Thank you to the many people who voted in our series of polls for Player(s) of the Season over the last 24 hours.

Before going to the results, I want to give you a trickier question to answer in the comments below.

The question is (and obviously it’s just a bit of fun): Who do you predict to be Arsenal’s overall Player of the Season for NEXT season (2020-21)?

You can select players in the current squad or players you think/hope/expect to come to Arsenal during the close season. Up to you. Have some fun…

And now for the results for 2019-20:

PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Winner: Pierre Emerick Aubameyang (78%)

Runner-up: Emi Martinez (7%)

YOUNG PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Winner: Bukayo Saka (62%)

Runner-up: Gabriel Martinelli (18%)

DEFENDER OF THE YEAR

Winner: Kieran Tierney (54%)

Runner-up: David Luiz (20%)

MOST IMPROVED PLAYER

Winner: Emi Martinez (42%)

Runner-up: Granit Xhaka (26%)

MIDFIELDER OF THE YEAR

Winner: Dani Ceballos (46%)

Runner-up: Granit Xhaka (35%)

ATTACKING PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Winner: Pierre Emerick Aubameyang (66%)

Runner-up: Pierre Emerick Aubameyang (34%)

Congratulations to the winners. A few surprises in there (at least from this observer’s perspective).

RockyLives

Well, that was a funny old season, wasn’t it?

Our beloved Arsenal took us to the depths of despondency, the cusp of disharmony and, worst of all, the brink of apathy.

When fans of a club cease to really care – when they can’t even summon up the passion to be all that bothered about another disastrous performance – that club is facing a serious problem.

But there was a twist in the tail. Somehow Arsenal belatedly stumbled on the right manager for the moment and massaged our tortured souls with a truly unexpected happy ending.

If I could sum up that season as an image, it would be of being dragged helpless through an enormous cactus patch, only to find that when you get to the other side a spectacular banquet is waiting with supermodels eager to serve you.

But as we reflect on this weirdest of campaigns, perhaps it’s time to add to the positive vibes by considering our best players of the season.

Cast your votes in the categories below and between us all we’ll decide who deserves the laurels.

RockyLives

                                                     Decisions, decisions…

If you’re anything like me you’re still on a high from our wonderful FA Cup win on Saturday.

Not only did we end a difficult season with some serious silverware and European football secured, we also managed to make the reprobates from N17 really miserable.

Before the cup final they were assured of a place in the group stages of the Europa League, but our victory means they have to play not one, not two, but THREE pre-qualifying games, while we go straight into the groups.

Couldn’t happen to a nicer bunch of losers.

Now, I really don’t want to dampen any celebrations that you’re still engaged in, but pretty soon we’ll be starting to think about the new season.

We have many reasons to be optimistic, foremost among them being the presence of Mikel Arteta at the helm of our club.

Not only has he got us playing with purpose and a plan, he also has an ability to improve players. Mustafi, Pepe, Xhaka, Maitland-Niles and Ceballos (among others) have all noticeably got better under El Patron.

So, from that encouraging base, here’s a question for you:

What THREE THINGS would you like to see at Arsenal to give us a chance of being truly competitive next season.

Your choices might involve playing personnel, or tactics, or structural changes at the club, or anything else you like.

I’ll kick it off with my three:

• Give Mikel Arteta the final say on new signings (even if someone else does the deal-making). Too many recent pieces of business have involved players whose agents happen to be big buddies of Raul Sanllehi. I’d love to think that all those signings have been made purely with the best interests of Arsenal at heart, but I couldn’t swear to it.
• Offload Mesut Ozil. I say this with a heavy heart because I have loved Ozil’s play during much of his Arsenal career, but he clearly does not fit with Arteta’s new approach. He’s too big a player (and character) to have hanging around the club not playing and his wages are huge. We should facilitate a move even if we have to pay a chunk of his wages at his new club. This will be better for Arsenal, but also for Mesut.
• Sign a dominant box to box midfielder. From what I have seen of him, Thomas Partey would be just the ticket.

Right, over to you.

RockyLives

                                         Number 14 holds up number 14

Arsenal loves the FA Cup, but boy does the FA Cup also love Arsenal.

We are the THE FA Cup team. We were before yesterday, we’re even more so now.

What a great win that was, and what a shame it could not have played out in front of 100,000 screaming fans.

We went into the game as slight underdogs despite our heroics in the semi final against Man City.

There was more at stake for us because Chelsea had secured Champions League football and we needed a win to get us into the Europa League.

A similar pressure situation last season played out with us losing 4-1 to Chelsea in the Europa League Final in the arse end of nowhere. In that game we needed to win to get into the Champions League, but we choked badly.

Not so yesterday.

