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Many regulars on BK will know how much I detest the focus on one or more players when things go wrong. I understand that disappointment needs a target and it is much easier to aim it at a single player than at the whole club, its system of football or even the management of the team. Blaming effing ‘lazy Ozil’, effing ‘liability Xhaka’, etc is just so appealing for so many.

Players do not just do well out of pure intrinsic motivation and ability. They are part of a team and need to operate in a system of football, and as 1/11 of the whole team they can only have a limited impact on it. If I have learned one thing over the years about football it is that system of football is King, not the total sum of the qualities of the players on the pitch.

ArseTeta appears to be a manager who focusses hard on a system of football with a strong set of values, and he is using the squad to fit into this. And all of a sudden the players who were written of by many start to show us how good they are. A defence that gets protected can take a breath and organise itself; its individual footballers gain confidence and play much better. A midfield that gets support from the attackers can stay more in position and don’t have to cover acers of space; they are then able to boss the area and support both defence and attack much better. An attack that gets support from all areas – both wings and through the middle – will start to enjoy themselves again and score goals much easier (this still needs to come).

I don’t want to put the boot too much into emery – more than has been done already – but it is fair to say that his system of football did not work for us and individual players became less confident and then effective under his management. Arteta appears to be turning this round, although it is of course still early days. We look much more compact and play as a strong unit in which everybody fights for each other. Players are enjoying themselves again, and Arteta, unlike Unai, seems to understand how to motivate the Millennials. 

I am over the moon with Arteta’s approach: to see Mesut, Lucas and Granit come to the fore again is just pure ecstasy. The big question is, though, what will happen when one of them gets injured? Our back up players are all young and seemingly not ready to replace them: Guendouzi, Willock and ESR are all promising players but even Arteta will struggle to get them ready for the big midfield roles.

Now, we have Ceballos who can stand in for Ozil and possibly Granit. I am not yet convinced about him but he is ahead of the youngsters just mentioned. But that is it. An injury to Torreira especially is likely to cost us. So this January, Arteta/Arsenal have to buy back up. The good news is that Arteta will know exactly what he needs and the tabloid rumours are encouraging.

Arteta has of course two more internal options: bring back Elneny, who I have always rated, or turn Ainsley Maitland Niles in a Torreira-Terrier. But maybe the best thing to do is to buy right now as to give the squad a boost and fill the gap instantly.

I would love Francis Coquelin to return to Arsenal, but I guess that ship has sailed. I feel he still has unfinished business at Arsenal, but whether the club would want to pay Valencia good money for him is doubtful. 

Any realistic suggestions from fellow BKers?

By TotalArsenal.

The Arteta-train is gaining momentum: Arsenal 2-0 Manchester United

Eight observations from a thoroughly deserved win at the veritable home of football:

