ball seemed to simply refuse to go in, coming back off the crossbar or being deflected just wide or saved by de Gea.

In contrast Manchester United were supremely clinical, converting three of their four shots on goal to take all three points from a game in which they deserved nothing and would have been humiliated were it not for their goalkeeper. All those associated with the Gunners could feel immense pride in defeat but ultimately there were also feelings of extreme frustration. Arsenal should have easily won this game but didn’t, not as a result of bad luck but as a result of a terrible defensive display.

Shkodran Mustafi has been excellent since returning from injury, but against Manchester United the German was simply abysmal and Laurent Koscielny alongside him, so often so reliable, was equally poor. The two were at fault for United’s opening two goals which arrived within the first eleven minutes of the game and ultimately cost Arsenal any hope they had of securing a victory. For both goals, first Koscielny and then Mustafi attempted to carry the ball out of defence, were robbed of possession and panic then set in. For the first goal in particular, five Arsenal players were attracted to the ball, which left Antonio Valencia completely unmarked on the edge of the box and the Ecuadorian had the simple task of slotting the ball beyond Cech to give his side the lead. The fact the shot went in through the goalkeeper’s legs didn’t exactly help matters either. To commit such a grave error after only four minutes was bad enough but to then commit an identical error only seven minutes later was disgraceful. Why Arsenal’s defence were attempting to carry the ball out from the back so early on in such a big game is something only the manager can answer. The main focus in such games must always be to not concede early on, but instead Arsenal committed football suicide and essentially threw the game away.

Even after Lacazette had pulled a goal back for the home side and got them right back into the game, Arsenal still contrived to throw it all away again. With the fans firmly on their side, having witnessed a first half in which the United goal had been peppered with shots, all the momentum was now with the Gunners. Having somehow failed to score in the first period, an early goal in the second half was vital and when it arrived thanks to an excellent delivery by Sanchez, picking out Ramsey, who laid the ball back for Lacazette to fire home, there was a real feeling that Arsenal would soon be back on level terms.

Yet the same old defensive failings arose once more. Kosicelny was at fault once again as he allowed Pogba to get around him in the box far too easily before passing the ball across the Arsenal box to the completely unmarked Lingard who had the simple task of tapping the ball into the empty net for his second of the game. Granit Xhaka had been stood in front of him, but didn’t have any idea that Lingard was behind him until it was all too late. Unfortunately the Swiss international just does not have the defensive mind set to sniff out danger, even when it is blindingly obvious. Lingard was the only United player in the box and therefore the delivery from Pogba was only ever going to go towards him, yet Xhaka didn’t take up the appropriate position to clear the danger and suddenly Arsenal were 3-1 down and completely out of the game.

Pogba’s late sending off therefore did little to change the course of the game as at that stage United were already sitting back to protect their lead and although the Gunners could point to a clear penalty on Welbeck which would have brought them right back into the game once again, in truth Wenger’s men somewhat ran out of steam towards the end. At the final whistle it was difficult to understand what had happened during those frenetic 90 minutes and equally difficult to know just how to feel about the game. Arsenal had been outstanding going forward and had produced quite possibly one of their best ever attacking displays under Arsene Wenger, yet their defensive play had been abysmal. You cannot give away a two goal lead to any side in this league, let alone a title challenger, and expect to still take something from the game. For far too long the Gunners defence has been allowed to be a liability and undermine the team’s progress. Wenger appeared suitably annoyed after the match to suggest that changes may be afoot but this has been allowed to drag on for far too long and therefore it would not be surprising if in actual fact nothing changed at all and the same mistakes are allowed to happen all over again.

Tuesday 28 November 2017

Last gasp Gunners do it again

Burnley 0-1 Arsenal

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Arsenal followed up their victory in the North London derby with a last minute winner to seal all three points against a dogged and determined Burnley side.

Monday 20 November 2017

Power shift?

Arsenal 2-0 Tottenham 

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The lead up to the North London derby on Saturday was dominated by talk of a power shift towards Tottenham. Having long been in the shadow of their bitter rivals, Spurs were now seen as the dominant force who would no doubt inflict more damage on Arsenal and heap more dismay on their supporters. Several UK newspapers ran articles in which distinguished journalists and former players were asked to name a combined XI from the two squads and not many Arsenal players featured in any of those teams selected. The Gunners, it seemed, didn’t have a prayer.

Tuesday 7 November 2017

Poor decisions prove Gunners undoing

Man City 3-1 Arsenal

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A number of poor decisions cost Arsenal dearly on Sunday afternoon as they left the Etihad Stadium empty handed for the second year in succession.

Saturday 4 November 2017

Boredom at the Emirates

Arsenal 0-0 Red Star Belgrade


Arsenal and Red Star Belgrade played out an unbelievably tedious and turgid match on Thursday night as the depth to which the Gunners have fallen finally hit home for many supporters.

Tuesday 31 October 2017

Kolasinac inspires Gunners

Arsenal 2-1 Swansea

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Arsenal produced their third comeback victory in the space of a week on Saturday as they overcame a disciplined Swansea City side, having earlier gifted them the lead.

Thursday 26 October 2017

A star is born

Arsenal 2-1 Norwich

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“Eddie, Eddie, Eddie!” This infectious chant rang around the Emirates Stadium for the very first time on Tuesday night as a young star announced himself on the big stage with a wonderful performance from the bench which dramatically turned the game in Arsenal’s favour.
Few had heard of Eddie Nketiah before the League Cup match against Norwich, but by the final whistle he had certainly made a name for himself with those who had witnessed his display of courage, commitment and determination.

Tuesday 24 October 2017

First away win secured in style

Everton 2-5 Arsenal


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Arsenal produced a fine away performance against Everton on Sunday to record their first league victory on the road all season.

