Worst Red Letter Day Ever!

Bit of a long one, is this...

Well, that would appear to be that, then. We've been given a great run for our money, and given the behemoth a bit of a fright for 7 and a bit months, but ultimately it looks like Arsenal are going to come up short. And let's face it; we were riding a wave of excitement and optimism, but we knew all along what we were up against. And last night we saw how terrifying they can be.

There are many facets to consider in looking at the hammering that Arsenal received last night, and I'll cover as many as I can here. Please feel free to comment below as to whether you agree or disagree with me. As I say, there's a lot to cover, so let's crack on:

Worryingly, losing one player should not have been enough to have derailed the entire season. 10 of the 'normal' starting XI started last night. But the loss of William Saliba has had repercussions throughout the side. The loss of his qualities; poise, reading of the game and recovery pace alongside his not inconsiderable quality on the ball, has affected the entire balance of the side. That night at home to Sporting Lisbon in the Europa League - such a waste of effort in the context of going for a Premier League title - can be seen as the moment that the wheels started to come off; because we lost not only Saliba but Tomiyasu too. Thus forcing Arteta to either play Holding, or get very creative indeed.

Additionally, this match needn't have be such a defining moment if Arsenal had taken some better form, and a better set of recent results, into the game. But the damaging draws at Liverpool (excusable) and West Ham (less so, especially in the context of a missed penalty), and at home to bottom side Southampton (frankly inexcusable). a tally of 7 points instead of the three gleaned would have meant that they could actually have afforded to have lost to Manchester City. It's not just the loss of points that has been the issue; the consequent sapping of confidence has been just as crucial.

However, I'm not going along with this 'They've bottled it' narrative. Nobody but Arsenal get accused of this. I refuse to accept it. They're an inexperienced group on the whole, and must surely be given the benefit of the doubt. Yes, they have succumbed to the pressure, but I honestly don't believe that they've crossed the line into 'bottling' the title. That's a cheap and disingenuous jibe.

Of course, there is a massive difference between the personnel available to Mikel Arteta as opposed to that available to Pep. This is easily explained. City are backed by limitless state cash, are many years ahead in their 'project' and have both the quality and quantity of players to show for those years they've been shopping in the most expensive places, are coached by a genius - humble and pleasing to hear him say on BT Sport last night that having managed Bayern, Barcelona and now City he's always been given the best tools that money can buy - and have 100+ Premier League charges regarding financial impropriety to answer in the next few months to boot. No sour grapes from me, though... 

By contrast, Arteta is literally Pep's apprentice, many years behind in experience and at the very beginning of his own 'project'. It's even unfair to put up similarities to the Liverpool side who had been running City so close over the past few years. Vastly experienced manager; and a much more rounded and experienced squad to boot with the likes of Van Dijk, Thiago, Fabinho and especially Salah and Mane to name just a few. Frankly, with the surprise demise of Liverpool and (hilariously) Chelsea, if it wasn't for Arsenal this season would have been an absolute procession!

However, I'm going to put in a few provisos here. Because the performance left an awful lot to be desired. So it's worth examining why that was: 

Firstly, team selection and formation: and there were to be no surprises for Pep, as Arteta elected to do exactly what he's done all season. Xhaka back in, but still more number 8 than number 6 as it turned out, thus leaving Partey exposed as the single pivot. There were many things that Arteta could have done, but he stuck to the tried and trusted; something that worked over the main course of the season, but has ceased to do since Saliba went out of the side.

For fans to recognise the problem of having Holding in the side, but for Arteta not to, is something of a concern. That he chose to leave Partey as the single pivot against vastly superior opposition than anything faced since Holding was reintroduced was, for me, bordering on negligent. Not that I'm having a go at Holding; as I've said before, he is what he is and we know his deficiencies. But for me Arteta did not make the necessary adjustments to help him and the rest of the side out. Partey, so comfortable with Saliba behind him, had struggled against West Ham and Southampton. So to ask him to take on the herculean task of doing two huge jobs against that opposition was asking for trouble. And it unsurprisingly proved beyond him.

And now to the match itself. And almost as soon as it started the problems were self-evident. Pep had played with his formation; thus throwing a lot of Arsenal's plans out of the window. The roles of Stones, De Bruyne and Haaland were all subtly different to what Arteta must have been anticipating, and the latter two in particular exposed both Partey and Holding almost immediately. 

After a relatively quiet start, City's first meaningful attack led to a goal. City beat the Arsenal press almost on their own goal line, and a single long ball did enough to lay waste to Arteta's plans. Holding didn't go in hard enough on Haaland - an early 'reducer' may have been in order - but the big problem was that Partey was left flat-footed by the Norwegian’s pass to De Bruyne. That split-second delay, as the Belgian ran into the space behind Holding and swiftly side-stepped Gabriel, with Partey trailing in his wake and Xhaka miles away from the play, was enough. Brilliant finish by De Bruyne, curling the ball around the flailing Ramsdale.