The key difference between the two finals was, of course, the head coach.

Apparently when asked if he suffered from being too indecisive, Unai Emery answered: “I’m not sure. Can I think about it and get back to you?”

Whatever fates conspired to bring us Mikel Arteta as our manager in December last year, I’m just glad they did. Almost from his first game in charge we have looked more organised, more together and more like a team that has a plan.

And all his hard work culminated yesterday in an achievement that can’t be understated. If we had lost I would probably be here trying to rationalise about how a year out of Europe and concentrating on the Premier League might be a good thing.

But let’s be honest. This is a MASSIVE win.

Our hugely promising new boss gets a trophy in his first season. We get European football and the extra £40 million that goes with it. We probably get to keep Aubameyang and our Europa League presence makes it easier to sign the new players we want.

Good times.

And so to yesterday’s game.

I have been present to see us play Chelsea in two FA Cup finals: once at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, in 2002 and once at Wembley in 2017. Both occasions turned out to be memorable.

For the 2020 final I could not be there in person (nor could any Gooner), but it was just as memorable a win.

Arteta picked a team with few surprises. He went for maximum experience up front (Auba-Laca-Pepe) and most of the other positions picked themselves. Only the inclusion of Ainsley Maitland-Niles ahead of Saka raised a few eyebrows, but AMN had earned his place with his performance against Man City.

Within minutes of the kick-off we could have been one up when a cross from AMN on the left found Aubameyang at the near post, a yard ahead of his defender. Auba failed to connect properly with the header and it went wide.

After that, everything started to go wrong.

Chelsea seized control of midfield and looked hungrier than us and, dare I say it, more skillful. Mount, Pulisic and Kovacic were pulling us apart and running through the gaps in our MF at will.

Xhaka was caught dwelling on the ball, leading to an early chance for Mount. Minutes later the Blues were ahead after a slick move that ended with Pulisic chipping over Martinez.

We looked so ragged in the opening 15 minutes that I can’t have been alone in fearing another Baku.

The one sign of encouragement was that it was not our defence that was at fault (for a change) but our midfield.

Gradually, though, we settled into the game. I would need to watch a replay to figure out whether we started doing something different in midfield or whether we just upped our commitment level as a team (perhaps the more tech savvy among you can explain).

Whatever it was, we began to dominate the game from the 15 minute mark onwards. Pepe was unlucky not to have got himself a cup final goal when his stunning shot into the Chelsea net was correctly ruled out for an earlier narrow offside.

We barely had time to get over that disappointment when we got a clear penalty. A ball over the top sent Aubameyang racing towards goal. Azpilicueta tried to foul him outside the box but Auba was strong enough to keep going so the Chelsea captain fouled him inside the box as well.

VAR ruminated, but it was a bang on penalty. Azpilicueta was spared a red card because of the “double jeopardy” rule (the officials decided he had been making an honest attempt to get the ball, which is pretty debatable).

I could barely watch as Auba ran up, but amid all the pressure of a cup final, and knowing how important it was for Arsenal to win this game, he was as cool as a cucumber and slotted a perfect, unstoppable penalty into the side netting.

We were back on terms and pressing so hard for a second that it was a disappointment when half time came.

The second half started pretty even. At times we sat back and let Chelsea dominate possession, but we allowed few clear-cut chances. Meanwhile we looked dangerous going forward.

In a season during which the gods of football have seldom been kind to Arsenal, they seemed to be smiling on us at Wembley.

Chelsea lost their captain, Azpilicueta, and their most dangerous player, Pulisic, to hamstring pulls and that must have interfered with Frank Lampard’s plans for the game.

But the goal that gave us the lead (and eventually the Cup itself) was down to absolute top class play by three Arsenal players.

Bellerin broke from deep in our own half at speed, leaving two Chelsea players for dead with a brilliant poke-ahead nutmeg as he surged towards the opposition penalty area. The ball was almost out of his control but his bravery in going into a 50/50 saw it pop out to Pepe, whose first couple of touches were pure class, after which he rolled a perfectly-weighted pass into the path of our captain.

Aubameyang’s next moves were sublime. He feinted to cut inside, leaving Zouma doing the zumba in an empty dancehall, then switched back onto his left foot and dinked the ball over Caballero with consummate skill.

What a joy it was to see that trademark somersault celebration twice in an FA Cup final.

The balance tipped further in Arsenal’s favour when Kovacic was harshly sent off for a second yellow (his first yellow was justified, but the second was not even a foul).

Ten man Chelsea huffed and puffed, but we never looked like letting them get back into it, even though my heart was pumping like a piston engine in the last 10 minutes. The most dangerous moment from the Blues was in the dying minutes when Pedro cut into our box along the goal line, but the oh-so-impressive Martinez dived at his feet to smother the chance, leaving the unfortunate Pedro with what looked like a dislocated shoulder.

