Nothing To See Here...

 And so, after an interminably long and dull Interlull, Arsenal were back in action on Saturday evening. And, if the line-up wasn't quite a surprising as others have been, the formation certainly was.

Far be it from me to criticise Mikel Arteta - and this was Manchester City they were up against, after all - but I do wonder if he out-thinks himself occasionally. And, of course, I'd rather have it this way than get smashed by Manchester City, as has happened all too frequently recently, but if I had to sum up the performance I suppose I'd go with timid, uninspiring, tentative and... a little boring. After all, this lot had shipped 5 in their last home game!

And so to the game itself. And firstly - why the blue kit? There was no reason why Arsenal could not have played in their 'proper' kit - the red and white. But there's merchandising to consider, isn't there. Ridiculous!

And then - and much more importantly - the formation. On paper, with neither Lacazette or Nketiah selected, it looked for all money that Aubameyang was going to be up top. And yet... and this is where I question the over-thinking - Arteta chose to play an inverted formation with Willian up the middle. And it simply didn't work. Both Auba and Pepe were too wide to influence the game - when Arsenal had possession, that is - and it also inhibited the ability of the wing-backs to make an impact. One could see what the plan was, but it was essentially all too crowded out wide, but with a gaping hole down the middle!

The only player who got to express himself properly, I would say, was Bukayo Saka. He found himself 'between the lines' more often than any other Arsenal player, and had one of Arsenal's most serviceable chances - good save from Ederson here:

Throughout, Manchester City dominated possession, as might be expected, but as a whole Arsenal held them off fairly comfortably. Of course, they had chances - Mahrez had one as early as the second minute, cutting inside and firing just wide with his left foot - and they continually pegged Arsenal back.

However, there were opportunities to get forward, and I suppose that I was a little unhappy with the lack of ambition from Arsenal. It wasn't until City had scored that a little more attempt to get forward was shown, and there were immediately that chance for Saka, and others for Auba (finally in from the left) and Pepe.

And when Arsenal needed to switch formation and up the tempo late on... well, their hearts didn't seem in it. It was almost as if they'd prefer to settle for a narrow defeat than really go for it and end up losing by two or three. And I suppose that it's a measure of how far this team has come in just a few months that we can be disappointed by that. And I really wanted to see Aubameyang start up top!

And so, on another weekend of thrills, spills and controversy all over the Premier League, our game was rather insipid. Of high technical quality (particularly from City, of course), but we could have done with a bit more excitement. And a bit more excitement would have involved - and here's a theme oft mentioned - some more chances created by Arsenal, whose chance creation stats have been low for a while. I'd almost be thinking about mentioning Mesut Ozil here, but perhaps Thomas Partey (who sneaked in a 10 minute cameo) might help in that regard.

A few other points to mention. Firstly, I counted no less than 9 cynical fouls by City players during the game. Tug-backs, niggly tackles from behind, blocks etc. That's how they keep teams pegged in; they pile the pressure on, and then when they lose the ball commit a foul as high up the pitch as they can. As an opposition supporter, I don't like that.

Secondly, Sergio Aguero. What was this about?

He's touched an official. A female official. So not only is it out of order because he touched an official, but it looks like a sexist act at the same time. Words should be had, at the very least...

And finally, this:

Walker on Gabriel. I'm not saying that it's a penalty, but it's a high foot, and it's frankly reckless. It could easily be a penalty, and the thing that annoys me is that VAR did not even review the incident!

I'll now just quickly cover what else went on over the weekend - I'm writing this on Monday, so if there's any controversy tonight it won't be included:

There's the two incidents in the Liverpool derby. The reckless 'tackle' - I'd prefer to call it an assault - by Pickford on van Dijk that will see the latter out for the season, Should have been a red card for one; but the loss of this wonderful and vital player could easily scupper Liverpool's entire season.

More points dropped from a winning position by Chelsea. Great going forward; a right mess at the back. Good.

And then there's Tottenham. 3-0 up in no time at home to West Ham, and cruising. If they'd have gone 6 or 8 up you couldn't have argued. And yet... with less than a quarter of an hour to go a daft free kick given away leading to a goal, followed by an own goal by the ever unreliable Sanchez, and then a completely needless challenge by Aurier that led to a goalmouth scramble and Lanzini's thunderous 25-yarder. Oh, how we laughed! 

Not even Jose Mourinho can prevent the inherent Spursyness of Spurs. It's simply in their DNA.

And so to the indefatiguable Arsene Wenger. I say indefatiguable because he's not stopped doing interviews! But... for all we hoped for something hard-hitting it's all a little bland; the book, as well as the interviews. It's lovely to hear his dulcet tones once more, but the book is entirely uncontroversial, and the interviews don't reveal much either. To be expected, I suppose.

Except that he has let slip at the book launch how much he and Sir Alex Ferguson actually hated each other at the height of their rivalry. 

And the other thing that interested me was how disappointed he was at the 2006 Champions League Final loss; as he said, it would have put the seal on that era, starting in 1997, when Arsenal had a truly fantastic team.

I also couldn't help fail to notice that at the launch of his autobiography, at the London Palladium, the theatre looked packed - with very few people wearing masks. Now haven't we got this all wrong - you can pack an indoor arena like that, but you can't watch a football match outdoors? Indeed, I hear that clubs can run hospitality at grounds, but if there's a view of the pitch it has to be hidden and one must watch what's going on right under one's nose on a television screen instead. Utter madness!

Anyway, Arsenal are back in Europe on Thursday, followed by a tricky game against Leicester City. I hope that there'll be good news all round to report on next Monday. Cheerio.

