Emery Bogey Laid To Rest - A More Than Decent Start

Right then. A decent enough start to the season. Two wins out of two. No goals conceded. Long periods of domination in both matches. And - in my opinion - a lot more to come. But, at the same time, I do have some concerns.

I’ll address those a little further down. But first a quick general summary of what we’ve seen so far from the team.

Evolution; not Revolution

 

Arteta has taken the team close in the last two seasons, and clearly sees the defined style of play that he has developed as the best way towards achieving his aims (and our desires). So it’ll be more of the same, as he looks to add a few extra ingredients to the mix. Timber back - tick. Calafiori - tick. Merino (eventually) - tick. And I suspect that the line-up we’re seeing now is not much like what we’ll be seeing come March/April.

Arsenal Are Still Undercooked

Of course, it wouldn’t make sense to have the team firing on all cylinders from Match Day One. Nor would it have been physically possible, frankly. And whilst some players look readier than others, there’s clearly room for improvement in several key parts of the side. Gabriel, Partey, Rice and Martinelli to name 4…

The Fixture Calendar…

… has been a total clusterf*ck as far as Arsenal are concerned. But, should they negotiate these first few matches relatively unscathed, it doesn’t half make the latter stages of the season look much easier to cope with. Wolves at home; a decent enough start. But to then have to go to three of the most difficult away grounds before the end of September is, quite simply put, an evil piece of programming. With 100% Brighton next to chuck into the mix. The Emery bogey was laid to rest on Saturday. But the next two away games are at The New Toilet Bowl and The Emptihad. I need say no more… except… imagine starting with 15 points out of 15?!? (I’d be happy with 11, by the way).

Moving on to quickly cover the first two games (circumstances, including illness, prevented me from blogging last week), I think that we’ve seen some themes and patterns come to the fore:

1. Firstly, Arsenal don’t concede too many chances to their opposition, but, when they do concede chances, they tend to be really big ones. Cases in point; Strand Larsen’s header for Wolves, and Watkins’ first on Saturday. 

Three things to say about that. One; I’m sure that as players get fitter and more familiar with each other, Arteta will hope to see those Big Chance moments tail off. Two; when the make-up of the midfield changes with the introduction of Merino, there’ll be even less propensity for risk in any case - as I expect to see Declan Rice revert to Number 6. And Three; David Raya has shown himself to be quite the shot-stopper!

2. Secondly, it must be of concern to Arteta - and is clear as day to us supporters - that the right hand side of our attack is far more effective than the left. The Saka/Odegaard/White triumvirate can hardly be bettered worldwide, but the left is relatively dysfunctional. Martinelli looks a long way from the confidence and form of which we know he is capable. Trossard doesn’t necessarily offer the completeness of a left-winger that Arteta is striving for (for all the fact that his goal scoring statistics are remarkable!). And the Left 8 role is still up in the air - it remains to be seen how Merino fits in. Interestingly, the Manager is spoilt for choice at left back - Timber looks to be capable of playing it Zinchenko-style even better than the Ukrainian can, and what we saw of Califiori’s passing range and athleticism in even a very short period of time was unbelievably exciting! The left appears to be the main area for growth/change over the next few months.

3. Thirdly and finally, there’s the matter of squad depth. And, with only a few days of the Window to go, there’s actually quite a lot to sort out in order to ensure that he has enough ammunition for the season. Let’s take a closer look:

Goalkeeper: Aaron Ramsdale needs to go and play somewhere (as does Karl Hein, actually). Arsenal need to facilitate that, and also to ensure that a suitable replacement is found. Not long for those ducks to be lined up.

Defence: Almost certainly more than enough depth here. In fact, it would make sense for Jakob Kivior, whose minutes look likely to be severely curtailed, to at the very minimum go out on loan for the season.

Midfield: Merino will surely be a sufficient addition (although how Odegaard gets a rest isn’t easy to work out). The addition of Merino should see Rice go back to what he himself regards as his best position; with both Partey and Jorginho ready to step in when necessary. This also means, in my opinion, that the Havertz At Left 8 experiment is over. ESR is gone now, and Vieira looks to be finally being put out of his misery, so that leaves a path for Ethan Nwaneri to pick up maybe around 300 First Team minutes over the season. This all makes for a deal of clarity, in my opinion.

Attack: Hmmm… far more difficult. And there are two strands to this. Firstly, what to do about the left wing situation, and at the same time how to ensure that Bukayo Saka isn’t over-burdened. With Nelson likely to depart this week, Gabriel Jesus’s latest injury (albeit apparently not serious) brings this into focus. Because if one compares the possibility of using the Brazilian to fill the gaps as necessary with what Pep has put together at Manchester City (Doku, Grealish, Bernardo Silva and now Savinho are their winger options), Arsenal are deficient here. 

But not as deficient as they can look at centre forward. Admittedly, Erling Haaland is imperious (and City are definitely short of alternatives for him with the departure of Alvarez), but Arsenal look well short in comparison. Havertz and Jesus may be able to do a job, but they are simply no comparison to the Norwegian. And with Eddie looking on his way too, for me Arteta simply must pull a rabbit out of the hat here. I don’t think that Ohsimen looks like an Arsenal player - plus he’ll be crazily expensive - but I do like the look of Viktor Gyokeres of Sporting Lisbon. 

