I wasn’t planning to post again until after the Chelsea game (which I’m sure we’re all looking forward to...) but I’m unable to hold myself back after the lamentable effort against Manchester City. I very rarely switch the television off (I’ve sat all the way through 8-2s and 6-0s), but I almost did last night - and as soon as the third minute!
Before I get into what went wrong this time, I’ll start with team selection - although many would claim that this is where it started to go wrong! Firstly, the selection of Runarsson, who’d had a dodgy game against Dundalk, didn’t fill me with confidence. And to select Mustafi and Kolasinac as two of the centre-backs in front of him suggested a recipe for disaster. Was Arteta trying to win the game, or merely give squad players some playing time?
In front of the back 5 there were no real surprises, but I'm sure that we were all delighted to see Martinelli back in the side from the start (although he's clearly not match fit). However, I'd have hoped for a slightly stronger bench, and would have liked to have seen Smith Rowe from the start.
And so off we went, and the first (but by no means the worst) embarrassment came as early as the third minute. Following a passage of play that had seen Arsenal's only two touches be a hurried clearance by Maitland-Niles and a pass blocked by Martinelli's chest, City opened Arsenal up down their left. When the cross reached Jesus in the six yard box for a simple header, Arsenal actually had no fewer than 4 players and the goalkeeper in there. Yet none of them were able to put any pressure on the goalscorer. Mustafi and the goalkeeper were both highly culpable, but one has to also look back to see how easily Arsenal were cut open.
And it was at that point that I reached for the remote control. I've still got to watch the final of Masterchef; The Professionals (love that show!)... but I hung on. And for a while City toyed with Arsenal, but didn't seem too bothered about putting them out of their misery. Until - and it can only really have come from him - Martinelli put in two successive dangerous crosses, the second of which was bravely headed home by Lacazette.
The young Brazilian was the main bright spark on the night (there were decent cameos from Smith Rowe and Balogun later on), and he almost latched onto a decent through ball from Willock late in the first half - just a fraction late, and the goalkeeper caught him a really hefty blow to the shin or ankle - minimum a yellow card, I thought (only goalkeepers get away with challenges like this one), and he was down and in apparent agony for several minutes.
He lasted until half time, and three minutes into the second half, before giving up the unequal battle. I'd hope it's nothing more than bruising, but one has to question Arteta's thought process in allowing him back on the for second half - especially after the recent experiences with Thomas Partey and David Luiz. He was replaced by Pepe, who along with many of the side contributed precisely nothing to the cause.
A quick word on Dani Ceballos here. For the second game in a row, he tried to win a penalty by claiming that he'd been far more badly hurt than he really was in a penalty area 'tussle'. This simply doesn't look good, and I wish that he - and all professional footballers - would cut it out and concentrate on winning games by dint of their own abilities. He was caught by Fernandinho, perhaps somewhere around the chin or throat, so to go down screaming and clutching his eyes was quite shameful and embarrassing to witness.
Anyway, on to the 54th minute, when Runarsson dropped into the net a Mahrez free kick that I think my wife could have dealt with safely. And from which point the game was effectively over as a contest. https://twitter.com/i/status/1341494590428295169
Now, I have to feel sorry for the guy. He didn't select himself, and Arteta would want him to gain experience at this level. But he hasn't looked up to it in the Europa League, his positional sense and kicking were poor all night, and serious questions need to be asked about how he got signed in the first place. I've seen some really quite poor goalkeepers in an Arsenal shirt over the years, but he goes directly to the top of that list, I'm afraid. If Leno gets injured, we really will be in a pickle. That new Villa keeper looks quite good; perhaps we can put in a bid for him?
Five minutes later, Foden latched onto a clever through ball to clip the ball around the keeper and into the net - he was clearly offside, but there's no VAR in the EFL Cup (ludicrous). The final nail in the coffin was a free header for Laporte 6 yards out, which came as a result of the entire defence apart from the statuesque Kolasinac playing offside. So, three horrendous pieces of goalkeeping/defending and an offside goal. Lucky is something that Arteta is not; but they do say that you make your own...
Because... if you go through the team he selected you have to ask serious questions. Why select players who have no future at the club? People who have failed us again and again. Here was an opportunity to give some kids a chance. From what I saw last night Mustafi, Kolasinac, Cedric, Elneny and Pepe can all join Runarsson on a coach to Heathrow. I've no idea what's going on with Reiss Nelson - his name wasn't on the latest injury bulletin - but why the likes of he, Smith Rowe and Balogun couldn't make the side I do not know. And surely this was an opportunity to give William Saliba a game in the first team, because we're not going to learn anything new about Mustafi and Kolasinac at this stage. Goodness, but this squad is in a real state, and it's a pity that we can't change 40% of it in one fell swoop next month.
So - plus points from the night? Very few. Lacazette worked hard and took his goal well. And as I say, Martinelli and to a lesser extent Smith Rowe and Balogun did well in the relatively short time they spent on the pitch. However, AMN, Gabriel, Ceballos and Willock were pretty anonymous, and the rest of them were downright poor. This really was a wasted opportunity for Arteta.
Look, I just had to publish this extra blog post. I was one of very many fans who were excited about the appointment of Arteta, but it it is glaringly obvious that he has a big struggle on his hands and needs some experienced help. There is nobody around the club who can do this, apart from Edu (who I imagine must be quite busy himself). I'd be looking around for somebody with some Arsenal DNA and some high level management experience for him to bounce ideas off of. Because otherwise we're heading down the plughole very quickly.
I hold out zero hope for Saturday - for all that Chelsea hardly looked scintillating on Monday evening. But the following sequence of matches - Brighton (A), WBA (A), Newcastle FA Cup (H), Palace (H) and Newcastle (H) - are going to define our season, and whether Arteta stays or goes. The squad needs immediate surgery, but even as one of Arteta's biggest supporters I'm not sure at this stage that I'd want to give him in excess of £50m to spend next month.
I'll see you again on Sunday. Wishing you the compliments of the season, and do please stay safe.
No comments:
Post a Comment