And from there on the pattern of play was established. What little confidence Arsenal had left was knocked out of them in one blow. They could barely lay a glove on City, who soon established themselves as completely different class. Men against boys, as they say. 

City pinged the ball around at will, as Arsenal huffed and puffed in vain. White blocked superbly after another brilliant Haaland/De Bruyne combination exposed the heart of the defence. De Bruyne then returned the favour, and Haaland forced another save out of Ramsdale. Haaland shot just wide after a single long ball up City's left to Grealish opened the defence up far too easily once more. Ramsdale saved a snap shot from Haaland with his feet. A single opportunity from outside the box for Partey was all that Arsenal could muster. It looked absolutely hopeless... but it remained just 1-0 until injury time when Partey clattered into Haaland 25 yards out. 

De Bruyne's beautifully flighted free kick landed on the head of Stones, who headed home but looked suspiciously offside (in fact, I'll take my conviction that he was offside to my grave!) - and the flag duly went up. The VAR nonetheless found an angle to show that White's boot was playing him onside. Clearly, White wears size 48 boots... I mean; look at this!

Look, it wouldn't have made any difference to the result. City were awesome. Magnificent. They could easily have been 5 goals ahead by half time. Arsenal found it impossible to press City effectively in any way. They continually failed to beat the City press and to get the ball out to Saka or Martinelli. And frankly they looked unable to string more than a couple of passes together. Like rabbits in headlights. But it was nonetheless, after getting so close to the whistle, absolutely demoralising for Arsenal to concede again right on the stroke of half time.

Half time, and time to regroup. And boy, was there a lot to do. But Arteta appeared to make no changes, although Arsenal at least competed... for a while. For on 54 minutes it was 3-0, and that was that. Odegaard gave the ball away really cheaply in midfield, De Bruyne flicked it on to Haaland and hared after him into the space vacated by Holding as he went to intercept the Norwegian's run. A simple ball back to De Bruyne, and another brilliant finish. And I momentarily toyed with switching the television off...

And at this point some Arsenal players started to lose their heads. Thereby showing more passion than they'd shown in and around the ball. Xhaka (inevitably), White and especially Partey failing to cover themselves in glory as they found the only way they could respond to the utter dominance of City. Unseemly. 

The introduction of substitutes soon after started to disrupt City's rhythm, and actually helped Arsenal's, and for maybe 10 minutes - and especially after Holding hammered home Trossard's pass following a corner - the remotest chance of a comeback looked on. 

But it was short-lived, frankly; and Haaland got his inevitable goal late on as Mahrez exposed the left side of the Arsenal defence to feed the beast. 4-1 felt like we'd got off light.

Look, they're very good - and they were awesome on this night. Surely the best club side at the moment, and - should they go on and win the Champions League this season - possible the greatest ever. Haaland is clearly the missing piece in the jigsaw, and his signing was the reason why Pep was happy to sell Gabriel Jesus to Arsenal. Good grief - he let Sterling and Zinchenko go as well; and they improved!

As for Arsenal... well, I've talked about why they couldn't compete. But going through the performances man by man I'll say this:

Ramsdale - continually left exposed. Let in 4 goals but I'll still give him 6/10

White - had to work hard alongside Holding, and up against Grealish. Just 4.5/10

Holding - Holding is Holding. 4/10

Gabriel - exposed continually by onrushing forwards. 4/10

Zinchenko - fazed by being back at The Etihad. Anonymous. 3/10

Partey - I felt sorry for him; continually left exposed by the system Arteta deployed, but nonetheless is starting to look leggy at this stage of the season. 3/10

Xhaka - almost invisible. 3/10

Odegaard - a disgraceful performance. Anonymous. Barely raised a canter. Gave away the ball for the third goal. 2/10

Martinelli - Tried hard but hardly saw the ball. 5/10

Saka - ditto. 5/10

Jesus - like Zinchenko, seemed totally overawed by the occasion. 2.5/10

Subs; I'll give Trossard, Nelson and ESR all 6/10. They made a little bit of difference, even if City had taken their foot off the gas at that stage.

And Mikel Arteta? If I say that he didn't cover himself in glory, that would be an understatement. Out-thought pre-match. Made no allowances for what his team were up against. Failed to adapt as the game developed. The apprentice has a lot to learn from his master. A hell of a lot. But this is not to say that he hasn't had a brilliant season in leading Arsenal to where they are. Yes, he's made (rookie) mistakes, and must surely learn from them. To use some motoring metaphors, he and his team have led the others a merry dance for long stretches down the motorway whilst others have spluttered - I'm looking at you, Liverpool, Chelsea and Tottenham! - but have unfortunately started to run out of petrol at precisely the wrong time and as a sky blue juggernaut has hit top gear.

If there's any small consolation to take from the evening, it's that Champions League football is mathematically assured now. This summer must be the time to grow and upgrade the squad. He should know that he needs a right back or right-sided centre back, a left back (should he choose to let Tierney go), a number 6 AND a number 8, right wing cover for Saka; and he has some big decisions to make at centre forward.

