When will Arteta be sacked by

[HCZ_Reborn]

This really is the pits for me. The green light was there to go when Rodri got injured, this should have been our season. And even without the striker we need I think we had enough in the squad. The only person holding us back is the same person that’s been holding us back for years. Today for example, the way Everton set up wasn’t a surprise it’s the exact way they’ve set up the last two times they’ve been to the Emirates under throat cancer boy. Yet we play the same system, the same tactics…think we might be able to nick a goal from a set piece or a bit of individual brilliance by Saka.


Because ultimately for this man even if you’re playing Everton the goal getting is an afterthought, something we will manage at some point.

At half time I wasn’t that bothered, I thought well plenty of games are 0-0 at half time for us. What enraged me, were the substitutions. Not the players being brought on, Nwaneri and Trossard of course you want to bring them on when chasing a game (Jesus not so much) it was the fact that they were like for like substitutions. Didn’t even consider the idea of adding an extra man in attack in a game where we had 75% of the ball. You get the ball moving more quickly you load the box with players so they’ve got an extra man to mark, you make life more difficult for them.

Would it definitely have got us three points? No but if you don’t do that….in my view you haven’t even tried to win the game

[Letters]

After 16 games:

2022: 43 points
2023: 39 points
2024: 30 points

Sigh.

[HCZ_Reborn]

Compared to last season (which was also pretty poor in the first half)

We have the same amount of clean sheets and the same amount of goals conceded

We’ve only scored four fewer (and the difference is that we’ve scored two pels this season, compared to six then)

As I said a few weeks ago, we were discussing around this time how we controlled games but weren’t creating enough chances, the build up play was too slow. The difference is we were getting a lot of last minute goals that we aren’t getting this time around

[Letters]

It's just insane that we keep ON wasting chances to chip in to Liverpool's lead. Chances that Chelsea aren't failing.
Fulham away...we knew that was a banana skin and we did at least get a point. But Everton are dogshit, to fail to beat them at home is unforgiveable.

City have now P7 W1 D1 L5. It has to be the worst run they've had for ages. And the result is us being an embarrassing 3 points above them.

[Niall_Quinn]

Compared to last season (which was also pretty poor in the first half)

We have the same amount of clean sheets and the same amount of goals conceded

We’ve only scored four fewer (and the difference is that we’ve scored two pels this season, compared to six then)

As I said a few weeks ago, we were discussing around this time how we controlled games but weren’t creating enough chances, the build up play was too slow. The difference is we were getting a lot of last minute goals that we aren’t getting this time around

Crazy thing is we know the team can play direct football at tempo and we know it rips all the sub-standard defences in this league to shreds. Seen it. Wonder why the coaches at the club won't see it? I know you can't play that way for 90 minutes and I know if you play that way against a superior team you'll get you arse handed to you - only thing is, I can't think of a single superior team in Europe right now. We have every weapon required to rip a dodgy Liverpool defence or shit on a glory coasting Bayern. And we could go through deadbeat outfits like the bottom 16 of the PL like a blowtorch through melted butter. So instead, tip, tap, tip, tap. One of these days we're going to end up with 100% possession in a 0-0 borefest and everyone at the club will be beaming. 100% possession - WE DID IT! Going to be bigger than the Invincibles, you wait and see.

[IBK]

Crazy thing is we know the team can play direct football at tempo and we know it rips all the sub-standard defences in this league to shreds. Seen it. Wonder why the coaches at the club won't see it? I know you can't play that way for 90 minutes and I know if you play that way against a superior team you'll get you arse handed to you - only thing is, I can't think of a single superior team in Europe right now. We have every weapon required to rip a dodgy Liverpool defence or shit on a glory coasting Bayern. And we could go through deadbeat outfits like the bottom 16 of the PL like a blowtorch through melted butter. So instead, tip, tap, tip, tap. One of these days we're going to end up with 100% possession in a 0-0 borefest and everyone at the club will be beaming. 100% possession - WE DID IT! Going to be bigger than the Invincibles, you wait and see.

I wouldn't be surprised that this robotic possession game is part of some galaxy-brained desire for players to expend less energy per game or something. It's ironic that the team we most resemble in possession a lot of the time is Citeh...and instructive that their own slow build up play has nullified their record-breaking striker. Could it be that buying a striker while playing the same ploddy game against low blocks would not actually make that much of a difference.

The other question I have is how, suddenly, can all of our MF and attackers not finish? Is it a time thing (most of the time we have so little space to operate in that shots have to be rushed); a composure thing or a lack of practice in the kind of conditions that we mostly face with 11 players behild the ball?

One things for sure, when you read or listen to non-Arsenal specific football content noone is surprised by our failure to capitalise this season, because we have been the team that can't produce when it really matters for years. Maybe that's why noone has any sympathy for the 'bad luck' that we seem to suffer. We are perceived as bottlers who look for excuses rather than warriors who don't accept them.

Results like these might be brushed off in the 2nd or 3rd year of the project. In the 5th year - they are evidence of a lack of mettle.

[HCZ_Reborn]

It’s not that they can’t finish, Monaco was a game where players missed glaring chances. Against Everton there weren’t chances, there were half chances in a congested penalty area. As I said to someone on Saturday, we could have had Thierry Henry in the side and we would have struggled to break them down, short of some brilliant individual goal.

But the lack of an individual brilliant goal is more a feature than a bug, Arteta even himself admitted that he didn't want to relinquish the control we had of the game by bringing on an additional attacker.