1. We have now played two rivals for a top four position this season in succession, and in both cases we have controlled the game for large parts. Gone are the days of presenting our defence as a shooting range and stretching ourselves like a curly-wurly all over the pitch; we now play like a snickers bar: compact, solid with togetherness and commitment. Oh how we have longed for this and how Arteta is already delivering it! The Mancs had no way through at all; their triangles were disturbed constantly and our wings were sealed hermetically: they were denied space and thus looked very ordinary. Well done Arteta and team!
2. The pairing of Torreira and Xhaka was key: they were tidy as the most dedicated house husbands. Torreira was in his elements with his aspiradora sucking up every bit of space and any ‘ball crumbs’ and, next to him, Xhaka mobbed up everything and sprayed round passes as he pleased. Together they were awesome – perfectly suited to do all the dirty work with smiles on their faces!
3. As a result of this extreme tidiness, our defence were able to stay calm and organised throughout the game. Rather than relying too much on Xhaka to make the forward passes, it was David Luiz aka our new Ronald Koeman who made a number of fine ‘libero’ diagonal passes to our wings, with especially the Kola-Auba partnership profiting from this. Luiz was in his element in this team set-up and played his best game for Arsenal so far.
4. But David was not the only defender worthy of the highest praise. I also saw a fab performance by Big Sok, possibly his best in an Arsenal shirt, and my MOTM. Sokratis read the game well and made some fine and decisive interceptions in the game, and then there was his goal. The most ‘outwardly calm’ player on the pitch was the first to respond to Lacazette’s fast flick-on ball from Pepe’s corner; the ball pinballed in the box and Big Sok’s boot was first to make a decisive connection… and the net took the full blow!! To get that second goal before half time was priceless and vital for our victory.
5. A good team starts with eleven hard workers, especially in the Premier League – and we indeed had 11 hard ‘slaving’ Gunners against those ‘black devils’ on the pitch yesterday. But cunning and guile are also required and for that we need players like Auba, Laca, Ozil and Pepe. Don’t get me wrong: they worked very hard to support the midfield and deny the Mancs’ midfielders any space, but they also added the extra dimension: Ozil glided over the pitch with close ball control and sharp link-up passes; Laca was a thorn in Macquire’s site and created space for others all game long, and; Auba gave us a very strong left wing (together with the rejuvenated Kola).
6. But extra praise has to go to Pepe who imposed himself on the game with a strong and determined performance, much benefiting from the support of both Ozil and the quietly impressive AMN on the right wing. I would like him to burst through the defensive line along a the flank a bit more, but Sexy Super Nic was a constant threat for us and added that much needed extra dimension to our attacking play. He was at the right place at the right time for his first goal – and he seemed to anticipate this – and he was very close to a second with only the post denying his very well placed shot from outside the ‘D’. I also like his energetic self-pumping-up exercise before he takes corners.
7. We came under a bit more pressure in the second half but the boys worked hard for that clean sheet and deserved it. I think it was also important to keep Ozil on the pitch and add two other players who can keep hold of the ball in tight areas: Saka and Nelson. Kola and Pepe had done very well for us but got tired in the second half, so bringing on our finest youngsters made sense: they both helped with releasing the pressure and see out the game with relative calm.
8. My final observation is for our Bernd. Leno denied the Mancs any space behind our defenders and made some vital interceptions, but I also liked his fist-clearances from set-pieces; after his painful mistake against the Chavs it was important to overcome his fears and that is just what he did. Leno’s ball-distributions are a work in progress but his in and around box-presence was very impressive.

By TotalArsenal.

Arsenal v Manchester United – January 1st, 2020

Manchester United Football Club, nicknamed “the Red Devils” was founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to its current stadium, Old Trafford, in 1910.

Arsenal and Manchester Untied both have an outstanding history and enjoy a great rivalry, however this boiled over in 1990 when a brawl between the two teams resulted in both clubs having points deductions in the Football League First Division. There was also a high level of enmity between Arsène Wenger (1996–2018) and Sir Alex Ferguson (1986–2013), and the two of the club’s former captains Patrick Vieira and Roy Keane.

This all came to a head during a league fixture in September 2003 that later become known as the “Battle of Old Trafford”. Arsenal players were aggrieved by Ruud van Nistelrooy’s antics – they felt he cheated trying get Patrick Vieira sent off – it resulted in an unseemly player melee. The next season, Manchester United ended Arsenal’s unbeaten run when Wayne Rooney took a dive to win a controversial penalty – after the game there was a skirmish in the tunnel which ended with Sir Alex enjoying some pizza. A total of seven red cards were shown in matches from February 1997 to February 2005.

Out of interest (mine) here are the players who have made appearances for both clubs. 

Paddy Sloan

Manchester United: 1938-1939 (0 apps; 0 goals); Arsenal: 1946-48 (33 apps, 1 goal)

David Herd

Arsenal: 1954-1961 (166 apps, 99 goals); Manchester United: 1961-1968 (265 apps, 145 goals)

Ian Ure

Arsenal: 1963-1969 (202 apps, 2 goals); Manchester United: 1969-1971 (65 apps, 1 goal)

George Graham

Arsenal: 1966-1972 (308 apps, 77 goals); Manchester United: 1972-1974 (46 apps, 2 goals)

Jimmy Rimmer

Manchester United: 1965-1974 (46 apps, 0 goals)

Arsenal: 1974-1977 (apps, 146, 0 goals)

Brian Kidd

Manchester United 1967-1974 (264 apps, 70 goals)

Arsenal 1974-1976 (90 apps, 34 goals)

Frank Stapleton

Arsenal: 1971-1981 (300 apps, 108 goals)

Manchester United: 1981-1987 (288 apps, 78 goals)

Viv Anderson

Arsenal: 1984-1987 (150 apps, 15 goals)

Manchester United: 1987-1991 (64 apps, 4 goals)

Jim Leighton

Manchester United 1988-1991 (94 caps)

Arsenal 1991 (0 apps)

David Platt

Manchester United 1982-1985 (0 apps)

Arsenal 1995-1998 (108 apps, 15 goals)

Andy Cole

Arsenal: 1989-1992 (2 apps, 0 goals)

Manchester United: 1995-2001 (195 apps, 93 goals)