Meantime, his team have to prime themselves to pounce in the unlikely event of a massive City banana skin or two, and to ensure that they finish in second place. Chelsea next; chalk and cheese, as they say. There is no more out of form side in the Premier League. Arsenal need to take their frustration out on them.

Oh Arsenal we love you! COYG.

Cogitating On The Friday Night Shenanigans

I've given it a couple of days to think about it, and to let the dust settle a bit. But I've made a point of not reading or listening to other people's opinions on where Arsenal are at this point, as I wanted to share my own opinions - and claim them as my own. I expect that they'll coincide with lots of other stuff that's been seen or heard; but these thoughts are original and unsullied by other people's. Anyhoo...

Firstly, I'm going to have to take some responsibility for what happened early in the game on Friday. I am Jewish, and whilst I've come to some form of 'peace' over going to Saturday games, Friday nights are sacrosanct in our house and it took A LOT of persuasion for my wife to agree to allow me (plus my son and one daughter) to go to the game. The once-in-a-lifetimeness of it being a key factor. And so, I feel, The Almighty took it upon himself to ensure that Arsenal were one down within a minute, and two within 15. 'That'll learn ya'!', I felt I could hear Him telling me.

But moving on... and I'll quickly cover the game before going on to what the next 6 weeks may hold. And there's no better place to start than the goals that Arsenal conceded. 

It would appear that Ramsdale didn't spot the lurking Alcaraz when he tried that pass. Or perhaps he was simply trying to be too clever for his own good in playing it. And then I didn't feel that he covered himself in too much glory with the attempted save either. Now what he saw I don't know; but I also don't know how many options he had for a vertical ball. First minute and all that, so a simple sideways pass may have been more sensible. Partey was pointing at Rob Holding. Poor, and up against it immediately - but we've seen this before against Bournemouth and there was obviously a long time to go to rectify matters. Decent Cristiano Ronaldo-inspired goal celebration from the goalscorer, by the way...

For the second goal, the ball was lost in midfield - an errant pass from Odegaard. And Southampton were quick in transition. What was clear, however, was that the defence wasn't holding its line; Holding had dropped off of Alcaraz and given him the opportunity to collect the ball and turn. Thereafter Walcott's run - one we've seen many times before - caused some indecision in Gabriel. The Brazilian hesitated, and Walcott nipped around him and tucked the ball away with the sort of precision that we wished we'd have seen from him more often when he wore the red and white, and before Ramsdale had time to react. Good of him not to celebrate, though; classy.

And suddenly Arsenal were right up against it. 15 minutes in, and not two goals up as against Liverpool and West Ham, but the polar opposite. And they huffed. And puffed. But barely had anything to show for their efforts until Bukayo Saka, back on form (frankly only he, Martinelli and substitute Trossard come out of this game with any real credit), jinked to the touchline and pulled the ball back for Martinelli to half-volley though the crowd for 1-2. 

The pattern of play was as expected at this point, with Arsenal dominating possession, but leaving the opposition opportunities on the break. A late goal line clearance by Alcaraz from a clever header from White following a corner was nonetheless the closest Arsenal got to equalising in the first half.

All the while Southampton goalkeeper Bazunu was becoming Public Enemy Number One, as he took what felt like ages over every restart. Well, what would you have done? Dragging the taking of goal kicks out when the home team is losing gets a different response to when it's 0-0, and he wasn't the worst we've seen by any means. 20 seconds a pop; so 10 seconds longer than really necessary. And, frankly, the referee added on all that accumulated time in any case.

I ought to mention at this point the missing Granit Xhaka (illness). Many would have selected Trossard to replace him, but Arteta gave an opportunity to Fabio Vieira. And it's fair to say - and I'm being generous here - that the Portuguese did not step up to the plate. He is, of course, a different type of player to Xhaka, but he always seemed to be in the wrong place to my eyes, Either hidden from a passer's view, or moving in the wrong direction to receive the ball. The difference here was that whilst we're used to seeing Xhaka time his runs between the lines, Vieira was already there. It's as if he didn't quite understand the role he was being asked to play. 

Either way, it looks clear to me that he's simply not ready for the Premier League, and may never be. He's lightweight and easily knocked off the ball, and doesn't at this stage have the ability to impose his will on the opposition by way of his quality in the way that Mesut Ozil did. No surprise to see him hooked early in the second half, but perhaps a surprise that Arteta didn't make that move at half time. Trossard, in that role, made things happen. My daughter's half time summation was: 'I'm p*ssed off with Ramsdale, and Vieira is sh*t!' A budding Roy Keane, there, I think...