I’m reminded a bit of this
https://youtube.com/shorts/8OYC5wA3G...gNRkH9H5au6EV-

[Niall_Quinn]

We've often gone through these periods of nobody being able to kick a ball straight. I'm thinking it comes down to the mechanical nature of our game. We focus so much on safety it robs the players of the natural, individual spontaneity we saw in that kid Amad yesterday. Commentators drone on about players "expressing themselves", well there may be something to it. Confidence comes from achievement, when there's nothing out of the ordinary to achieve except keeping possession and making pretty patterns, when the game plan is to exhaust the opposition, there's no requirement for the spontaneous. Swords are blunted and eventually become cudgels.

[21_GOONER_SALUTE]

Henry hits out at ‘predictable’ Arsenal and decision-making of star who ‘has to offer more’

Arsenal legend Thierry Henry believes “a lot of things need to change” for his former side to win the Premier League as they have become too “predictable” under Mikel Arteta.

The Gunners have have won just eight of their opening 16 games of the season as they look to win their first Premier League title since Henry and his fellow Invincibles won it under Arsene Wenger in 2003/2004.

Arteta’s side are currently third in the table, six points behind leaders Liverpool, and have been criticised over their style of football this season, with their reliance on set pieces frequently highlighted by fans and pundits.

On Monday Night Football, Jamie Carragher said: “When you’re watching them they’re not passing the eye test in terms of looking creative.

“You see that belief from Liverpool and you’re struggling when you’re watching Arsenal.”


Henry agreed with Carragher and claimed it’s too obvious how Arsenal are going to attack, but doesn’t believe Arteta is to blame for their struggles, instead highlighting the poor decision-making of the players and Gabriel Martinelli in particular.

Henry said: “They’re very predictable. It is outstanding to score from set-pieces. The last three goals in the league are from set-pieces.

“When you see Liverpool going forward you see [Joe] Gomez, [Darwin] Nunez, [Diogo] Jota running. But with Saka you know he’s going to play to [Martin] Odegaard.

“When you are in trouble at Arsenal the ball goes to Saka. Arsenal do create but it’s the choices they take.

“Martinelli knows he can give three people tap-ins if he goes inside but he goes outside.


“When you watch Arsenal you think the only way they look like scoring is a set-piece – we didn’t create a lot against Man United [when two goals from corners earned a 2-0 win].

“There’s not a coaching problem. No-one jumps at Arsenal anymore but if you don’t have bodies in between the lines to create decoys it’s going to be difficult if you give your ball to the winger on the right or the left.

“A lot of things need to change in order to win the Premier League. When I see Liverpool play it looks like they’re trying to win it and others look like they’re trying not to lose it.

“If you’re going to win the league you need to grab it and win it. You have to find a solution.

“In my team they helped on the other side (right). Everyone need to score and be important. Freddie [Ljungberg] used to make that run in between lines and score.

“If you want to be champions, people adapt to what you do. What are you going to bring year on year?”

Jamie Carragher added: “Martinelli has to offer more.”

Asked if Arsenal need to add a goalscorer to their squad, Carragher continued: “I don’t think it’s a striker necessarily but I think it’s an attacking player. For me, when you see this lad, Saka, on the right side and you see what they have on the left, it’s like chalk and cheese.

“Now, Martinelli and Saka, a few years ago were almost at a similar level but Saka has jumped up to be one of the best players in European football in his position but Martinelli unfortunately hasn’t joined them.

“I’ve always felt, last two years and even this year, the reason I’ve never gone for Arsenal is I feel they’re a world class attacker short. When I think of the other teams that Chelsea have, that Liverpool have, that City have, I don’t think they’ve got that quality.”
https://www.football365.com/news/hen...tar-offer-more

I agree with them except for the parts where they try and absolve the manager of blame.

The team's "robotic" play is directly the manager's doing. Our predictable and preferred line of attack on the right is directly his doing but I'll get to that later . The predictable and consistent lobbing the ball from the wings is again a system he has robotically forced them to play, despite the whole world knowing that our attackers are below average in heading the ball and snap one hit decision making.

As for Martinelli, again I blame Arteta, because as I pointed out a while ago, Arteta was ready to throw the cheque book and go all in for Mudryk, despite knowing that Mudryk could only play in Martinelli's position. He's never shown the willingness to do anything like that for anyone who plays Saka's position.

It is clear he had spotted a deficiency in Martnelli's game (before most people did) and yet did the minimal in aiding the player with quality support, and worse, the minimal in aiding the team, by patching us up with Trossard whose best contributions have come playing more inward as a fake 9....but even he has caught the Jesus bug.

Arteta needs to save face and try and make miracles happen this winter window, and he has no one to blame but himself as its doubtful that any serious team will give us their best attacking talents in January when they are busy chasing trophies.

[HCZ_Reborn]

Why is it clear he spotted a deficiency in his game, as for Mudryk whilst he is right footed…he plays on both sides of the wing for Ukraine and it was likely he was scouted as a utility player. And despite you constantly trying to hammer home this narrative that we were looking to replace Martinelli….it was more because we had zero depth on the left at the time

Martinelli has a frustrating tendency as Henry points out to not use his pace enough to take on his man and cuts inside too often, not an original observation and it’s one I’ve been making for years. But equally no one is going to thrive on the left with that ridiculous inverted full back system and playing defensive midfielders in the no8 position.


Martinelli thrives when he has a player like Calafiori playing behind him. And he’s becoming a scapegoat for a manager who sets up the team not to lose rather than to win.