Interlull - but it certainly hasn't been quiet!

Well, despite it being an 'interlull' - whoever thought it was a good idea to have footballers jetting off all over the world during a pandemic needs locking up, if you ask me - there's quite a lot to report on from Arsenal Land. So this is another long one...

Travel arrangements made it impossible for me to blog in a timely manner on the Sheffield United game. So I'll start there, and then dwell on the shock results of that weekend.

So, compared to some of the excitment elsewhere, this was a fairly routine win for Arsenal over an obdurate Sheffield United side who, whilst they remain without a point this season, I see in no danger of going down. 

Talking points were: 

a) David Luiz's pull on Burke's shirt, for which he was fortunate to go unpunished (cue the normal headlines, and it's difficult to put his treatment up against that of 'poor old Harry Maguire') - but weigh that against the thuggish challenge from Berge on Aubameyang which left him writhing in agony and clutching his ankle, and led to his withdrawal from the Gabon squad (small mercies), but which was airbrushed by Sky and the press, and

b) Another promising show from Bukayo Saka, culminating in a well-taken headed goal. And the noticeable difference in the side when Pepe was introduced; let's hope that this game will be a watershed for the latter's Arsenal career. He looked to be combining well with Willian and particularly Bellerin, and took his goal beautifully - making it look easy when, moving at the pace he was, it was anything but

And so three more points bagged, making it 9 out of 12 and the only defeat at Fortress Anfield, home of the Premier League Champions and favourites this season too. But wait... Liverpool's entirely unexpected and crushing 7-2(!) defeat at Villa Park was merely the second of two headline-grabbing results; the other being Manchester United's humiliating 6-1(!) home defeat to Spurs (and that despite the award of a first minute penalty). A quite extraordinary three hours of football, with the result at Old Trafford causing much mirth all over the country (although it's obviously somewhat unfortunate that it was Spurs who did the damage, of course).

On these games; firstly, this embarrassment follows on from a previous home defeat to Crystal Palace, so something is clearly very wrong at Old Trafford. The momentum of the end of last season has come to a thumping halt, and United suddenly look like a very ordinary side. Yet Solskjaer still clings to his job; lest we forget that he took Cardiff City down a few years ago... 

On the other hand, Spurs look awesome - going forward at least - with Kane and particularly Son rampant. That's 18 goals in their last three matches! Fortunately a) they don't look quite so hot in defence or central midfield and b) they're Spurs, so..., well, you know.

And as for Liverpool; well, unless Villa have suddenly found the blueprint for playing against them - their uber-high line was exposed again and again - we can probably treat that result as a massive aberration. With Thiago and Mane to return, and hopefully for their sakes Adrian never to be seen in goal again, I reckon they're still as good as we all think they are. The pressing against Arsenal was almost super-human.

And in discussing those two results, Manchester City's two dropped ponts at home to Leeds almost sneak under the radar...

Moving on to Transfer Deadline Day, and the Eleventh Hour signing of Thomas Partey - 'the new Patrick Vieira', we are told - from Athletico Madrid. The manner of it (including the shenanigans with Houssem Aouar) has been well documented, and what I can comment on what went on is that firstly if you're going to impose the strict requirements that Athletico did on the Partey contract and totally refuse to negotiate, then you shouldn't expect to be angered by what Arsenal did - which was, of course, completely legal (if a little underhand). And secondly, it's all the more amusing for being underhand because if you're Diego Simeone, the Master of Anti-Football and now with a forward line consisting of Diego Costa and Luis Suarez, then it must be quite difficult to take the moral high ground and still be able to look at yourself in the mirror in the morning...

So what will Partey bring to Arsenal? Is he the 'missing link' that we've been waiting for since Paddy left? Well, by all accounts he's quite a monster of a player; strong and athletic (and quick with it), capable of playing as a DM or in a box-to-box role, and a decent passer too. How he fits in remains to be seen - especially who Arteta partners him with - but I'm wondering if this will soon mean that the Manager switches to his preferred 4-3-3 formation -  the one that personnel shortcomings have meant he has been unable to do since he arrived. That remains to be seen, but I suspect that there'll be no formation change for the next game (Manchester City). Anyway, I'm sure that we're all intrigued.

What's just as important as far as the City game is concerned is whether Kieran Tierney is permitted to play or forced to continue to self-isolate. He is of course Arsenal's best defender.

It is worth reflecting at this point that Arsenal did not do a good job of moving players on in the Window. Martinez sold (to the disappointment of many), and Torreira and Guendouzi out on loan, and that's it. So Arsenal remain 'stuck' with Sokratis, Kolasinac, Mustafi and Chambers, William Saliba is in limbo, and then of course there's Mesut Ozil (what's going on with him one can only speculate, and I'll come back to him later). This is  as a result of a poor transfer policy over maybe the past 6-7 years, and it's going to take this regime at least another year to sort out.

Moving on, it was good to see Bukayo Saka get his England debut; and not long after AMN. That's testament to their quality, and to the work that Arteta is doing with them. Saka looked a little lost early on, but grew into the game; it would have been nice if Grealish had passed to him a bit more often, though. Plus in passing; Eddie Nketiah has broken the England under-23 scoring record - he's very much a work-in-progress, however.

And now to Mesut Ozil and - and I never thought I'd have these two in the same paragraph - the saga of Gunnersaurus Rex. 

There are at least two aspects to this, and I'm sure it's far more nuanced than we can possibly know, but I believe that the football world are unanimous in being appalled at the treatment of poor old Jerry Quy (the man in the dinosaur suit) - laying him off is another Arsenal Football Club PR disaster. And then to see Mesut Ozil hoving into view as Jerry's saviour?... well, some might say that this was a pretty cynical PR opportunity grab by the Ozil camp.