Southampton went further ahead early in the second half, of course, as Arsenal conceded another embarrassingly easy goal. Two men lost at a corner. One flick on to the far post, and a simple header past the scrambling Ramsdale. Pathetic, frankly; and the crowd started to get quiet. And, also frankly, somewhat restless. This was supposed to be the simple three points to open up a gap. Yet the pervading air, as time ticked on, was one of resignation. Amidst all this, barely a decent chance was created, and certainly no shots on target. Gabriel Jesus should have done much, much better, with one chance a mere 6 yards out, which he stabbed clumsily over the bar. Having a centre forward who doesn't score enough goals is a major problem. Even allowing for everything he does bring to the side.

And so it was, as the stadium started to empty - people were leaving all around me (fickle... fickle) - that Arsenal scored twice in quickfire fashion to level things up. First Odegaard with a trademark curler, and then Saka, who pounced on a rebound following a decent effort by Reiss Nelson. 3-3, and the best part of 10 minutes to go including injury time.

A word on Nelson here. Firstly - and it's nothing to do with him of course - we're all wondering how he's getting on the field before Emile Smith Rowe. Only Arteta can answer that one, I guess. Clearly, the latter isn't showing enough in training, and that's a worry for us when we consider a player who is an England international, and very much 'one of our own'. But Nelson's cameo was once more highly effective. Just 10 minutes or so on the field, but he drove the team on from the left, got the assist for the equaliser, and almost as importantly put on the turbo jets to chase back a good 60 yards and put in a crucial challenge as Southampton broke swiftly down their right. Committed.

The winning goal, as we know, did not come. Trossard's dipping shot hit the bar, and that was the closest Arsenal got. Frankly, had they pulled that out of the fire, it would have made the Bournemouth comeback look like a walk in the park. And what it does mean is that they absolutely must get something from The Etihad on Wednesday. A win would be awesome (if unlikely). I'd take the draw now. But defeat would mean that the dream is over; City would be two points behind with two games in hand. And whilst their run in is brutal, they'd have too many points to play with. Anything but a defeat for Arsenal would mean that the dream is still alive.

So how should Arteta tackle the rest of the season? If it's giving me sleepless nights, then goodness knows what it's doing to him! I've been thinking long and hard, and my view is that in the likely absence of Saliba until next season he needs to adapt his formation to the players he has available, and not continue to try to get his players to fit a formation not suited to their capabilities.

By this I mean that he has to look at the effect that the presence of Rob Holding is having on the rest of the side. And look, it's not his fault. He is what he is, and we know what he is. He is a perfectly serviceable middle of the table Premier League centre half, but Saliba is elite, and Arsenal are gunning for the title. The fact is that this season has come a year early in Arteta's 'process', and this means that whilst he has a first XI that can match up with all but the very best, there isn't enough behind that - and that's why Holding is number two at right-sided centre back.

Holding lacks the Frenchman's poise, recovery pace, positional sense and quality on the ball. That's pretty much everything, frankly, but most centre halves don't stand up to the boy in comparison, to be fair - at 21, he is destined to be a superstar. But the difference in their respective attributes means that it has affected the players around Holding. Gabriel looks much less self-assured. Ben White is looking a little bit too much over his shoulder. And most importantly the fact that the back line now has to be a little bit deeper to counteract Holding's lack of pace means that Thomas Partey is having to cover quite a bit more ground than he was before; and that has led to a marked drop off in the Ghanaian's effectiveness.Here's Southampton's second goal, which illustrates so much of this:

The Zinchenko inversion into midfield puts Gabriel under further positional pressure, and so whilst I've toyed with thoughts of three centre backs and wing backs (meaning Saka at right wing back, which I don't think we should countenance for a moment!), moving Zinchenko into midfield and bringing Tierney in, or dropping Trossard into one of the number 8 roles I think that the switch needs to be from 4-1-2-3, to 4-2-1-3. Help for Partey - a double pivot to replace the single pivot. Ideally, that should be Xhaka - provided he has recovered from his illness - and that would enable him to drop in to left back to cover Zinchenko's incursions. I believe that Arteta should adopt this, and stick to it until the end of the season.

Except... Manchester City present a unique set of problems. Grealish and Mahrez are massive twin threats on either side of the field, and I wonder if Tierney wouldn't be a better bet up against the latter than Zinchenko. Not that I want to leave the Ukrainian out of the side, so if Xhaka isn't ready on Wednesday maybe drop Zinchenko into the second pivot role. Not Jorginho, who is neat and tidy on the ball, and a calming influence, but who in my opinion lacks the pace and mobility to deal with the rotating City midfield.

Elsewhere, there's Haaland vs Holding to consider. And it's enough to give any Arsenal fan nightmares! Over the course of 90 minutes there's only going to be one winner there, and what this double pivot would do would be to enable Arsenal to cut off much of the supply line, making it more difficult for the likes of De Bruyne to feed the beast. What do you think?

Of course, this formation limits Arsenal's ability to spring forward, but there's enough pace and guile in the 4 up top to do enough damage. For the City game, the absence of the injured Ake is great news. He had Saka bottled up last time. The alternatives to the Dutchman probably won't be able to do that.