Mikael Silvestre

Manchester United 1999-2008 (361 apps, 10 goals)

Arsenal 2008-2010 (46 apps, 6 goals)

Robin van Persie

Arsenal: 2004-2012 (279 apps, 132 goals); Manchester United: 2012-2015 (105 apps, 58 goals)

Danny Welbeck

Manchester United: 2008-2014 (142 apps, 29 goals)

Arsenal: 2014-present (91 apps, 22 goals)

Alex Sanchez

Arsenal: 2014-2018 (122 apps, 60 goals)

Manchester United: 2018 – present (29 apps, 3 goals)

Henrikh Mkhitaryan

Manchester United: 2016-2018 (39 apps, 5 goals); Arsenal: 2018 – present (29 apps, 8 goals).

It hurts to write this but the fact is Manchester United are England’s most successful football team they have an extraordinary record of achievements – but I cannot bear to list them and I’m sure that you don’t want me to – so instead I will concentrate on our home games against them.

Historically this Wednesday’s game is our 101st home league game against Manchester United and a little known fact is that United has lost more away games against Arsenal (55) then they have to any other Football League club – long may it last! 

Arsenal v Man U EPL Home Games
GP	Date	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
1	November 28, 1992			1	0	1	-1
2	March 22, 1994		1		2	2	0
3	November 26, 1994		1		0	0	0
4	November 4, 1995	1			1	0	1
5	February 19, 1997			1	1	2	-1
6	November 6, 1997	1			3	2	1
7	September 20, 1998	1			3	0	3
8	August 22, 1999			1	1	2	-1
9	October 1, 2000	1			1	0	1
10	November 25, 2001	1			3	1	2
11	April 16, 2003		1		2	2	0
12	March 28, 2004		1		1	1	0
13	February 1, 2005			1	2	4	-2
14	January 3, 2006		1		0	0	0
15	January 21, 2007	1			2	1	1
16	November 3, 2007		1		2	2	0
17	November 8, 2008	1			2	1	1
18	January 31, 2010			1	1	3	-2
19	May 1, 2011	1			1	0	1
20	January 22, 2012			1	1	2	-1
21	April 28, 2013		1		1	1	0
22	February 12, 2014		1		0	0	0
23	November 22, 2014			1	1	2	-1
24	October 4, 2015	1			3	0	3
25	May 17, 2017	1			2	0	2
26	December 2, 2017			1	1	3	-2
27	March 10, 2019	1			2	0	2
28	January 1, 2020						0
Totals		11	8	8	39	32	7

Our overall home record is very impressive and we dominated them at home – even though it is less dominate, our winning home record has continued in the Premier League.

Arsenal v Man U All Home Games
GP	League	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
10	Division 2	8	0	2	25	10	15
63	Division 1	36	11	16	126	74	52
27	Premier	11	8	8	39	32	7
100	Totals	55	19	26	190	116	74

A great New Year’s gift would be if this game resulted in Mikel Arteta’s first home victory.

GunnerN5

Preferred Line-up v MU:

I expect both Chambers and Big Sok not to be available so it will have to be Mustafi. Can Saka and AMN do another game on the wings? Again, I don’t think we have much choice there: needs must. I am really hoping Xhaka will start and up-front we could do with the fresh legs of Martinelli to add a bit of surprise.

By TotalArsenal

 

Football can be cruel and yesterday’s late defeat at the Home of Football was a slap in the face with a rotten blue fish, but…. Arteta is making massive steps forward with our team and we are playing good, attractive football again. There is method in the madness and a number of players are getting to their very best again. So let’s be happy: we are on the road to somewhere sunny and sweet. 

Fat Frank’s Chavs are a fit and organised unit and they remain strong for 90 minutes; they are ahead of Arsenal in those respects. Arteta did not have great options on the bench to freshen things up in defence or midfield, and in the end we paid for it. The last third of the game we sat back too deep and too much, and in the end we paid for it. We needed to push Chelsea back into their own half but did not manage to do it, despite great efforts by the likes of Torreira, Auba, Ozil and Nelson.

Guendouzi got an early yellow card and played with fire when he tugged back Abraham, but he tried hard to support Torreira and reestablish himself in the team. Did we miss, Xhaka? Well you know my answer to this question, but I wonder whether you saw it too? 

Arteta wants the two DM’s to play tightly together, especially when we are defending: they need to form a mobile wall in front of defence and be able to push up and hem the opponents deep into their own half. This really suits the partnership of Xhaka and Torreira, and it explains why Arteta wants to keep hold of the Swiss maestro. Having said that, I thought the Torreira-Guendouzi combo did okay in the first half, even though simply too much was asked of the Uruguayan Terrier and in the end the man was shot.