Whatever is going on with Ozil - and I'm personally very upset by it - cheap point-scoring is not the answer. The club and the player need to reach an amicable agreement, as the current stand-off is an embarrassment for all concerned. From a personal point of view, I am extremely upset that we are unlikely to see Ozil in an Arsenal shirt again. Thinking about the greatest Arsenal players of the modern era, he's up there with Bergkamp and Henry; with Fabregas, van Persie, Cazorla and Alexis Sanchez. In fact, he's one of the most skilful players I have ever seen, and I love to watch him play. An outstanding talent, going to absolute waste - and at £350k a week - plus an £8m 'loyalty bonus' to boot! Madness.

I think I'll cover the two big autobiography stories of the past couple of weeks in my next post. I haven't read Arsene's yet - it only arrived in the post yesterday - and I am yet to order Lord Bendtner's (although by all accounts it's very interesting). However, I want to quickly cover Project Big Picture.

It is clear and obvious that football finances are skewed badly in favour of the Premier League and especially its biggest clubs, and that this needs addressing. That has been known for years; the rich with all the advantages - and getting richer - while the rest suffer. And yes, just a small adjustment in the percentages would make a massive difference to the finances of the pyramid below. However, this ill-thought plan has been seen for what it was - a cynical, opportunistic power grab (led by Liverpool and Manchester United, but make no mistake they're just the fall guys - I'd be certain that the rest of the so-called Big Six are involved). By all means make the gesture, but make it sustainable and above all don't seek to take advantage of others' misfortune. Shame on you!

Right, that's me (finally) done. Easy game coming up... back on Monday.

Stay safe, whatever Tier you're in.

Back To Reality

This is a bit late posting. Sorry; I was travelling all day yesterday...

And so we Arsenal fans come back to earth. 

Whilst it’s clear that progress has been made under Mikel Arteta, this match revealed the gulf in class between the very top sides - and I don’t think that there can be much doubt that this Liverpool are one of the best club sides that there has ever been - and where Arsenal are at the moment.

Of course, Klopp’s Liverpool project is 5 years (and the best part of £350m) old now, and Arteta is only just starting out and is only part way into his first transfer window, but there is a huge amount of ground to make up. While there seems no reason why Arsenal cannot compete for a Champions League spot this year, my feeling is that a title challenge is going to remain out of reach for at least another three seasons.

If anything, however, it gets people’s feet back on terra firma, and reinforces Arteta’s need for... er... squad reinforcements with the ownership.

It is clear that Liverpool have better players than Arsenal in every single position - I’m not sure that even Aubameyang gets into their side (it would be harsh on Firmino) - and they dominated Arsenal pretty much from start to finish. 

Which we expected, of course; and whilst Arsenal took the lead it was totally against the run of play and merely a blip - that Liverpool would score more than once was frankly inevitable.

And so to the game, when before it started Arteta sprang a couple of selection surprises. I suspected that AMN would start, but wasn’t expecting Holding to keep his place and Gabriel to be dropped to the bench. And I’m not sure that anyone could have expected Elneny to start alongside Xhaka. 

The thing about the midfield selection is that this is where Arsenal are most in need of reinforcements; where apart from Ceballos there is a distinct lack of both creativity and the ability to move the ball quickly in transition. Long balls from Luiz or Xhaka cannot be the solution, and what Arsenal do here in the next week is crucial to the development of the squad.

And so to the match itself; and the first and most obvious thing to note was the hyper-aggression shown by Sadio Mane early on. In the second minute he went in hard and completely unnecessarily from behind on Bellerin (to my eyes an immediate yellow card, irrespective of the fact that it was so early in proceedings), and a mere minute later fended off Tierney with what looked to the naked eye - confirmed by the replays - to be a hand/fist to the face. Immediately booked by referee Pawson, but not reviewed by VAR and if it had been would surely have meant a straight red instead. 

The infuriating thing for Arsenal fans was not just the failure of VAR here, but the fact that Sky also failed to highlight it. And far be it from me to ever agree with Jose Mourinho, but his pointed comments the previous afternoon about the most ‘titled’ clubs getting the rub of the green more than others could be seen to be borne out by this incident.

Whether playing with 10 against Arsenal’s 11 would have made the difference by the end is moot, considering Liverpool’s domination, but it would certainly have helped! 

Of course, Arteta’s game plan against the top sides is weIl-known now, and to counteract it Liverpool pressed Arsenal hard, fast and deep throughout. Out balls were at a premium, as a red tide swarmed all over Arsenal’s continued efforts to play out from the back. All the way to minute 90 and beyond. And for them to be able to do that so early in the season is testament to their fitness and the fact that every single player knows his job so well; plus they’re all so very good. 

I’d particularly like to mention Salah - a world-class talent - who at times was completely unplayable. But he’s just one of several absolutely outstanding individuals on the Liverpool side. (The fortunate to be on the pitch) Mane and Alexander-Arnold were also superb, and Fabinho dominated in midfield.

Yet, miraculously, Arsenal took the lead just before the half hour mark, on one of the few occasions when playing out from the back actually worked. A swift break, and Lacazette had the benefit of a sliced Robertson clearance from Aubameyang’s cross that dropped at his feet inside the six yard box. 

Totally, totally against the run of play, and it was disappointing - but no surprise - that Liverpool got back into the game almost immediately. The strength, determination and skill of Salah leading to a shot that Leno failed to deal with sufficiently, and it dropped at the feet of the unmarked Mane two yards out. As much as anything, too many Arsenal defenders were attracted to the ball and that was what left Mane on his own. Less than three minutes. Hey ho.