Anyway, this is what's been keeping me preoccupied over the past 48 hours. It's the moment of truth now. Let's not give up hope quite yet.

Before I sign off, I feel it only proper and correct to laugh at Tottenham. I know that you will join me. Of course, despite everything that we're suffering, it was St Totteringham's Day on Friday. On top of that, they just got rolled over by Newcastle (our main concern here is that we still have to visit St James Park ourselves...), and their next two games are home to Manchester United and then away to Liverpool. The gap is, in fact, a chasm! And if they weren't enough of a laughing stock they've now sacked their Caretaker Manager. Who does that? For all that we're suffering as the PL title may be slipping away, (don't) spare a thought for them and their fans. And we thought that Chelsea were the crisis club!

Anyway, enough of that nonsense. Roll on Wednesday. COYG!!!

Under Pressure

Well, this is all starting to get a bit distressing. Another 2-0 lead blown. Another two points dropped. And the gap is closing.

So what has gone wrong? Why is the team's form dipping at precisely the wrong time? And why are we all starting to feel a bit miserable? That's what I'm going to examine today. There were, of course, other factors at play in addition to what actually took place on the pitch. So they're worth looking at too. But, first, where did it all go wrong at London Stadium?

Another flying start, and another early 2-0 lead. And we're all thinking that this time we're going to win comfortably... well, it's not Anfield, is it? When you've dominated the first 10 minutes so comprehensively, and literally strolled into that lead against a team struggling low down the table, there can really be no excuse. Both goals were surgical, clinical - and at the same time works of art.

However, there were already one or two nagging concerns. Firstly, almost from the off Thomas Partey looked off his normal high standards; not only giving the ball away but also coming off second best in challenges - highly unusual. And secondly the loss of Zinchenko had a big effect on the way Arsenal play; that inverted full back and midfield overload - we do it from the left, City from the right - because it was crystal clear that Kieran Tierney cannot do that job to anything like the standard required. That's not to say, by the way, that he isn't a highly effective left back. But Arteta and Arsenal have evolved beyond that now. He's a better defender than Zinchenko, but lacks the ball skills and creativity required to do the job that the team needs from its left back.

As the game wore on, it also became clear that Bukayo Saka was less effective than he usually is; and this for the second game in a row. So that's three positions on the field where Arsenal had players who weren't up to scratch - 4 when you consider the continued absence of Saliba. And yet... there's no getting away from the fact that it was 2-0 after less than 10 minutes.

For me, Declan Rice was the best player on the field. I'm sure that he wasn't there to prove a point - he's a professional, after all - but if this was an audition to be playing in red and white next season he passed it with flying colours. He was everywhere, in both a constructive and destructive way, and based on that evidence I'd have no problem whatsoever in seeing him in the No.6 role for Arsenal starting in August. It hadn't occurred to me that the Partey role was something that needed an upgrade in the summer - there were, I thought, bigger priorities - but this gave food for thought. Especially when the alternatives are the injured Elneny and the lightweight Jorginho. And if I'm being greedy - and if Arsenal can somehow make it happen - I'd like to see not only Rice but also Bellingham in that midfield next season. Fantasy? Probably.

The match hinged on two penalties. Initially on the one that West Ham won, and then later on the one that Saka put wide. For the West Ham penalty, I don't see how the referee had any choice but to give it for the tackle by Gabriel (despite Pacqueta making a giant 12-course tasting menu of it in the style of Bruno Fernandes).

But... it looks quite clear that in initially robbing Partey, Rice handled the ball. Dynamic play, but frankly illegal. And five seconds later it's a penalty. It's led directly to it. Conspiracy theorists might suggest that if he's wearing an Arsenal shirt next season and does that, he'll be penalised! But I suppose that I'm saying that VAR has quite possibly let us down again (the same man, by the way, who failed to give any one of 4 decent penalty shouts in the home game with Bournemouth, by the way).

And so this game very much took on the shape of the previous one, with Arsenal looking disjointed and ineffective. I wish I knew why. Suddenly, from cruising, they looked like a shadow of themselves as West Ham took the game to them. Half time barely helped... but then, very early in the second half, came a lifeline, and a chance to probably put the game out of sight as Antonio was penalised for handball. Saka, as designated penalty taker, stepped up, and to our collective horror put the spot kick well wide.

Now I'm not - like some fickle, ungrateful members of our fanbase - going to lay into Starboy over a missed penalty. Penalties get missed every weekend. These things happen. But I am going to suggest that there's something about the psyche of this team that needs to be addressed - and very quickly indeed. I sense that - despite the presence of serial winners Jesus and Zinchenko - the pressure is getting to them; both individually and as a unit. And that it's up to Arteta and his team to get to grips with it very quickly or it will be too late. Between matches, and during them too. Because I again wasn't comfortable with the way he went about his substitutions. The League is still in Arsenal's hands - just - but they cannot afford a single further slip-up.