I was really impressed with the full backs, AMN and Saka. They were calm and collected and are clearly instructed to not bomb forward all the time. Could it even be that Arteta is telling them from the bench when they can, unexpectedly, join the attack (as on command)?

Auba, MOTM for me, had one of his best games for Arsenal and was a great help to Saka and the midfield all game long.

Laca is out of form and tries to compensate for this with hard work, but we need him to deliver that extra bit of quality up front rather sooner than later. Once this will happen we will start winning games. Martinelli, in the meantime, will be eager to show Arteta he is ready to replace to Frenchman, and let’s hope is available for the next game against MU.

I was also super impressed with Nelson, who is starting to gain confidence and show us all what a complete wing(based)player he can be. His battling performance and desire to break through defensive lines reminded me of the our assistant-coach in the stands: Fab Freddie, and I think we will see much more of him in the Arteta-era. I was equally impressed  with young Saka who made the whole left flank his again and impressed in all areas.

Luiz had a great game too, but the turning point came when we lost Chambers to injury so early in the game. Luiz does much better with a relatively calm and organised CB next to him, and this Mustafi is not. Still, I think that the German did well enough, and yes he should have stopped Abraham from scoring but the Chelsea front man did work his opportunity extremely well and some credit should go to him. Under Wenger, Arsenal also often badly responded to losing a central defender in a big game early on, and this time we did so too. I have no doubt that this will change under system-of-football man, Arteta, but it will take time to get everybody drilled into one or two roles they will need to master.

Ozil strutted his stuff and made a real difference but he needed more support in the second half when he does seem to get a dip in energy levels. Rather then sub him, Arteta may want to opt to give him an extra man in midfield and push up play again, as we were simply sitting to deep and inviting too much pressure in the second half.  And then a mistake like Leno’s will sooner or later happen. Unfortunately, Willock and ESR do not seem to be ready yet to fulfil such a role and let’s hope Ceballos can help out rather sooner than later.

In summary, we are playing much better, compact football and are able to control a game all over the pitch now. The first half was ours. We need to work on our stamina levels and use the squad better to keep momentum going, and for that we need some key players to return to the squad (especially in defence).  We did not deserve to lose but we will learn the vital lessons from this game and come out stronger and more determined.

By TotalArsenal.

Arsenal v Chelsea – December 29^th, 2019: The Battle of the Former nr8’s: MA08 and FL08!

Chelsea FC was formed on 10 March 1905 in an upstairs room at the Rising Sun pub, Fulham Road. Among the founding directors were millionaire owner Henry Augustus ‘Gus’ Mears, his brother Joseph, and their brother-in-law Henry Boyer, publican Alfred Janes and his nephew Edwin. In 1904, Gus Mears acquired the Stamford Bridge athletics stadium with the aim of turning it into a football ground. An offer to lease it to nearby Fulham was turned down, so Mears opted to found his own club to use the stadium.

The club, the brainchild of another founder, Frederick Parker, would be started from scratch to fill Gus Mears’s ambitious stadium, being built across the road at Stamford Bridge by the architect Archibald Leitch. Scotland international Jacky Robertson was engaged as the fledgling club’s player-manager. In collaboration with Parker, who also engineered Chelsea’s admission to Football League Division Two, Robertson built a squad that included their larger-than-life 23 stone goalkeeper Willie Foulke; the club hired football’s first ball-boys to emphasise his presence. The first game was away on 2 September 1905 at Stockport County in front of a crowd of 7,000. William Foulke, known as ‘Fatty’ became the first Chelsea goalkeeper to save a penalty, but in the melee that followed a wayward County shot was deflected into his own net by Robert McEwan, resulting in a 1- 0 loss.

Former Arsenal and England centre-forward Ted Drake became a manager in 1952 and proceeded to modernise the club. He removed the club’s Chelsea pensioner crest, improved the youth set-up and training regime, rebuilt the side with shrewd signings from the lower divisions and amateur leagues, and led Chelsea to their first major trophy success – the League championship – in 1954–55. The following season saw UEFA create the European Champions’ Cup, but after objections from The Football League and the FA, Chelsea were persuaded to withdraw from the competition before it started. Chelsea failed to build on this success, and spent the remainder of the 1950s in mid-table. Drake was dismissed in 1961 and replaced by player-coach Tommy Docherty.