And for 2-1, Willian failed to see or track Robertson’s late and clever run to the far post. A lovely dinked finish, and Liverpool were ahead, but an Arsenal mistake nonetheless.

And so to the second half, where Arsenal came out early with more aggression and - for a short while - pushed Liverpool back a bit. But it was short-lived, and it was thereafter only the introduction of Ceballos that helped to stem the continuous red tide for a short while. 

But despite the home side’s domination, Arsenal had their chances. Lacazette was offside for the first, but fluffed his finish, and for the second - created by a wondrous through ball from Ceballos - he again showed the gulf in class between a very good striker and a great one. Credit the keeper, but had that been Aubameyang he would probably have scored. However, our star striker was stranded out on the left wing all night. I’m not sure if it is going to be a priority in this transfer window, but getting Aubameyang playing down the middle is critical for me. 

When he was substituted with a quarter of an hour left, the Frenchman hid his face in his shirt. He knew how key that missed chance was. And his replacement Nketiah missed a decent half chance late on. But here’s the difference - Eddie is a callow youth compared to the Liverpool strikers, and they had the luxury of bringing on Diogo Jota. Who duly scored late on to give the score line a more realistic feel.

However - and whilst the score line was identical to last season’s - Arteta and Arsenal can take pride in the resilience that has been instilled in the past few months. They were still in the game until very late on, and that’s progress. This is a Liverpool side that is almost unbeatable anywhere - and even more so at home - so we can take heart that our club is moving in the right direction. But the road is long (with many a winding turn)... - I keep slipping in song lyrics, don’t I?!?

And so to an important week. Mainly centred around the transfer window that closes next Tuesday, but there are a couple of matches too. Firstly, a Carabao Cup game (again at Anfield, and there’ll be lots of changes to both sides but this is a tough one) and then a Premier League game at home to a woefully out of form Sheffield United. An opportunity to get back on track.

Just a quick mention for the new handball rule and VAR here. The rule needs to be changed - because when Arsenal fans have sympathy (sort of) for Tottenham Hotspur it must be serious. And when VAR can miss obvious things like the Chelsea handball that led to their late winner, that only goes to indicate its continued shortfalls. Come on IFAB/Premier League; get a grip.

Until next Monday, then. #COYG

Getting Away With It

Well, when compared to last week's romp at Craven Cottage this was an entirely different experience. 

Of course, coming up against a somewhat callow, naive and inexperienced Fulham manager and team is chalk to the cheese of West Ham (for all that they were dreadful in their first game) and their craggy, experienced Manager, David Moyes. And, frankly, Arsenal were extremely fortunate to come away with all three points.

So what did I take from the game? Firstly, that Arsenal still have plenty to do in order to compete at, or even near, the top of the table. For all that Arteta has found, and drilled into the side, a way to play against the top sides - who will carry the game to Arsenal - there is still some way to go to solve the puzzzle of how to deal with hard-working sides who are prepared to sit deep and hit on the break. And West Ham can rightly feel somewhat aggrieved to have left The Emirates with nothing on Saturday, having dominated for considerable parts of the game. The major difference between the sides was clearly the finishing capabilities of the respective strikers.

Secondly, that plenty of work still needs to be done on the squad, with players needing to be moved on and replaced. And brought to the fore here, because of his sub-standard performance in this match, was Kolasinac. He only started because Kieran Tierney went down with a hip injury (not serious it transpires), and clearly Arteta did not feel that David Luiz was fit to play 90 minutes, nor that he wanted to blood William Saliba against such a rugged outfit as West Ham. But Kolasinac is simply not up to playing on the left hand side of a three, and has been overtaken by not only Tierney, but also Maitland-Niles and Saka for the left wing back position. So in this window we ought to see Kolasinac leave, as well as Sokratis. With likely three further centre backs to be moved on in the next year. The West Ham goal came about because the Serb failed to read Fredericks' run, and then Holding - also sub-standard in this game - found himself on the wrong side of Antonio.

There is also something lacking in midfield; which we all know of course. Seeing Arsenal overrun in there for long periods - sometimes losing possession due to inexcusable over-elaboration (complacency?) - is difficult to stomach. There's a shortage of numbers (with Torreira out of favour and surely on his way, lack of clarity on Elneny, and Willock needing further experience - and that's leaving aside all thoughts of Guendouzi). For all that Xhaka's numbers were tidy, and Caballos had the late assist, in general play there's an element of the light weight about the current setup. So whether it's Partey, or Aouar, or somebody of whom we are not aware, it needs to be made to happen by the time the window closes. Clarity on Guendouzi and Ozil would obviously also be helpful.

Up front Willian had a conspicuously quiet game, but the link play of Saka and the class of Aubameyang led to an easy opportunity for Lacazette for the opener (I thought that it was certain to be ruled out for offside)...

...and when a team has such quality it can atone for a multitude of sins. And Nketiah very much did his job in substituting for the tiring Laca late on. With Pepe and Nelson - and later in the season Martinelli - to add to those numbers - I think that we're well enough stocked up top.

(Dani and Eddie have made it up...)

So I'm hoping for quite a bit of movement in the squad over the next couple of weeks.

The other main talking point was the penalty that West Ham were not awarded. II think that it should have been; especially in light of the ludicrous award at Old Trafford for a non-handball by Lindelof - two things to mention here are a) that's karma for Manchester United and b) have I not been complaining for months about Martin Atkinson?).