Ben White is looking fatigued. Saliba is still missing, and hopes that he'd be able to return for the City showdown are fading (the thought of Holding vs Haaland for 90+ minutes fills me with absolute dread!). Hopefully Zinchenko's absence is just a single game. I sincerely hope that Partey's poor performance was a one-off. Granit Xhaka hasn't perhaps been quite as effective recently. Odegaard has been flitting in and out of games. Saka needs a break. Jesus tries to do too much. 

Man for man, Arsenal's first team is almost on a par with City's. The problem is the drop-off as soon as you scratch the surface, meaning that Arteta cannot rotate like Pep can. So the players are being pushed to their physical (and mental) limits. It's only a few more games, but it's starting to feel - like it did last season (although the team are in an entirely different place to then) - like they're running on fumes; unable to cope with adversity. Very few of the first choice XI are managing to produce what they were even just a few weeks ago.

Of course, this can switch. They could have won both of the last two games. And one good result - thrashing Southampton would be a good start - could change the mood. But the game after that is The Big One. Arteta needs to get hold of them this week and get down to the nitty gritty with these players. And he probably needs to give Saka the night off - Trossard is a more than adequate replacement - so that he can be a little fresher for next Wednesday. If there's any chance of having a refreshed Saka, and a patched up Saliba, in the side for then it could make all the difference.

Look, if we're honest with ourselves we've always been living this out more in hope than expectation. I've said it before, and I'll say it again... if it were anybody but Manchester City chasing Arsenal down... 

They're elite, they're owned by an entire country, their squad is huge and almost completely interchangeable, they've been there and done that - oh, and to all intents and purposes (as to which 100+ Premier League charges will testify) they probably cheated too! So in the same way as Liverpool were broken by City over the years, they may break 2022-23 Arsenal too. We do have the consolation, however, of knowing that this group is young and can only get better over the next few years.

And no, I'm not giving up hope. I'm trying to be as grounded as I ever was. Not overly optimistic as some have been up until recently, but at the same time not overly pessimistic now that a few bumps have been hit.

Friday night it is then. They can rely on nobody but themselves. That must be the message. 7 more matches. Get it done.

All of this, of course, means that it's impossible to take the required and frankly necessary amount of p*ss out of Tottenham Hotspur this week. This despite it now being all but mathematically impossible for them to catch us - maximum points and a 32 goal pull would get them there. So to all intents and purposes Sunday was St Totteringham's Day. But we're simply not in the mood to celebrate.

All that matters is The Arsenal. COYG!

Reaching For The Medication

Whoosh! What a roller coaster of a game of football that was!!! And was it two points dropped, or a point gained? I guess that only time will tell.

Now, I do try to write my thoughts based on my own personal opinion and not listen to others whose thoughts may inform mine. But the momentousness of this game does mean that I have both listened to The Arsenal Opinion and read Arseblog this morning. They've echoed many of my thoughts, but I'll be putting my own twist on them. So without further ado...

Now, we've all watched the game. But I wanted to share my feelings - and how they changed - from when the game started and then as it wore on. Mainly based on my heart rate, I have to say.

So, kick-off, and nerves because it's Anfield. Heart beating slightly quicker than normal, and unusually for me sitting on the edge of my seat and not back in the armchair. But soon settling down in the early stages as Arsenal essentially took the game to Liverpool, culminating in Martinelli's early goal.

Liverpool at Sixes and Sevens. Relax. Settle back. Start to enjoy. And at 2-0 - and what an embarrassingly easy goal that was - I was as comfortable in my chair as I could possibly have hoped to be. Poignant, as Jesus rose on Easter Sunday to head the ball home. Quite what the Liverpool defence were doing, I do not know. Not their job; that's for sure. Pipe lit. Slippers on...

Now, people might say that the Xhaka/TAA incident changed the game, but I don't see it as cut and dried as that. Although it got the old ticker going a bit. Firstly, Xhaka was on the receiving end of one of a number of - how shall I describe it? - 'robust' challenges from the brute Konate, but received nothing for it - and then reacted by getting involved with TAA. 

It was all a load of nothing/handbags, so I'm taking with a massive pinch of salt all that 'Don't poke the bear' nonsense coming out of Sky. What made the difference to the mood in the ground was the Liverpool goal just before half time. A goal that involved two annoying slices of bad fortune for Arsenal - the first the intervention by Henderson that sent the ball off at a weird angle, and secondly the almost simultaneous contact from Salah and Gabriel that sent the ball into the net. Unfortunate, and heart rate immediately up of course.

Interesting that Roy Keane suggested that on big days Anfield has a unworldly feel to it. As if it takes on a life of its own. That, from one of the bluntest, most cynical of pundits. It's clearly one of the most atmospheric grounds in the world, and it must be really difficult to defend that Kop End with a red tide swarming at you, and those fans behind you. The huge discrepancy between Liverpool's home and away form this season appears to prove the point. Lest we forget that both City and United lost there, and whilst Real Madrid ultimately came away with an astonishing 5-2 win, they could easily have been 4 down after 15 minutes.