The current club ownership has stated that a larger stadium is necessary in order for Chelsea to stay competitive with rival clubs who have significantly larger stadia, such as Arsenal, Tottenham and Manchester United. Owing to its location next to a main road and two railway lines, fans can only enter Stamford Bridge via the Fulham Road exits, which place constraints on expansion due to health and safety regulations. The club have consistently affirmed their desire to keep Chelsea at their current home, but have nonetheless been linked with a move to various nearby sites, including the Earls Court Exhibition Centre, Battersea Power Station and the Chelsea Barracks.

In October 2011, a proposal from the club to buy back the freehold to the land on which Stamford Bridge sits was voted down by Chelsea Pitch Owners shareholders. In May 2012, the club made a formal bid to purchase Battersea Power Station, with a view to developing the site into a new stadium, but lost out to a Malaysian consortium. The club subsequently announced plans to redevelop Stamford Bridge into a 60,000-seater stadium, and in January 2017 these plans were approved by Hammersmith and Fulham council.

However, on 31 May 2018, the club released a statement saying that the new stadium project had been put on hold indefinitely, citing “the current unfavourable investment climate.”

We have a winning home record against Chelsea particularly in the Premier League where we have lost only five out of our twenty seven games.

Arsenal V Chelsea Home Games PL
Date	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
03-Oct-92	1			2	1	1
16-Apr-94	1			1	0	1
15-Oct-94	1			3	1	2
16-Dec-95		1		1	1	0
04-Sep-96		1		3	3	0
08-Feb-98	1			2	0	2
31-Jan-99	1			1	0	1
06-May-00	1			2	1	1
13-Jan-01		1		1	1	0
26-Dec-01	1			2	1	1
01-Jan-03	1			3	2	1
18-Oct-03	1			2	1	1
12-Dec-04		1		2	2	0
18-Dec-05			1	0	2	-2
06-May-07		1		1	1	0
16-Dec-07	1			1	0	1
10-May-09			1	1	4	-3
29-Nov-09			1	0	3	-3
27-Dec-10	1			3	1	2
21-Apr-12		1		0	0	0
29-Sep-12			1	1	2	-1
23-Dec-13		1		0	0	0
26-Apr-15		1		0	0	0
24-Jan-16			1	0	1	-1
24-Sep-16	1			3	0	3
03-Jan-18		1		2	2	0
19-Jan-19	1			2	0	2
Totals	13	9	5	39	30	9

 

Arsenal v Chelsea All Time Home Results
Division	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
Div 1 Home	25	14	16	88	68	20
PL Home	13	9	5	39	30	9
Total	38	23	21	127	98	29

Chelsea’s away results for 2019/20 – 

W7, D0, L2. GF26, GA13

Date	–	Team	–	GA	–	GF
Aug-11	–	Man U	–	0	–	4
Aug-24	–	Norwich	–	2	–	3
Sep-14	–	Wolves	–	2	–	5
Oct-06	–	Southampton	–	1	–	4
Oct-26	–	Burnley	–	2	–	4
Nov-02	–	Watford	–	1	–	2
Nov-23	–	Man C	–	2	–	1
Dec-07	–	Everton	–	3	–	1
Dec-22	–	Spurs	–	0	–	2

We have another clash of new managers Arteta v Lampard. As you can see Chelsea has an excellent away record Won 7 and only Lost 2 they have outscored the opposition 26 goals to 13.

I see this game as another part of Arteta’s learning curve and it will be a great opportunity for him to observe his defence against a team that has scored an average of 2.89 away goals per game. The positive note is that Chelsea also give up an average of 1.45 away goals per game – we have the offence (if they click) but will our defence stand up and be counted?

GunnerN5

This is Pony Eye’s Preferred Line-Up:

The Chavs are visiting North-London again and we are up for a tough battle. I was very impressed with the way they totally controlled  the Spuddies a week ago, as I have been equally impressed with the way they qualified for the next round in the CL and gave Liverpool a proper game in the ‘cup finals’ at the start of the season.

Lampard really has them working hard and playing a fast, energetic and precise passing game. Youngsters Tammy Abraham, Christian Pulisic and Mason Mount (almost 21) have especially impressed me, but Fat Frank has also reenergised the likes of Kante, Jorginho, Alonso and the always impressive Willian.

They really gave the Spuds no chance at their own home and outplayed them for 90 minutes. Arteta and co have their work cut out to win the battle in midfield and then take the game to the Chavs. A win today would of course be great and reduce the gap to the top four to just five points – and what a psychological boost it would give us! But let there be no doubt about it that it will be a hard, hard game for us. Funnily enough, after all the praise above, Lampard is actually experiencing a bit of dip with Chelsea as they have lost four of their last six PL games. So maybe this is our chance to get a big result, the sort of result we are all desperate for.