And finally, Leno. Not his finest showing in an Arsenal shirt and it did illustrate the concerns that some of us have about him. He made mistakes that we didn't see from Martinez whilst he was between the sticks, and it makes you wonder... but the die is cast, and we shall see.

And so to Carabao Cup action at Leicester in midweek (tricky, and especially with loads of personnel changes expected) and then to Anfield (where I suspect Maitland-Niles may well be back in the side). An acid test; and especially with the special talent that is Thiago Alcantara expected to start for Liverpool. I'll take a point right now.

Back next week. Thanks for reading; and stay safe, please.

Off and running

And so the new season kicked off on Saturday; with Arsenal adopting their rightful place on top of the table...

OK, I'm joking, and there won't be many 'easier' opponents in this season's Premier League than Fulham. However, there have been occasions in recent seasons when Arsenal have struggled against such opposition (I can think of quite a few last season) and you can only beat what's in front of you, so kudos for putting them away with the minimum of fuss.

There are a number of positives to take out of the game, and I'll just run through what I particularly enjoyed:

1.    Gabriel's debut. Apart from a very early mix-up in communication between himself and Leno, he had a solid game, leading the team in many stats, and got a debut goal - the first Arsenal centre-half to do since since Thomas Vermaelen

2.    Just how well-coached this side looks. Everyone seems to know their place - in or out of possession - and there is a solidity that we've not seen for a long time

3.    Aubameyang. Not much more to be said about him, as he started as if he's never been away. I'm sure that teams will learn how to deal with the movement that led to his goal - Willian's assist was remarkably similar to Saka's in the Community Shield - but he's a threat whether he starts down the middle or on the left. Let's just have the official announcement that he has 'signed da ting', please

4.    Willian. Of course, it can hardly be a surprise that he found it easy to integrate into a new side; he's a very good player. But to come away with three assists - and hit the post - in his first competitive game is very promising. Here's what Aubameyang already thinks of him

And now a few other bits and pieces:

1.    The squad still needs work:

a)     only Arsenal can find themselves with 8 central defenders on their books - and no less than 5 of them are injured! But ideally two or three need to go (although due to injury it may take a window or two). Saliba to chuck into the mix will of course be interesting

b)     if there is a hole that needs to be filled, it that of a midfielder. Numbers are fluid here, with Torreira likely to leave and Guendouzi's re-integration very much up in the air despite his attempts (finally) to repair the post-Brighton damage. So we're light in there, and the addition of a 'heavyweight' figure would be useful. Somebody who can help transition the side, and better than what we already have

c)     Competition for places. We now have that almost all over the pitch. This can only be good. But I can also see a number of younger players who would benefit from a loan to another Premier League club, and from playing regularly. We shall see how this develops over the next three weeks

2.    The Arteta Factor - our new First Team Manager (no longer Head Coach - good for him) continues to have a massive influence on way the team is playing and the direction the club is taking. At the moment I don't see a ceiling for him, and it's up to the club to show that it matches his ambitions

3.    Emi Martinez is off to Aston Villa and a guaranteed first team place. He did a fantastic job following Leno's injury, but Arsenal need to sell in order to buy, the German has considerably more experience, and pragmatism would suggest that Emi's value won't go much higher than it is right now.  I will not be alone in wishing him well

4.     It's too early to be too amused, but it was fun to see Tottenham get off to the start we'd hoped for yesterday. Long may that form continue; and I'll continue to enjoy All Or Nothing on Amazon Prime (spoiler - it's Nothing...). In the meantime, I think we might be able to find a stream somewhere for their 'key' Europa League qualifier in Plovdiv on Thursday...

And so to West Ham next weekend. They were poor in their first game, so that bodes well. After that, it gets harder. 

The Preview/Review/Community Shield Roll Up blog post

This post is uncomfortably long - I am very sorry :(

I remember attending the 2015 Community Shield on a blindingly hot August afternoon; a match notable for being Petr Cech's Arsenal debut, for Mikel Arteta starting the game on the Arsenal bench, for The Ox's winning goal, and most memorably for Arsene Wenger going to great lengths to avoid shaking the hand of soon not-to-be Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho. There had been a lovely 9 week break since Arsenal's second FA Cup Final win in two years, and with the Alexis/Ozil tandem in full swing hopes were high for a better Premier League season.

Over this weekend Arsenal played in another Community Shield, on a much colder and damper August afternoon, and after a mere three week break on the back of Project Restart. The result is in many ways irrelevant due to the transient nature of both the Arsenal and Liverpool teams/formations (multiple changes), and Alexis is long gone, with Ozil still somewhere around but ostracised. But, with Arteta now the Arsenal coach and lots of business still to be done before the end of this transfer window, hopes are once again high for a better Premier League showing. And a trophy is, I think you'll find, a trophy (and not just an Audi Cup).

Now, I started writing a review of last season after the FA Cup Final, but so much went on that it just felt like too long a read (and write!), so I've picked out the best/worst of it and written about it below. And it's STILL too long!

And I'm going to go about this blog post a bit upside down. Firstly, a quick review of the Community Shield action, then a precis of last season (for all that there was far too much to talk about and take in), and finally some thoughts on the current transfer window and the season ahead.

So to the genuinely pre-season action against Liverpool; and, of course, a 'trophy'. It is clear that Arteta's methods are bearing real fruit, as an Arsenal side barely back from a break held off a far more prepared Liverpool side courtesy of another Aubameyang team goal/worldie, a thoroughly disciplined performance, and 5 perfect penalties. 