Tuesday 17 October 2017

Weaknesses prove costly again

Watford 2-1 Arsenal

Tom Cleverley celebrates after scoring late.

“Arsenal’s players just lack cojones” was the damning verdict from Troy Deeney on Arsene Wenger’s side having just helped Watford secure a last gasp victory against the Gunners. Although it is largely unprecedented for a current player to appear in a television studio straight after the game and castigate the opposition players in such derogatory terms, it was difficult to argue against the Watford striker.

Monday 2 October 2017

Gunners back in the hunt?

Arsenal 2-0 Brighton

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Arsenal continued their recent run of impressive results with a comfortable home win against Brighton on Sunday.

The win was significant for several reasons,

Friday 29 September 2017

Youngsters rise to the occassion

BATE Borisov 2-4 Arsenal

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Despite poor performances from his reserve team players on the two previous occasions that he had given them a chance to shine this season, Arsene Wenger placed his faith in them once again as he selected an extremely young side for the away trip to BATE Borisov on Thursday night.

Wednesday 27 September 2017

Mustafi recklessness almost costs Gunners

Arsenal 2-0 West Brom

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There are a number of running jokes at the Emirates stadium, amongst the home supporters, regarding refereeing decisions and the fact that they never seem to go in Arsenal’s favour.

Thursday 21 September 2017

Wilshere's promising return

Arsenal 1-0 Doncaster




Following their lacklustre performance against Cologne the previous week, Arsenal’s second string line-up once again failed to impress on Wednesday night against Doncaster Rovers. Those within the squad seeking to press their case for inclusion in the first team missed their opportunity for the second week in succession as the Gunners toiled to a 1-0 victory.

Monday 18 September 2017

New found defensive steel?

Chelsea 0-0 Arsenal
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Arsenal left Stamford Bridge on Sunday afternoon content with their display but rather disappointed not to have secured the three points that their performance richly deserved. The Gunners went into the game with football pundits and supporters alike expecting a similar display and result to their previous away game to Liverpool but the Gunners proved them all wrong.

Friday 15 September 2017

Comfortable win followed by long night

Arsenal 3-0 Bournemouth
Arsenal 3-1 Cologne


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Arsenal returned to winning ways with a very comfortable win at home to Bournemouth on Saturday. It was a victory that will have restored confidence amongst the squad following the debacle at Liverpool, but in truth it was difficult to read anything into it, such was the poor performance of the away side. 

Tuesday 29 August 2017

Pathetic Gunners embarrassed again

Liverpool 4-0 Arsenal

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Arsenal’s performance away to Liverpool on Sunday was simply disastrous. This was not the assessment of any football pundit or fan sat in the stadium watching their team capitulate, this was Arsene Wenger’s description of what he had just seen.

From the very first minute to the very last, Wenger’s side were an embarrassment to the club, the shirt, the fans and their manager. Yet at no point did we see Wenger or any of his backroom staff, get up from the dug out to castigate the players.

Tuesday 22 August 2017

Same old problems

Stoke 1-0 Arsenal


Jese Rodriguez puts Stoke ahead against Arsenal

Arsenal left Stoke on Saturday night wondering just how they had managed to lose a game in which they had enjoyed over 70% possession and should have been awarded at least one penalty. Bewildered looks could be seen on the faces of the majority of Arsenal’s players as they boarded the coach for the long journey home but in truth the answer to the question was rather simple. The Gunners’ defence had ultimately let them down.

Monday 14 August 2017

Crazy opening night

Arsenal 4-3 Leicester

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Arsenal and Leicester opened the Premier League season with a truly mesmerising game full of excitement and drama throughout. If this is an indication of what the league season has in store then fans all over the World will not be disappointed.

Wednesday 12 April 2017

More pain for the Arsenal faithful

Crystal Palace 3-0 Arsenal

The shocking stats surrounding Arsenal’s 3-0 defeat to Crystal Palace

Arsenal suffered yet more humiliation, this time at the hands of Crystal Palace, as the Gunners season continued to go from bad to worse with another abysmal performance on Monday night. A home draw against Manchester City followed by a win against West Ham had seen some of the players declaring that they were close to rediscovering top form. However those that had actually watched the games knew this was far from the truth. Arsenal’s attacking play has been horrendously bad since the turn of the year, with the Gunners failing to consistently turn possession into goal scoring opportunities. It is as though they lack the conviction to do so and Wenger appears lost for ideas as to how to resolve the issue.

Thursday 23 March 2017

Cowards costing Gunners

West Brom 3-1 Arsenal


Another game and another defeat for Arsenal, this one more shambolic than the last as Arsene Wenger’s position becomes more and more untenable with each passing week. The Gunners are just an embarrassment at the moment as the years of mismanagement by the board finally come home to roost.

Wednesday 15 March 2017

Gunners see off plucky Lincoln

Arsenal 5-0 Lincoln

Aaron Ramsey, Alexis v Lincoln City

Arsenal safely navigated their way through to the FA Cup semi-finals with what turned out to be a comfortable 5-0 victory over non-league Lincoln City on Saturday.

Friday 10 March 2017

Humiliated again!

Arsenal 1-5 Bayern Munich

It all went wrong for Arsene Wenger and Arsenal at the Emirates tonight

Seven consecutive seasons of Champions League elimination at the last 16 stage was a mere footnote following yet more humiliation dished out at the hands of Bayern Munich. The headline of course was the 10-2 aggregate score line, the joint second biggest loss in the competition’s history and the heaviest defeat by an English team in Europe’s top competition.
Arsenal had performed well until Laurent Koscielny was sent off early in the second half