How will Mikel achieve this? Much of the same against Bournemouth, I reckon, but this time with more sharpness up-front.

Play compact and pass quick and accurately, have always plenty of players were the action is, and let Xhaka, Torreira and Ozil strut their midfield stuff. Laca is due a goal, Auba likes one every game and if we keep it tight when we defend Arsenal could get a result out of this. Could… not should.

How could Arteta line-up the team?

Chambers returns and the rest in defence and midfield pick themselves, I reckon. Up-front we could see a start for Pepe, but I reckon Arteta will give the same four a start as against Bournemouth, just for 60 minutes or so. Arteta is building something and why not stick with the same four attackers and put lessons learnt from the previous game into practice?!

Come On You Rip Roaring Gunners!

By TotalArsenal.

In these vitriolic, cowardly times, with key-board and large-crowd consumerist heroes everywhere to be found, it takes herculean efforts to stay solidly on your feet when you have become a public figure of discontent/hate. Many supporters demand to be entertained and made happy by their club, and if they don’t get it they will project their disappointment, anger and hate at the first person that comes to mind. It is the era of the raw gut-response and brain-farts, of Nero-esque vilification and disposal of human life. 

Granit Xhaka gradually became such an outlet of beastly discontent, and it all boiled over during his substitution in Arsenal’s home game against Crystal Palace…

We are about to pay a heavy price for it. Granit’s agent has apparently been saying that the Swiss midfielder wants to leave and continue his career in the German Capital, and who would blame him?!

Emery and the club badly mismanaged the situation back then. Xhaka was publicly blamed and punished and after that the road to redemption was as good as cut off. A lack of understanding of Granit’s situation was especially painful to witness. I think the Independent worded it best of all:

“The problem is that, when a stadium turns into an exorcism, ushering you out in a séance of boos, pride leaves you with little choice but to defend yourself. They may be 60,000 disgruntled fans, enraged not just by your very existence in their world but your audacity to continue doing so, and you may just be one under-performing defensive midfielder, but, right now, this is your hill and you’re going to die on it……With a two-goal cushion relinquished, a howl of snide cheers greeted the captain’s substitution on the hour mark. As the cheers turned to something altogether more sinister, Xhaka elected not to stand idly by, choosing instead to wave his arms, to beckon on the mob. You see once you’ve already sped halfway down the road to perdition, you might as well roll down the windows and let the breeze hit you with everything its got. So off he marched, ripping off his shirt and throwing it to the floor as he went as the emotion of the moment finally gave way to the expletives.“

(click here for full article: https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/granit-xhaka-unai-emery-arsenal-news-captain-substitution-crystal-palace-latest-a9174476.html

Players are human beings and Wenger’s first rule was to always look after them, however attractive it was to do a ‘Jose Mourinho’ and sacrifice a player, or a bunch of them. Victory through Harmony really meant something in those days.

Granit Xhaka’s response may not have been ideal for the club, I get that; but he inadvertently took the blame for the whole club’s failings and he was hung out to dry, stripped from the captaincy and forced to apologise. Wenger would have managed this totally differently, and so would any modern manager who understands Millennials. For this reason alone, Emery had to go.

Which footballer would want to continue at Arsenal after such a fall out with the supporters and such a bad attempt by the club at managing the aftermath?

The big dilemma Arteta is facing is that he knows how important Granit is in our team – as every single manager the Swiss midfielder worked with does – but that many of the fans just don’t get it. As I posted earlier, Xhaka is very much like the embodiment of the Arteta strutting his stuff for Arsenal during the first half of this almost finished decade. The Basque really rates and likes him and most probably sees him as pivotal to his midfield and team. A departure in January will leave him with a huge gap, as Xhaka’s organisational and leadership skills are hard to find.

Managing this skeleton left in the cupboard by Emery and co will be Arteta’s first real player-challenge, and let’s hope the club will support him much better than his predecessor this time round. TBC.

By TotalArsenal.

 

 

 

 

A much needed improvement in our team’s performance. We were in control again, bossed the midfield and created many half-changes. Our defence must do better and our attackers all need to become sharper but there was progress. We played much more compact and passed the ball round so much better than under Emery, and we played as a team that was instructed by a manager with a plan that works for all.

Player Ratings:

Leno: 8 – very effective game with a positive desire to come for the ball and close down the space behind the defenders. Solid.