I'm not going to dwell too much on what was essentially a pre-season friendly - albeit at Arsenal's second home, Wembley, and with a presentation ceremony at the end of it - but it's quite clear that such performances and results can only help to enhance confidence levels. And in a necessary dig at Tottenham Hotspur, I'd like to remind their fans that it is 28 seasons since they won a trophy that would make them eligible to even play in this game. Big club...

I'll cover the implications of some of the team selections and performance below when I talk about my hopes and expectations for the transfer window, but I will say this; at this stage, I would not swap Mikel Arteta for any other coach on the planet.

Of course, the tumultuous 19/20 season is all water under the bridge now, but there were so many moments worth documenting that it's worth putting them into some sort of context; so many incidents (and accidents, hints and allegations) that I've (sort of) bullet pointed them below instead of too much of an in-depth analysis 

Readers of a certain vintage may remember the film The Good, The Bad and The Ugly; one of a trio of 'spaghetti westerns' from the 1960s, and starring Clint Eastwood as the eponymous Good. As an 'homage', I've given each of these moments a vote as Good, Bad or Ugly. This is because of the clear correlation with last season; there was some Good, lots of Bad, and a number of incidents that can only be regarded as Ugly. But with FA Cup Final victory, Good triumphed in the end.

Anyway, here goes. And I've tried to make it short but it's been impossible, frankly...

• The season started following a summer notable for the club record signing of Nicolas Pepe from Lille for a (contentious) club record £72m and left-back Kieran Tierney from Celtic, but with the likes of Monreal and Mikhitaryan in the side (amazingly just three of Emery's first selection played in the FA Cup Final), and on the back of the Ozil/Kolasinac car hijacking incident. Not a normal start, but two wins nonetheless; notable mainly for Aubameyang starting as he meant to go on, and for a very promising debut for Real Madrid loanee Dani Ceballos. Good

• The following two matches saw a loss at Anfield notable for encouraging signs from Pepe - and also for David Luiz's first (and somewhat harsh) penalty concession of the season - and a home draw with Spurs that saw Arsenal show some fight to come back from 2-0 down. Bad

• And then... what I regard as the beginning of the end for Unai Emery; a 2-2 draw at Watford notable on the positive side for a sumptuous 'pre-assist' from Mesut Ozil that of Premier League players I'd say only he and Kevin De Bruyne are capable, and on the negative side for a dire defensive display that featured some of the worst playing out from the back I've witnessed - including leading directly to a goal - another penalty concession from Luiz, and this time the loss of a 2-0 lead. After which - and this is where I pin down the issues that dominated the end of Unai Emery's time at the helm - captain Granit Xhaka stated in his post-match interview that Arsenal had been 'scared' of Watford. Let me repeat; 'Scared'. Of Watford! Quite how that mentality had been instilled into the side I cannot imagine. Ugly

• There then followed a series of relatively easy matches - including in the Europa League - of which the most notable was a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford that will be remembered for one of the easiest VAR overturns ever, with Aubamayang, two yards onside, being flagged off before putting the ball in the net and the inevitable 'blatant error' dealt with correctly. However, performances were getting worse and with Pepe having saved his team from ignominious home defeat to Vitoria Guimares with two late (and glorious) free kicks, things weren't looking too promising, despite the emergence of exciting young talents Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka in the Europa League and EFL Cup. On the whole, Bad

• And then... the 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace which will be remembered for Xhaka's response to being substituted (and the crowd reaction to it) which led to toxic scenes as he left the field. It was so bad that looked like there was no way back for the Swiss international at the club. More signs of dressing room issues, and of a disconnect between manager/players and fans. Nonetheless, Arsenal were robbed of victory by a terrible last-minute VAR call as the crowd gave them their full backing - despite the less than perfect performance. Ugly

• There then followed the madness of Carabao Cup defeat on penalties to Liverpool, following a wild 5-5 draw during which Arsneal blew 3-1, 4-2 and finally 5-4 leads (conceding in the 94th minute). It is worth noting that Mesut Ozil had a fabulous game... but there again he was playing against Liverpool Reserves! All in all, Bad

• November was dire. No win in 6, performances getting worse and worse, and signs that Emery had lost the plot completely. I was certainly not alone in calling for his head and finally, following a pathetic home defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt, the manager was put out of his misery. One could perhaps feel a bit sorry for him; in a foreign country/culture and unable to speak the language properly, unable to get his ideas over to the players, having made a rod for his own back with his '5 captains' indecision, and ultimately (and perhaps inevitably) out of his depth taking over from the living legend that is Arsene Wenger. But enough was by this stage enough, as Emery had lost the confidence of players (I remember Lacazette appearing annoyed with himself for his 96th minute equaliser at home to Southampton), supporters and finally the Board. Bad 

• Club legend Freddie Ljungberg stepped into the breach, but had an impossible task. With no coaching staff left to help him, and a squad of players at a very low ebb, results barely improved. Victory at West Ham was acheived due to a sudden 10 minute burst of quality in an otherwise dire showing, and Europa League qualification was achieved in a home draw with Standard Liege that left us relying on a late Vitoria winner in Germany to see Arsenal through as group winners. It wasn't getting any better. Bad

• And finally, following weeks of speculation, Mikel Arteta was confirmed as new permanent Head Coach just before Christmas. Perhaps he should have got the job when Emery did, but here we are... And whilst results didn't immediately improve, performances certainly did - and a certain amount of luck played a part; especially in a third round FA Cup win over a rampant Leeds United who did everything but score at The Emirates. This following an unlucky 2-1 home defeat to Chelsea over Christmas that finally had the crowd singing 'We've got our Arsenal back!'. Thus confidence began to be restored. There were too many draws, but draws are better than demoralising defeats. Good