As the second half wore on, and the pressure on the Arsenal goal was ramped up with seemingly no means of escape, my heart rate continued to rise. From my own personal point of view, it felt like Arteta needed to try something to stem the red tide, but he waited far beyond what I would have called an acceptable point to make changes.

But why was this? For me, there were a number of factors. And the first one was the loss of both Saliba and Tomiyasu from the squad. Arsenal are weakened by this, obviously, and there isn't quite the depth at this stage in the squad's development to allow him to make changes with which he's comfortable. This game was an ideal scenario, in different circumstances, for Rob Holding to come on late as third centre half to see the game out. Not to have been on from the start.

But this doesn't excuse the late introduction of Tierney. I had been concerned all week about quite what The Zinchenko Inversion might mean in the context of the double threat of Salah and TAA down Arsenal's left, and by the time the equaliser came (late; so late - but with loads more to come of course!) both the Ukrainian and Ben White on the other side were out on their feet. The arrival of Firmino had suggested an inevitability about the equaliser, but better/calmer/earlier action from Arteta might have prevented it.

There are two ways of looking at this. 

• There's the positive side: he's a relatively inexperienced Manager. The place is a cauldron. His side hasn't been under this much pressure all season; you'd have to go back to Newcastle away last year for anything remotely comparable. The pressure wasn't just on the players, but on the coaching staff too. There's not been this much at stake for the club for almost 20 years. He will have learned.
• And then the other side of the coin. He took too long to react to Klopp's changes. He wasn't thinking straight. Tierney should have come on at the same time as Trossard did; not Kivior for Odegaard - a change that unbalanced the formation. The Pole is too inexperienced to chuck into such a cauldron in any case. And, tellingly, for all their pressure Liverpool hadn't had a shot at goal for 20+ minutes before Odegaard came off. After that, they had at least half a dozen, and but for Aaron Ramsdale would have won comfortably.

On balance, I'd say that Arteta got it wrong. He hasn't got much wrong this season. But pressure does this to people. The loss of two points can perhaps be put more down to him than to the players. As long as it doesn't happen again...

Looking at the rest of the fixtures it's the two massive away games that could see similar pressure applied to the team and coaching staff. Chelsea and Brighton are both home games. None of West Ham, Southampton, Forest or Wolves should really worry a side going for the title. Newcastle could be almost as difficult an atmosphere as Liverpool. But Manchester City will be different; the opposition are elite, but apart from that the ground shouldn't hold the sort of fears that an Anfield, a St James', an Old Trafford might hold. City let their football do the talking. It's more like death by a thousand cuts/passes than a thousand decibels.

But back to the game. And I certainly felt that the officiating was a bit soft. On one side of the coin Arsenal indulged in more than a spot of time-wasting. And on the other referee Tierney failed to punish Liverpool adequately for a series of meaty challenges. Konate's on Xhaka wasn't his only heavyweight challenge. Both Van Dijk and Fabinho put in nasty challenges, borne of frustration, that were closer to red cards than the yellows they yielded. And yet he couldn't wait to give the penalty for Holding on Jota - soft, so soft... and from the look on his face you'd think that Jota had been shot.

Just to cover the noteworthy incidents in that frantic second half:

• The penalty. As I say; soft - although I'd have wanted it at the other end of course. And whilst I hoped that Salah would miss I didn't expect him to. Laughter - born of relief - when he did.

• The first chance that Martinelli almost laid on for Saka. Desperate from Robertson to prevent Starboy from getting on the end of that. 
• Gabriel from the corner in the 83rd minute. Either side of Allison and that's in; and that's game over. Small margins - but in such a frantic game so important.
• The equaliser; just three minutes after the Gabriel chance. Zinchenko, substituted immediately afterwards, was distraught to have been out-done by TAA. He should have got closer to him; been more aggressive. He certainly shouldn't have allowed himself to be nutmegged. Tierney would have done better, I feel. The cross was exquisitely dug out, and at the other end of it was the inevitablity of Roberto Firmino, towering above a frazzled Ben White.

• The Ramsdale save from Salah, via Gabriel's back. Salah does like to go far post when he shoots. And Ramsdale had been gambling on that all game, so he may, possibly, have got to the shot. But the deflection made it considerably more difficult. A tremendous save. Although as my much-missed father would have said: 'Should've held it...'

• The Ramsdale save from Konate. Something I couldn't quite take in until I'd seen the replay. Great anticipation, and not inconsiderable skill involved in that. 

•  And then... did Gabriel Martinelli get much sleep, thinking about how much better that pass could have been? A little less straight, and Saka would have been clean in on Allison - and this, of course, just 10 seconds after the save from Konate. And all in the very last minute. Wow!

So much to dissect. So much to take in. And I must say that this game got me going more than any other for many years. When  I'm watching at home and it's tense, I'll probably get out of my chair and start pacing about when the injury time board goes up. But I looked at the clock when I felt that I couldn't sit any more - it said 70 minutes and 52 seconds!...