Whatever happens over these next few days, for me a centre forward alternative is absolutely critical!

I can’t end without mentioning a few things that we saw on Saturday. First, Trossard’s quite pointed ‘non-celebration’ following his goal. Arteta will have taken note, and I suspect that for the Belgian’s state of mind he must start on Saturday (against his old club).

Second, the Arsenal supporters’ relentless trolling of Emi Martinez following his error that led to the second goal. If you dish it out, mate, you have to be prepared to take it.

And on a similar note the reminder that Ben White remains the absolute King of the Sh*thousers. The instant retribution meted out to McGinn was magnificent work!

So we move on. The fun and games of the end of the transfer window. Then Brighton at home - not easy - followed by the first of several pointless, annoying Interlulls. And then the double whammy that is Spurs away, followed by City away. It’s going to be a very interesting month.

COYG!

Season Preview - Hopes and Dreams

Right then; here we go! A new season commences, and anything could happen. And I thought that I'd lay out my hopes and dreams, my expectations and my concerns, and would see how they resonate with yours. Let's get right into it. But warning - long read...

Title aspirations

Last season, Arsenal fell just short of toppling Team 115 from their perch, despite taking 49 points out of 54 from their PL matches in 2024. 89 points wasn't enough, and it was almost certainly the relatively slow start to the season that cost Arsenal the title (remember, Liverpool once got to 97 points and it wasn't enough!).

As far as trajectory is concerned, it's been 8th to 5th to 2nd, and then 2nd again in the past 4 seasons - with every season end tinged with regret of some kind or the other. But it's clear that Arsenal are getting closer and closer. It's in the area of marginal gains where Mikel Arteta knows he needs to squeeze a bit more out of his squad, and for sure he's working on it.

I see the strengths and weaknesses as follows:

Goalkeeper and Defence

Little to criticise. The best defence in the country, without question; and Arteta has addressed the perceived (or actual) weakness posed when oppositions pick on Zinchenko by adding Riccardo Califiori to the ranks. Plus Jurrien Timber looks ready to go as well - indeed, I'm not quite sure how to get 6 into 4 right now; although there will be plenty of opportunities for rotation as the season progresses - it's highly unlikely that Saliba and Gabriel will be able to keep their exemplary fitness records for another full season. 

Honestly, there are no worries here. In William Saliba, Arsenal have the stand-out centre half in the entire league. And his partnership with Gabriel is equally the number one partnership. Add Ben White, and with a choice of first class left backs, just relax...

Midfield 

Again, Arteta appears spoilt for choice; and may be even more so if he gets Merino. 

Declan Rice is a machine, and whilst he did start looking a little tired towards the end of the recent Euros, the break will have done him sufficient good. Alternatives to him at the 6 spot are Jorginho (excellent passer; not too mobile these days but very capable) and Thomas Partey (gives Arsenal something different with his ability to quickly beat a man and create vertical passing spaces, but not reliably fit and his legs are perhaps starting to betray him). Between the three of them, Arsenal are well served in that position, but this is an area that will need reinforcing next summer.

Further forward, the 'right 8' role belongs firmly to Martin Odegaard; a player who must surely be the envy of literally every single club side in the world. £30m from Real Madrid has turned out to be an absolute bargain! Left 8 is rather more complicated, and it's worth pointing out at this stage that Arsenal's right hand side has been considerably more effective as an attacking force than the left for probably two seasons now. If Arteta can find a way to make the opposition worry more about what's going on down Arsenal's left, then what an attacking outfit they will have become!

But the waters are muddy. Should he put Rice there; with Partey or Jorginho behind. Havertz? Trossard? Vieira (sadly, he doesn't have the option of ESR any more)? Nwaneri, even, at the right time? Who would work best, and how will that upset the equilibrium on the left wing, and up top? I'm glad that it's not my problem!

Forward line 

Just the one place out of three is set in stone here; Saka on the right. After that, it does appear that Kai Havertz is the centre forward of choice, with Gabriel Jesus a decent alternative. On the left wing, there's Martinelli or Trossard. Or even Jesus (could play all across the front). But...

And here's what bother me the most; yes, Arsenal scored 91 league goals last season. And the goals were spread all across the team, with contributions from almost everywhere. Saka top with 16 (including penalties). Then Havertz 13, Trossard 12, Odegaard 8. Which is all great news, but for me there are two issues:

Firstly, Arsenal are missing the key ingredient of a top centre forward. Last season three players - Haaland, Palmer and Isak - notched 20+ goals. Saka was number 9 on the list for the season. Arteta and Edu are well aware of this; look at the very first move they attempted to make this summer - trying to sign Benjamin Sesko. For me the addition of a goal scorer is the missing ingredient in this Arsenal squad. Yes, 91 League goals - but look at the games when Arsenal failed to score to see where those extra margins can be made up. City away. Newcastle away. Both matches against Aston Villa. And inexplicably at home to West Ham. Not forgetting the 1-0 defeat in Munich. 

