Training session v Citeh (home).

[Letters]

I think you find that he delegated naming Xhaka as captain to the players. So that was a good move.

I actually think Ozil wasn't totally hopeless yesterday. He got the ball a lot.

You know, at the time I thought getting the players to pick their captain wasn't the worst idea, but now it's not looking like it was a very clever thing to do.

Emery clearly had a problem with Ozil but he didn't deal with it. He didn't play him or get rid of him, it was a ridiculous situation when we had our highest paid player either in the stands or sitting on the bench.

[Globalgunner]

You cant get rid of a player with an iron clad contract. Even if you wanted to pay him off you cant unless the contract stipulates it. Ozil is all on Wenger im afraid.
But back to yesterday. Pepe has just been here 6 months. He just watches Fernandinho waltz by him without even attempting to tackle. Im pretty sure he didnt learn that where he was coming from. We breed lackadaisicality. They catch it within days of arrival

[Letters]

We breed lackadaisicality

That's a great word, if it is one, which I don't think it is.
I sort of agree but they go elsewhere and it's soon knocked out of them again. There is nothing inherently wrong with (most of) the players. There is an issue with the culture but are we seriously saying that a new manager can't come in and change that? Why not?
These are all by dint of getting to the very top of the game highly motivated and competitive. It shouldn't be too hard for the right manager with the right skills to harness that and get them going.
As I keep saying, we weren't far of a top 4 spot last year, we got to a European final. Just last season. They're not that bad.
But we had a manager who wasn't getting the best out of them.
And right now we literally don't have a manager at all.

[dazthegooner]

Well Merson has said Arteta would be a bad move, so get him in now. Merse claims he wants Arsenal to do well but he'll always be a Chelski fan

[Mac76]

Well Merson has said Arteta would be a bad move, so get him in now. Merse claims he wants Arsenal to do well but he'll always be a Chelski fan

i won't hear a bad word against Merse for this alone...

[Özim]

Well Merson has said Arteta would be a bad move, so get him in now. Merse claims he wants Arsenal to do well but he'll always be a Chelski fan

Kevin Campbell thinks it's a bad move too.

[Özim]

i won't hear a bad word against Merse for this alone...

He's a genius!

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Kevin Campbell thinks it's a bad move too.

Charlie Nicholas doesn't.

I don't think any of this is advancing the argument for or against though.

[Niall_Quinn]

that was the problem.. they didn't have a plan as they didn't really want to get rid of Emery. Think it was a case of crossing fingers that we would pull a result or two out of the bag and go on a half decent run that Arsenal do sometime come up with.

But that failed and that's the problem.... however there are experienced managers available that would surely improve the current situation. obviously we cant just bring in any manager to improve things. but I think we need someone with experience of English football.

in terms of the game... our back four get a lot of the blame but I think our midfield when its either gendo or xhaka... do not have the mentality of stopping goals at any cost. draw a foul, or bust a gut to get in the box... they both just amble back.

Which brings us to the fans, or certain sections of the fans, who have missed the whole point of Wenger Out. Wenger had to go (much sooner than he did) because he's the guy, with the willing assistance of a board (and vice versa) who let every single non-financial aspect (and several financial aspects too, due to incompetence) fall into ruin. Some of the fans have taken this to be an open invitation to chase the next manager out based on the genius ideology of, We are Arsenal, we're a big club, we pay a lot of money, therefore..."

Trouble is, we aren't Arsenal any more, not the passing, fluent, competitive, winning Arsenal that they believe is somehow still locked inside this shambles waiting to be revealed by a magician. And we most certainly aren't a big club any more. We don't have the players, we don't have the money and we don't have the results to in any way refer to ourselves as a big club. Historically we're a big club. That counts for shit, as we saw on Sunday.

Get Klopp in now and he'd need to change the whole team over 3 years to get us back in the fight. I don't think he'd get three years from many of the fans. And the board has already shown how lily livered it is. That's a big message to send out to the next guy. Perform or else. We won't give you anything to perform with, and we won't support you when the going gets tough, but deliver anyway.

A large segment of the fans need to take some responsibility for what's happening now. If they can take a break from congratulating themselves for being such great fans.

When we rejoin the real world and start seeing the club as our opponents see us, weak, unimaginative, inferior (the very opposite of what Arsenal used to be) then we can start asking, okay, what should a mediocre, small time club be doing to improve? Gradually, methodically, over a protracted period of time? We need a manager who can deliver that powerpoint presentation, not the one that bangs on about a top 4 place that would see us humiliated on the pitch while the Kroenkes make bank again.

I don't think they had a plan when they hired Emery, not a realistic one at least. And they sure as hell don't have one now. What the fuck were we doing signing a player like Pepe for 72 million quid? What does that get us. It just shows how out of touch everyone at the club is right now. Absolutely delusional, and half the fan base is right there with them.