I hope that we don't look back on the season as a whole as we do this game. 2-0, but pulled back to 2-2. And - and I pray not - 8 points clear, but caught near/at the end. If we're gutted about not winning this from such a comfortable position, how are we going to feel if City overhaul us? 

Well, it's in their hands now. But it's also in ours. West Ham away will be a doddle compared to that. COYG!

Counting Down...

As my father always used to say about Leeds United: 'Leeds are weeds!' Even at the time in the early 1970s when they weren't. And, whilst they weren't quite weeds this time round, they were dispatched in a grand enough manner to enable the Arsenal bandwagon to continue on its merry way. I won't be sorry to see the back of them (and their obnoxious fans) should they go down this season.

Team news, and the shock of seeing Starboy relegated to the bench. Precautionary, we were told, due to illness. And Ben White had to rush off during the warm-up to deal with a similar issue, but soldiered through and had a typical Ben White game.

The only change, then - with Thomas Partey fit enough to start - was Jesus for Saka, with the flexible Trossard filling in on the right hand side of the front three. In the continued - and thus far unquantifiable - absence of William Saliba, Holdinio kept his place. Curiously for Holding, he's started two matches, but has yet to come up against an actual centre forward - neither Palace nor Leeds can be accused of having had one on the field to start with. But next up are Liverpool, and that's a different matter; whilst they are really poor defensively, they have a potent forward line. Not that I'd want to worry you...

Before the game, there was a lovely moment as both sets of supporters joined in a minute's applause for David Rocastle, who passed away no less than 22 years ago this week. Super player. Lovely man. Much missed...

And then we were off. And despite one or two first half scares - the first, Bournemouth-like, in the first 10 seconds - Arsenal dominated. But, as we've seen often recently, they had little to show for their efforts for the bulk of the first half. Jesus looked pretty sharp, and Trossard and Martinelli buzzed around - Gabigoal also doing some excellent defensive work - but it wasn't until in the 35th minute when Jesus drew a horribly clumsy and mis-timed challenge from Ayling (100% a penalty) that they finally took the lead. 

Odegaard held the ball in his hands throughout the obligatory VAR check as if he was going to take the spot kick in the absence of Saka (thereby costing my Fantasy League team points on two counts), but he handed it over to Jesus, who despatched it down the middle; an area of goal that Meslier was no longer guarding... Some would say 'cool penalty'. But I'd disagree. I thought it was poor. But, there again, who cares at this point. 1-0, and you could feel the relief coursing through the crowd.

Fairly comfortable until half time, and then a crucial second early in the second half that relieved any enduring tension; Ben White crashing home Martinelli's cross via the underside of the crossbar for his second goal in a month. That's two more Premier League goals than Brazilian centre forward and 'bargain' £60m signing Richarlison, by the way...

When the third goal went in just a few minutes later - Trossard and Jesus combining cleverly in the penalty area for the latter to notch his second - everyone visibly relaxed. That was Trossard's 7th assist since joining the club in January, by the way. A spectacular contribution.

From there on things played out much as one might have expected. A massive tranche of changes on both sides - Jesus and Partey being whipped off almost immediately after the third went in - and little sign of anything upsetting the applecart. Although... a slight lapse in concentration, and Kristensen's shot from the edge of the area took a big deflection off of Zinchenko (who'd turned his back on it; not the cleverest thing to do) to leave Ramsdale helpless. 

But order was soon restored as Granit Xhaka met Martin Odegaard's sumptuous cross with a perfectly timed run and header to match City's 4-1 scoreline from earlier in the day, as they mauled a hapless Liverpool. Anybody who suggested at the beginning of the season that the Swiss international would get 7 goals (and counting, of course...) this season may have had his mates reaching for a straitjacket! Nonetheless, here we are...

And so we continue to count down, and the permutations continue to shrink. The gap remains at 8 (albeit that City have a game in hand), and the goal difference at a meagre 2, with a mere 9 games left in the season - almost twice as many for City, by the way, should they stay in all competitions.

And look; there's no doubt that we've got some tough games left. Away to City themselves, as well as Liverpool and Newcastle. And Brighton won't be pushovers either. And whilst we have to assume - if only to keep our feet on the ground - that City will win all their remaining matches - they've still got to go to Brighton and Brentford. All interspersed with the Champions League. Not that easy.

I'm trying to stay grounded, but the prize is getting closer and closer now. People are now starting to ask if I'd be disappointed at finishing second from here, bearing in mind what our ambitions were before the season started. My answer is that second would be great, of course, considering where they've come from. But to fail to get over the line from here would be soul-destroying, and may take me weeks or months to recover. 

Don't let us down now, boys. It's been a fantastic response to losing to City a couple of months ago. 7 wins on the bounce, no less. And it's not as if Anfield - the next port of call - is as daunting a place this season as it's been recently. They're there for the taking, and take we must.

COYG!