Believe? No, Something Better Change!

In what is starting to feel like listening to Believe by Cher (a song I absolutely detest) on repeat, Arsenal slipped to a third successive Sunday evening home defeat; this time to a Wolves side who were frankly comfortable throughout (give or take a short spell of Arsenal 'pressure' towards the end).

Whilst we are aware that it's tricky for Arteta to change much when they're playing every three days, I think that it's fair to say that we should be expecting considerably more from this Arsenal team. They seem to be lacking confidence, motivation and much of a cohesive plan, and questions may soon start to be asked of the manager; for all that he did deliver the FA Cup and speaks very well to the press. Leaving the Cup Final success aside, it's starting to be quite difficult to see much progress in the year since Emery was sacked.

There's a torpor that needs to be addressed, as the team sink passively to a distant 14th in the table and face - should they lose at The Toilet Bowl next weekend - finding themselves no less than 11 points behind Tottenham after just 11 games. Completely unacceptable.

In the continued (and it's apparently going to be a few more weeks yet) absence of Thomas Partey and of the suspended Pepe, Arsenal lined up much as expected, with the Ceballos/Xhaka axis restored in midfield and Aubameyang flanked by Saka and Willian, with Willock in the hole behind. Now, there's no reason why this formation cannot be made to work, but Wolves seemed quicker to almost every ball, and to be much clearer about what they were required to do. Several players put in disappointing performances... to add to a litany of other disappointing performances already this season. 

I speak particularly of Xhaka, who simply doesn't seem to be putting in much of a shift; and of Willian, who looked like a world-beater against Fulham but has flattered to deceive ever since. And even Aubameyang looked somewhat dispirited, as even playing down the middle he is starved of opportunity to make a mark and is clearly short of confidence.

The game got off to a sickening start, as an accidental clash of heads betwen Luiz and Jiminez - I was listening on the 'no crowd noise' feed (as I always do - I can't stand the fake effects) and the sound was horrendous; like the sound of an egg being cracked open - from an early Arsenal corner saw the former needing stitches and a bandage, and the latter a stretcher following a lengthy spell of treatment. 

By all accounts Jiminez, despite suffering a fractured skull(!) is going to be fine, but he was clearly badly concussed, needed oxygen, and had to be replaced. As for Luiz; well, I felt that the decision not to replace him at the same time was dubious, and his sluggish response for Wolves second goal and the decision to replace him at half time would suggest that the medical team got it wrong.

Certainly, at a time when the news indicates that links are being made between heading the ball, concussion and even dementia in later life, something drastic needs to be done about the protocol that allowed Luiz to stay on the field. A 'concussion substitute' for a start; after all, you'd have to be pretty cynical to fake something like that!

Both sides were affected by the incident, but it was Wolves who regained their equilibrium first, looking more motivated and crisper in possession than a sluggish Arsenal. The ever-dangerous Traore 'roasted' Tierney on the left - a rare sight indeed - following a smart passage of play, and crossed for Dendoncker who crashed a header against the bar (it would probably have been easier to score). And Neto reacted first to fire past Leno. Defensively, nobody covered themselves in glory here, and Bellerin in particular needs to look at his positional work.

Arsenal got themselves level very quickly, as following a corner Gabriel rose highest at the far post to nod a Willian cross powerfully into the net. 

Hardly deserved, to be frank, and it wasn't long before Wolves hit Arsenal with a sucker punch. Saka's misplaced pass to Aubameyang on the edge of the Wolves area led to a swift breakaway, Traore out-skilled and out-muscled a weak-looking Xhaka on the half-way line and found Neto, who drove in on goal and got a shot away. Leno failed to hold it (disappointing) and once more almost the entire Arsenal defence was slow to react as Podence cleverly lifted the ball over the sliding Gabriel and then hammered it home beneath the advancing keeper. Not good enough, from front to back.

At which point you'd have hoped that Arsenal might have turned it up a notch, but apart from the first 5 minutes after half time and a short spell around the 80th minute mark there was very little for Wolves to worry about. Aubameyang had a fair chance with a header and substitute Nelson fired over, but there was very little to note. That it took Arteta until the 81st minute to bring on Lacazette is also a bit of a concern. 

The brightest sparks were, frankly, youngsters Willock, Saka and Nelson, but they can't be expected to do it on their own and they're not getting much support from around them. There is very much a case for Elneny and his defensive/running attributes to come back into the side in place of Xhaka on Sunday - just to see someone making an effort would cheer this supporter up a bit.

In fact, for me there's little to lose by trying something different now. The back 4 currently picks itself - no matter how disappointing they were in this game - but they're not being adequately protected and midfield needs shoring up immediately. The continued loss of Partey is very bad news, but Xhaka must surely drop out. Not that we saw much of Ceballos yesterday, to be fair, but he at least has a higher upside than the Swiss slowcoach. The defence is not being properly shielded, and 'transition' is slow/poor. They need to up the tempo, and that's one thing Xhaka is utterly incapable of doing. 

After that, I'd sling the kids in now and tell them to express themselves. There's not much more to lose, but much to gain. Frankly, I'd also consider slinging Ozil back in, if only I could...

And it's a massive game on Sunday. We're going in the wrong direction fast, and They Who Must Not Be Named are going at a similar speed in the other. The opportunity to turn that around must be grasped. Luckily, Arsenal will hardly need any motivation to do that. I'd hardly say that the team are in a relegation battle - it's easy to name at least 4 worse teams in the division - but all the Top 4 optimism has faded away.

A quick note on the Europa League... and it's 'Big Bloody Deal'. Arsenal are in a group with three really poor sides, so one can read little or nothing into 4 wins out of 4. What it should mean, however, is that on Thursday the 2000 fans allowed into the ground (my attempt to buy tickets failed miserably - what a terrible system Arsenal use; I presume it's the cheapest they could buy) should see an XI made up entirely of Under 23s, thus allowing Arteta the opportunity to work for a full week with his 'first team'. Bring on Smith Rowe, Balogun and Miguel Azeez, please.

And come on, Mikel. Sort 'em out! No more Believe. Instead how about Something Better Change - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrypvBET39o

Until next week, when I hope to be more cheerful... although I somehow doubt it :(