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!