Margins... the odd extra goal here and there in those games would have been huge. It's OK to knock 5s and 6s past inferior teams, and they'll do that again this season, but that's not actually enough.

Which brings me on to point two: expected goals. Because Arsenal don't have a clinical finisher in the squad, they need to create more - and better - chances than other sides to allow for the 'big chances' that are squandered. Matches are consistently dominated, but quite often that isn't reflected in the scoreline. There are any number of examples from last season, but Brighton at home stands out for me. It could/should have been 6-0. 

But I'm not asking for two and three goal wins to become 5 or 6 goal wins (enjoyable as that would be). I want to see them score in every match! Even against the most difficult of opposition. A single goal at Villa Park, St James' Park, or even The Etihad (remember that Trossard chance in the second half?) would have made all the difference to the entire season! 

For me, if Arteta is going to make just a single extra signing in the next fortnight, then please let it be a centre forward! Although I guess that there will need to be further departures first.

The Squad

So... what does the current squad need by way of additions? And who needs to go? Let's do this!

Goalkeepers - Aaron Ramsdale; let's be fair to the bloke - he needs to go and play somewhere. A sale would be the best move for all parties. He'd do a fine job pretty much anywhere. And Karl Hein needs playing time. What that will mean, of course, is that Arsenal need to sign a replacement; somebody who would be happy enough to under study David Raya. Bentley from Wolves would be no bad idea; he did a decent job standing in for Jose Sa last season. Alternatively, our old pal Wojciech Szczesny is currently a free agent...

Defence - and here Arsenal have not only quality but quantity. It wouldn't surprise me to see Jakob Kivior depart, and there looks to be space to advance young Aiden Heaven into the group too, alongside Miles Lewis-Skelly. Both very much for the future, but closest to breaking through

Midfield - and continuing that theme, there Ethan Nwaneri. the departure of ESR gives him a chance for more first team minutes, and he certainly looks up to taking them with both hands. There are shades of Jack Wilshere and Cesc Fabregas in watching him, and I'm excited to see how he gets on. Elsewhere, even if Arteta would have been happy to shift Partey out, there haven't as yet been any takers. He's got a year left on his contract, so let's make use of him whilst he's fit. Plus the likely addition of Mikel Merino creates further opportunities to dominate opponents.

Forwards - Arteta is trying to shift both Eddie Nketiah and Reiss Nelson out. They don't have the quality for this Arsenal squad. Thanks, and good luck. But as I said before they surely need to draft in another body. Havertz's qualities are clear, but he's not a reliable finisher. Jesus similar, but with the added trait of being so unpredictable that he can sometimes upset the pattern of play. On the left wing, Arteta has a real conundrum choosing between Martinelli and Trossard - sure, they'll both get playing time, but who's the 'starter' and who's the 'finisher'?

On the whole, the squad is almost complete. The bulk of them are aged 22-26. It bodes well for a period of great excitement and optimism for us fans. I've got nothing more to add on this.

And now for the 'elephant in the room' - Team 115. And it's all about to come to a head over the next few months. There's no point attempting to make sense of anything at this stage, but it's worth bearing the following in mind:

1. The charges cover the period 2009-18 only

2. They have already had a legal fight with UEFA over their FFP rules

3. They alleged to have consistently broken the premier League's old PSR rules

4. Almost a third of the charges relate to them 'failing to co-operate with Premier League investigations'

5. Whilst remaining favourites to win the Premier League yet again, they are also just 10/1 in places to be relegated. Remarkable...

I mean... WOW! 

So what would/could the penalties for this be if found guilty of even half of these charges? Well, bearing in mind what happened to Everton and Nottingham Forest last season, it's got to be a massive points deduction - enough to make relegation a certainty. I hear that their players have relegation clauses in their contracts; why on earth would the club bother to put them in in the first place?

What this could mean for Arsenal does not need to be spelled out. Arsenal are generally acknowledged as Manchester City's closest challengers, and with Liverpool expected to be in a post-Klopp lull are ideally placed to take advantage. Case to be held in the next couple of months - results early in the New Year. Juicy stuff...

And so to predictions:

1.    Arsenal to finally win the Premier League following a 21-year gap

2,    Champions League - quarter final at the minimum

3.    FA Cup/Carabao Cup - why not? One of those to come Arsenal's way

4.    Top scorer - Bukayo Saka

5.    Player of the Season - Martin Odegaard

6.    Breakout player - Riccardo Califiori

7.    Best young player - Ethan Nwaneri

8.    Most disappointing player - Fabio Vieira

As to the rest of the league:

Other Champions League qualifiers: Manchester City (if the points deduction doesn't fit the crime), Liverpool, Tottenham, Manchester United, Newcastle (for me, Villa are going to suffer in their Champions League year)

Most disappointing team - surely the nut-job that is Chelsea FC?FIrst managerial sacking: Enzo Maresca

Relegation: Southampton, Leicester, Ipswich. Sorry, guys. Unless a team like Brighton, Bournemouth, Brentford or Forest have a shocker, they're really going to struggle. As it is every year.

Anyway, that's me done for the moment. See you at the Emirates tomorrow. COYG!