Fulham 1 Arsenal 1. More points dropped to our latest 'bogey team'. Was it one of those days? Or was there more to it?
Let's take a closer look. And firstly at the starting XI, which saw Timber at left back in the continued absence of Califiori, Kivior continuing to deputise for the injured Gabriel, and Partey taken out of midfield to cover for Timber at right back. Jorginho into midfield. Trossard preferred to Martinelli.
And questions can immediately be asked, frankly, about this. We have been able to see what a fit Thomas Partey adds to the team. Much to our collective surprise, he has remained fit for longer than at any time in his Arsenal career, and as a consequence of this long sequence of matches has performed at a consistently high level. In midfield.
Partey can do an adequate job at right back, but when in possession tends to look to move infield as opposed to offering overlapping options to Saka and Odegaard. Timber (and Ben White) can do either/both. Partey is far more effective in midfield, where he can put his close control and top level ball distribution to full effect.
Arteta's decision to shift Timber over to left back - made because he has the option to use Partey on the right - even though (despite injuries to Califiori, Zinchenko and Tomiyasu) he had Lewis-Skelly and even Kieran Tierney on the bench - meant moving too many pieces of the jigsaw around. As a result, the balance of the side was affected and something was lost in the middle of the park. I don't want to see Partey at right back again unless the situation is desperate.
Unusually, Fulham manager Marco Silva had changed both formation and style, moving from a more open and expansive style of play to - with Lukic drafted into midfield alongside Sander Berge - one designed for defensive mobility. His teams tend to do well against Arsenal (a win and a draw last season, for example), and here he had read the situation well once more.
Not that you'd have noticed early on in the game, when Arsenal completely dominated the ball for the first 10 minutes. As far as Fulham were concerned, it looked like being an extremely long afternoon as they hardly had a kick for fully 10 minutes. But they scored with their very first attack. And whilst I hated it, I had to admire it. Their first proper bit of possession, and they made the most of it, with almost every player getting a touch of the ball. Then Jimenez found Tete and went off on a sprint. I'm apportioning no blame to Kivior, who was outpaced and out-manoeuvred by the brilliance of Jimenez's movement as he sprinted onto Tete's through ball and took Raya on early. Saliba was a split second too late getting over to block, and Raya had left the very far corner of his net exposed. Jimenez hit that exact spot.
Now, the stats for the match show Arsenal with 67% possession, 6 corners to 0, 12 shots to two, and Fulham scoring with their only shot on target (out of that grand total of two). But, to be honest, despite all that possession Arsenal simply didn't make enough of it. Too much of it was in front of Fulham, who held Arsenal comfortably at bay for the most part. Saka was once more the most effective attacker, but it does feel that there's a lack of sufficient creativity in the team.
And so, whilst it was 'all Arsenal', it felt like there was something missing. It's impossible to expect to rely on Odegaard and Saka at all times. Trossard flashes in and out. Havertz another who blows hot and cold. And the left 8 position remains a problem, with Rice not a good enough alternative going forward to make that his own, and new signing Merino actually something of a Rice clone.
As regards the alternatives sitting on the bench, both Jesus and Sterling have been bitterly disappointing so far, and there's only the potentially brilliant Nwaneri in whom Arteta seems to have much trust. The departures of both ESR - ineffective in this game for Fulham tbh - and Vieira has left Arsenal short in the creativity department. Whilst the squad looked strong enough on paper at the beginning of the season, it remains to be seen what plans Arsenal have for the January window; although I cannot see them buying a winger, a centre forward and a creative player - all required - but something needs to be done.
And so of the 12 shots - only 4 on target - none held particularly high Xg tariffs, apart from for the goal (Saliba's second in two matches as he steps up to take the place of the injured Gabriel; but Havertz should be embarrassed to have failed to hit the target himself from all of 4 yards), and the extremely presentable opportunity that Partey missed. Both - please note - from corners. And so it's quite simple; not enough is being created from open play, and a key needs to be found to that. Although it's worth arguing that they get all these corners because they force them by dominating possession, and they score from so many of them because of the quality they have developed at them.
It's not that Arsenal aren't a very good side. But they can - and must - be even better; and it's clear where they can be better. In this game, Fulham's Xg of a mere 0.16 yielded a crucial goal. Arsenal's 2.03 yielded just the equaliser. And at the end of the day it's kudos to Fulham, whose hard work paid off.
Of course, it's easy to say all this in hindsight. Had Saka's late header from Martinelli's cross stood, we'd all be saying: 'Phew! Got there in the end, but we deserved it on the balance of play.' But Martinelli had strayed just offside on the build-up, and that was that. Offside is objective, and he was a bit unlucky to be caught as two Fulham players moved up at the very last moment to catch him. Pity; it was very nice play from Martinelli - apart from the obvious. - and a well-timed run and finish from Starboy
Nonetheless, this was a better result than that achieved at Craven Cottage last season, so we can thank small mercies for that amidst the angst. And it is worth noting that we're in the midst of a slightly easier run of league games, and comparing results to last season's for Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City for all remaining matches reveals that Arsenal will remain ahead of City, and overtake Liverpool. Let's hang our hats on that as we crane our necks upwards to try to find Liverpool.
Before I look forward to the two matches this week, I just wanted to take a moment to laugh at Manchester United; and especially at Tottenham Hotspur. A home defeat for United is always fun, and I'm sure that the size of the task facing Amorim is becoming very clear to him. As for Spurs, this is another two goal lead blown; they are making quite a habit of it. The only unfortunate thing is that it was Chelsea who benefitted. Meantime, City also dropped points, which is always handy.
And so to the Champions League, and a home game with Monaco - who are only behind us in the CL table on goal difference. This is by far the most difficult of Arsenal's three remaining fixtures, and a win in this one will go a long way to cementing the club's place in the Top 8. Any win would do me, but I suspect that it won't be easy. Monaco have already beaten Barcelona this season, and you'll certainly recognise several of their players on Wednesday.
Then, on Saturday, it's Everton. And - in all seriousness - they are awful, so we can probably expect a relatively easy ride there. 9 points out of 9 are critical in this series of matches - Everton, Palace, Ipswich. Let's get it done.
Believe. There's no reason not to. COYG!
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