• The most exciting match in this sequence was a 2-2 draw in the return match at Stamford Bridge, which saw 10-man Arsenal (David Luiz sent off trying to compensate for a catastrophic Mustafi error) come back twice. The match was most notable for Gabriel Martinelli's goal, a hybrid of Thierry Henry's famous pitch-length goal against Tottenham and Robin Van Persie's second at Stamford Bridge (thanks to John Terry's highly amusing slip) at Stamford Bridge in 2011. Good

• The good mood - and series of results - was punctured by embarrassing elimination to Olimpiakos in the Europa League, with Arsenal going behind in injury time and then Aubameyang inexplicably missing a sitter after that! However, I did not and will not hold that against him as he was Arsenal's best and most important player all season. Bad

• League form continued to improve, and Arsenal's quest for unlikely Champions League qualification was boosted by a home win over West Ham (a 6th in 8 matches, and 5th clean sheet in 7). Good

• Almost immediately after came Mikel Arteta's positive COVID test, and the football season came to an abrupt stop in almost all of Europe. I'm not going to dwell on the hiatus, as it's been well documented. But it would be 102 days before Arsenal played again. Ugly

• And following the restart, Premier League optimism swiftly disappeared. Thrashed by Manchester City (more Luiz errors), humiliated by Brighton (plus Leno injury at the hands of the snide Maupay); and of course the Guendouzi incident (we can only speculate as to why Ozil has not been seen at all, nor Guendouzi since the Brighton game, but I suspect that their Arsenal careers are done). And that meant that all hope of a Champions League spot had evaporated. Bad

• Nonetheless, Arsenal's form did bounce back, as finally Arteta's methods began to click into place; culminating in three outstanding results. Firstly, a fortunate (but disciplined) win over champions Liverpool, and then two superb performances to win the FA Cup. Firstly, an almost faultless display in the semi final against Manchester City, and then Cup Final victory over Chelsea. I'm not going to go into detail here; we all know how it went. Suffice to say that over this period Aubameyang, Martinez and Maitland-Niles were outstanding, and the influence and control of the Xhaka/Ceballos axis served the team well. And most interestingly, there was redemption over this period for the now fully-restored Xhaka, and for both Luiz and Mustafi who were showing considerably more discipline and control over their own actions (well, most of the time). So... Good (all good films should finish with the good guys winning)

And so to pre-season - controversy and changes within the club, transfer speculation and hopes for the season. And there's been quite a bit of Bad and Ugly to report, with hopefully lots of Good to come over the next few weeks.

So firstly the announcement just a few days after the FA Cup Final that 55 members of staff were to lose their jobs. There are two main strands to this: firstly, the vast majority of Arsenal's first team squad took pay cuts early on in lockdown, based on a guarantee that no members of staff would lose their jobs. Disingenuous, to say the least, from club heirarchy; especially bearing in mind that their total salaries would be less than £3m p.a. - a mere drop in the ocean compared to the costs on the football side. Secondly, a number of the job losses saw the dismantling of the majority of the club's scouting system, and quite what that means going forward we are yet to discover; although the influence of football agents Kia Joorabchian and Artur Canales does concern me.

Secondly, and linked to the above, was the sudden departure of Head of Football Raul Sanllehi. This occured just a few days after Stan Kroenke appointed Corporate Solicitor (specialising in takeovers, but I'm not prepared to speculate on that!) Tim Lewis to the Club Board in order to act as his 'eyes' in London - especially with both Stan and Josh stranded in the USA. He was apparently initially tasked with examining the Pepe deal, as the figures didn't add up. And suddenly Raul was gone; coincidence it may be, and I'm not prepared to add two and two together here in print.

What this does mean that the spotlight is very much now on Edu and Arteta as they look to mould a competitive squad. And interestingly, the club having decided to come away from the amount of control that Arsene had previously by appointing a Head Coach in Emery, Arteta appears to be shaping his own role very much in the way that Wenger shaped his own.

Changes to the coaching staff are also very interesting, with coaches in the Arteta mould coming in to reinforce what he is teaching his players. And all of this looks likely to bear fruit; just think about how different playing out from the back looks now compared to how it did under Emery - Arsenal now look much more like Manchester City and Liverpool when they do that, as opposed to a pub side as they did last autumn.

And now, finally, to squad makeup. It looks like Aubameyang is staying, and two or three are coming in. Gabriel Magalhaes to join Saliba in shaping a new look central defence, and perhaps one or two midfielders (notwithstanding that the almost forgotten Elneny made a 'triumphant' retun this week, and we are not sure what's happening with Ceballos at this stage). Willian is a sensible acquisition too. 

As to who will leave, I won't be too sorry to see the likes of Sokratis, Holding, Kolasinac and Torreira (plus Mustafi and Chambers, who are currently injured) go in the light of the way Arteta is looking to work. Not sure about what's going on with Bellerin, but I suspect that he is now coming back to full fitness. As for Lacazette, his sale may be required to fund acquisitions and that's understandable. But two I wouldn't like to see depart are Martinez and Maitland-Niles, both of whom are being linked to moves in order to generate funds but both of whom have been absolutely outstanding recently. With a number of exciting youngsters emerging - Saka and Martinelli leading the way - things are shaping up better than one might have thought they would.

All we can be sure of is that the squad Arteta chooses for the Fulham game in two weeks will bear little resemblance to the squad he'll be working with come mid-October. And as for the season... difficult as it may look to break back into the top 4 spots, I have confidence in seeing major improvements in results over the season.

Alright - I'm finally done now. Come On You Reds!