Saka: 7 – basically played on the whole left flank. Yes his crosses needed to be better, but he was there time and again to make the pass or cross and that impressed me. For an eighteen year old  that is very good.

Luiz: 6.5 – could be tighter defensively and more alert in the box, but I liked how he pushed forward with the ball and quietly led the team.

Big Sok: 6.5 – same as Luiz.

AMN: 7 – pretty solid and stayed back more than usually. Partnership with Nelson is definitely a work in progress.

Torreira: 8 – read the game well and harried the opponents effectively. Sometimes his first touch lets him down and he takes too much time for his shots, but he had a very effective game in midfield.

Xhaka: 8 – solid in general and did a great job in keeping the ball in the opponent’s half. Has a natural understanding with Mesut and Torreira. And here is one to remember for the Xhaka-doubters: if Granit goes wide or back with the ball it is because there is no option for him going forward (it really is as simple as that! 😀 ).

Mesut Ozil: 9 – MOTM – could have had a number of assists if our attackers would have had their shooting boots on. Played as his old self because Arteta set the team up to accomodate this, and what a difference he brought to our attacking game compared to the recent encounter with the Toffees.

Laca: 6 – worked hard and was very involved in our attacking play, but his first touches were not great and his efforts on goal lacked conviction. One or two decisions were also the wrong ones. I hope Arteta perseveres with him: the rust will fall off sooner or later.

Auba: 7 – same as Laca, but Auba took one of the chances that came to him so he gets an extra point. Yet too many half chances were wasted. Yet he worked hard and the very wet weather did not help.

Nelson: 6 – lacked a bit of confidence and his final balls were below par but he gave us an outlet on the right and stuck to his role well. And that is why Arteta selected him – he will get better.

Mustafi (7), Willock (6) and Pepe (7) all did okay but were not able to get us a win.

By TotalArsenal.

Arsenal v Bournemouth – December 26^h, 2019

 

GunnerN5 would like to take this opportunity to wish all Bergkampesque readers a very happy and extremely healthy 2020 and beyond.

Although the exact date of the club’s foundation is not known, there is proof that it was formed in the autumn of 1899 out of the remains of the older Boscombe St. John’s Institute F.C The club was originally known as Boscombe F.C. The first president was Mr. J. C. Nutt.

In their first season, 1899–1900, Boscombe F.C. competed in the Bournemouth and District Junior League. They also played in the Hants Junior Cup. During the first two seasons, they played on a football pitch in Castlemain Avenue, Pokesdown. From their third season, the team played on a pitch in King’s Park. In the 1905–06 season, Boscombe F.C. graduated to senior amateur football.

In 1910, the club was granted a long lease over some wasteland next to Kings Park as the club’s football ground by local businessman J.E. Cooper-Dean. With their own ground, named Dean Court after the benefactor, the club continued to thrive and dominated the local football scene. The same year the club signed its first professional player Baven Penton.

Around about this time, the club obtained their nickname “The Cherries,” with two foremost tales on how the club gained the nickname. First, because of the cherry-red striped shirts that the team played in and, perhaps less plausible, because Dean Court was built adjacent to the Cooper-Dean estate, which, it is believed may have encompassed numerous cherry orchards.

For the first time, during the 1913–14 season, the club competed in the FA Cup. The club’s progress, however, was halted in 1914 with the outbreak of World War I, and Boscombe F.C. returned to the Hampshire League.

In 1920, the Third Division of the Football League was formed, and Boscombe were promoted to the Southern League, finding moderate success.

The 2019–20 AFC Bournemouth season is the club’s fifth consecutive season in the top flight of English football and their 130th year in existence. The club is currently owned by Maxim Demin, a Russian multi-millionaire involved in the petrochemicals trading industry.

The club has spent the majority of their history bouncing between the third and fourth tiers of English football. Under manager Eddie Howe, they have risen through the pyramid; the 2015–16 season was their first ever in the top flight and they have remained there ever since.

Bournemouth’s stadium is the smallest in the Premier League; they play their home matches at Dean Court, which has a capacity of 11,329 and is the smallest stadium in the Premier League. The club’s badge has Bournemouth’s red and black stripes and also a footballer heading a ball.

This is only our fifth EPL away game against Bournemouth and we have a record of – W2, D1, L1, GF8, GA6.