14 Is The Magic Number

So much to discuss. So much to be excited about. So many ramifications for this result. Because yes, Arsenal have won their 14th FA Cup - extending their lead as the trophy's winning-most team - thanks to another Man Of The Match performance from their world class Number 14, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

This is going to be a long-ish post, because there are so many things to consider; from the game itself but just as importantly as a result of Arsenal's victory.

Firstly, a word for Chelsea. Gallant losers, for whom little went right and whose Manager, Frank Lampard, went up in my estimation with the frankness of his post-match interview. The match exposed both their strengths and their weaknesses, and the tactical battle between him and Arteta - ultimately won by the latter - was fascinating and revealing.

The match hinged on two moments; firstly the injury to Pulisic, who was by far Chelsea's most dangerous player, and then the sending off of Kovacic. On the latter, I have two comments; firstly, Kovacic and Jorginho, as a pair, are masters of the 'tactical foul' (Manchester City and Liverpool's midfields are good at it too, but it does often work best when your side dominates the ball and you can commit a tactical foul to prevent a breakaway), and it was perhaps unfortunate for Kovacic that he was given the ultimate punishment in the FA Cup Final. Live by the sword and all that...

And secondly, one aspect of there being no crowds that has perhaps been overlooked is the difference it can make if a player who has been fouled makes a sufficiently loud noise as he hits the ground. Shouts and screams that would not be heard in a full stadium are completely audible in an empty one. Xhaka took advantage of that; again, live by the sword etc.

So to the game, and boy did Chelsea start well, with Lampard initially outwitting Arteta by pushing Pulisic and Mount infield and onto Xhaka and Ceballos, thus totally outnumbering them. The goal - beautifully taken (and don't underestimate the skill of Giroud's flicked assist) - came as a result of just one of numerous occasions when the Arsenal duo were robbed or pressured in the early stages, and Chelsea could have been further ahead by the time the drinks break came.

Arteta used the break well, advising his players to miss out the midfield as often as not and hit long balls intended to turn Chelsea's ponderous central defenders. And soon Arsenal were level as a result of that advice, with Tierney's punt from deep in the Arsenal half catching Azpulicueta on the wrong side of Aubameyang, and forcing the defender to foul him as Auba headed for goal. It started outside the penalty box, but ended inside it and a penalty was rightly awarded. And the defender was lucky to stay on the pitch, in my opinion; given the benefit of the doubt as Rudiger was perhaps close enough to prevent a goal-scoring opportunity. In my opinion not; with a clear run Auba would have got his shot off long before Rudiger got round to cover. And if that had been David Luiz?...

No matter; Auba dispatched the penalty with power, skill and aplomb; and not long after 'Dave' pulled one of his suspect hamstrings and had to leave the pitch in any case.

So 1-1 at half-time, and Arsenal in the ascendancy. But whatever Lampard said at half-time had an immediate impact as Chelsea once more shot out of the blocks. And it was whilst bursting past a static Holding and heading for goal that Pulisic pulled his hamstring, meaning his match was also over and thus eliminating Chelsea's main threat. With that, Chelsea's balloon was fatally punctured.

And not long after (67) came the decisive goal. A lung-bursting 30-yard run from Bellerin and the ball broke to Pepe (who chose the right day to have his best game in an Arsenal shirt) on the right, 25 yards from goal. He fed Aubameyang, whose clever shimmy and dummy left Zouma for dead. And at that point there was little doubt as to what was going to happen, as his deft left-footed flick over the helpless Caballero nestled in the onion bag. Make no mistake, Aubameyang is a world-class player and MUST stay at Arsenal.

The final puncture of the Chelsea balloon came with the departure of Kovacic (already discussed above), and from then on the only moment of concern came when Martinez flew out of goal and caught the ball literally right the edge of the penalty area. It didn't look good, and his body was outside the area, but videos showed that the ball was on the line. Phew!

And from then on there was little danger, as Chelsea failed to register a single shot on target in the second half. I must give sympathy to Pedro here, too, as he looked to have badly dislocated his shoulder in injury time.

A quick word about referee Anthony Taylor here. Arsenal have had some luck with him, both in the 2017 Final when Alexis's goal was allowed to stand and this year with the sending-off of Kovacic. Can he ref us every week?

And so Arsenal ribbons were wrapped onto the FA Cup for the 14th time. But this win means so much more than the bare trophy. It means European football, a bigger transfer kitty, more clout with the Board for Mikel Arteta and most importantly extra leverage with Aubameyang. 

The latter was naturally coy about whether he is going to re-sign, and I have concerns that Arsenal have got themselves into a similar position as they did with Robin Van Persie; and we know how that played out...

As for Mikel Arteta, I'm not afraid to announce that I have a crush on him. I have high, high hopes for Arsenal with him at the helm. But he needs the support of those around him. We can only wait and see.

I'll be back in a couple of days with a Season Review - and of course, the Premier League campaign was well short of expectations and a lot went on - but finally a quick word about Tottenham Hotspur (I can't help myself, I'm afraid). All the gloating, all the gyp, all the nonsense about whether this season will see a 'St Totteringham's Day' or a 'St Gooners Day', but when it comes down to it Tottenham have won a single League Cup this century (4544 days ago). It's 10,669 days since they won an FA Cup, and a whopping 21, 657 days since they won the League. The bare facts speak for themselves.

And as for Harry Kane; world-class centre-forward for sure, but not a single medal to show for 11 years at Tottenham. Emi Martinez has an FA Cup medal from a mere 11 appearances for Arsenal. Say no more.

Back in a day or two. Stay safe, and COME ON YOU MIGHTY GOONERS!!!!!!