Arsenal v Bournemouth EPL Away Record
Date	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
07-Feb-16	1			2	0	2
03-Jan-17		1		3	3	0
14-Jan-18			1	1	2	-1
25-Nov-18	1			2	1	1
26-Dec-19						0
Total	2	1	1	8	6	2

Bournemouth have a home record of W2, D3, L4, GF9, GA14. 

Manchester City	Lost 1-3
Sheffield United	Drew 1-1
West Ham	Drew 2-2
Everton	Won 3-1
Norwich	Drew 0-0
Wolves	Lost 1-2
Manchester United	Won 1-0
Burnley	Lost 0-1
Liverpool	Lost 0-3

This is the start of a new era at Arsenal Football Club, Mikel Arteta Amatriain is now our Manager and the expectations of the club and its supporters have been elevated. Mikel has an enormous challenge and we all wish him to start off this new adventure with an away win.

The next five games are going to be extremely difficult for the new manager and they will be a real test of his ability to galvanize his players into a cohesive force.

Chelsea	H
Man United	H
Crystal Palace	A
Sheffield U	H
Chelsea	A

No games can be considered as easy in today’s EPL but Bournemouth looks to be the easiest of the next six – I anticipate an Arsenal victory and a renewed optimism among the supporters.

GunnerN5

If you have not already watched the training video on Arsenal.com, go and do it! To see and hear MA at work is a joy. Let there be no doubt about it, the sleeves are up; the mission has started.

Here are my first impressions of MA at Arsenal:

1. Mikel presents himself very well: his English is clear and his answers are anything but dull or scripted. He demands your attention without being overly affalable. His action-man look and powerful eyes draw you in; he is the centre of the PR room and, just like in Wenger’s days, our manager is in charge. Very, very impressive.
2. What also struck me is his intelligence: there is nuance to his answers and he  makes you think, which indicates that he knows what he is talking about and all is under control (reminiscent of Arsene).
3. Arteta talks a lot about his vision for football, the basics that everyone has to adhere to and what he expects of players in terms of behaviour and conduct. You would expect every new manager to say such things, but Arteta is straightaway adding gravitas to it. This shows that he learned the job from big masters Wenger and Guardiola: they also work with strong vision and values and boy did the players know it.
4. There is a strong focus on energy and pride by Arteta, and with that he has hit the nail on the (obvious) head. To witness a near-dead Ashburton Groove will have been a shocking experience for him. We need new, warm and pulsing blood in our club and you get the feeling from his interviews and the training session that he will focus hard on this. This will not be easy and he cannot do this on his own: we as supporters have to stand up and be counted too!
5. MA has indicated that all players start with a clean slate: the past – bad or good – does not count. This is a simple but very important announcement: it indicates a fresh start and the weights or privileges of the past have simply evaporated. Arteta wants to play in a certain way, with a system of football to which players will have to be moulded to some extent. So the qualities of the players and their ability to adjust and follow tactical instructions is what he will focus on. Therefore, he is genuine in his statement that everyone will start anew with him.
6. Mikel first success was convincing Freddie to stay and work with him: opting for inclusiveness was a smart move. Freddie has done a fabulous job for us in quite difficult circumstances and has proven to be a real club man. We need those of people at our club and Arteta clearly understood this too. Rather than seeing him as a competitor or somebody who would potentially undermine his dominance at the club, Arteta has made himself and his coaching team stronger by asking Freddie to stay.
7. MA has recognised straightaway that the club has some very promising youth players and that the future should be bright. There are three ways of making a club successful: spending tons of money (more than opponents), building a club bottom up from a strong core of youth players (who then become regular powerhouses in the team), or a mixture of both. Option one is not for us and for option two or three we need a strong focus on youth. I think we are going to get this with Mikel in charge.
8. The final, big and most important impression Mikel has given me is that he is ready, really ready  to be a nr.1 at Arsenal. You just sense it when you hear him speak and see him at work. Welcome to the Home of Football, Mikel.

Predicted Line-up

To predict Arteta’s first line-up is not easy but I reckon it will be similar to the Everton starting-11 with a few tweaks. Chambers is suspended, so Big Sok should return but other than that I expect the same defence and midfield, with the exception of ESR starting again. The four attackers could well be Ozil for Martinelli (injured) and Willock for ESR (in front of Xha/Tor), with Pepe and Laca starting ahead of Auba and Nelson, but I am guessing quite a bit here. I am hoping for a compact midfield, good protection of our defence once more, better first touches and passes and therefore better opportunities of which at least two we will take. COYGs!

By TotalArsenal.

Wishing all my friends at Bergkampesque a Merry Mikel Christmas

And a Happy and Healthy 2020!

Love,

Total.