It was a metaphor for the game. Overall, Arteta’s strategy and the new sense of togetherness in our team combined to smother Chelsea and dislocate young Frankie Lampard’s best-laid plans.

So there you have it.

Our 14^th FA Cup win. We love that competition. And that competition loves us.

RockyLives

Player Ratings

Martinez         9

I think I’m a bit in love with big Emi. He made excellent saves as always (one full length dive to stop a shot from Mount was outstanding) and he actually catches crosses instead of punching them! Late on he dived fearlessly at Pedro’s feet to protect our lead. He even cried in his post-match interview. Make no mistake, we have two Number One ‘keepers at our club now.

Holding           8

What is it with this lad and the Cup Final? He played a blinder against Chelsea in 2017 and did the same yesterday. Fought for everything, made no mistakes and even looked fast at times.

Luiz                  8.5

Let’s be honest, we were all worried before the game, weren’t we? Was it going to be Loco Luiz the one-man apocalypse, or Dependable David, the man who kept Man City at bay? Thank goodness it was the latter. The Brazilian didn’t put a foot wrong.

Tierney            8

Such an honest player as well as a talented one. If there’s one thing we’ve been missing in recent years at Arsenal it’s players like Tierney who make no fuss, but give every drop of blood, sweat and tears for the cause. I’m sure Nigel Winterburn is proud of him.

Bellerin           8

Fine effort from Hector and without his skill and bravery the winning goal would not have happened. He’s had an in-and-out season but made a full contribution yesterday.

Maitland-Niles            8

Justified his selection. He was dangerous going forward (particularly in the first half) and worked very hard on the defensive end. There were stories a few weeks ago saying he wanted to leave Arsenal. I suspect that if Arteta tells him he sees a positive future for him at Arsenal, he’ll stay.

Xhaka              8

I was tempted to mark him down for his sloppiness in the first 10 minutes, but in truth the whole team was slow getting into this game. After that he was excellent. His control and distribution was as good as we’ve come to expect but I particularly liked his committed tackling and the way he managed to do this without the recklessness that attracts cards.

Ceballos          8.5

Terrific outing from Dani. He has become a vital component in linking defence to attack but I also love his tackling and his tracking back, even very late in the game when he must have been running on fumes. Sometimes his effort reminded me of those dogged, all-action midfielders we had in the early George Graham era (Rocastle, Thomas, Davis, Williams).

Pepe                8

So unlucky not to be on the scoresheet. He is starting to influence games more and seems to be using the ball more intelligently (signs of Arteta’s coaching paying off?). The up side with Pepe is that there still seems to be plenty of scope for him to improve.

Lacazette        8

Laca’s tireless work in chasing down the Chelsea defenders and working to keep moves going when we were in possession could easily go unnoticed, but it was a vital element in our win.

Aubameyang  9.5       MoTM

It would have been a 10 for the captain but for that missed header early on. What a player. This will probably always be known as the “Aubameyang Final.” It was his first trophy with Arsenal and will surely go a long way towards convincing him to sign an extension with us.

Subs

Nketieh           7

Got 10 minutes in a cup final, which can’t be a bad thing at his stage of development. Looked sharp and was unlucky that the ref ignored several blatant fouls on him.

Sokratis           7

Came on for Luiz and had one or two good moments in what was probably his last game as a Gunner.

Kolasinac        7

Came on with one minute to go, but I can’t mark him down when he played in a team that’s just won the Cup!

I can’t say I’m too surprised by that result and performance.

We’ve had five very tough games in quick succession with Wolves, Leicester, Spurs, Liverpool and City.

There was always going to be a drop-off given that a lot of the same players have been involved in those matches.

I can’t really say I’m too concerned about the Premier League. If the options were finishing 6th or winning the FA Cup then you’d have to be a f**king idiot to choose 6th.

The players brought it when it really mattered and if they do the same against Chelsea then I couldn’t care less if Watford beat us 12-0 in the last game of the season.

FGG

Player Ratings from RockyLives

It was a poor team performance, with our lads struggling to be on the same wavelength so the ratings reflect that.

Martinez – 7

Holding – 7 (MoTM)

Luiz – 6

Kolasinac – 5

Cedric – 5

Saka – 5

Ceballos – 5

Torreira – 5

Nketieh – 5.5

Aubameyang – 6

Lacazette – 6

Subs

Xhaka – 6

Pepe – 6

Tierney – 7

Willock – 5

                      The boys in red and white line up defensively against Villa

Tonight, a desperate Aston Villa side will throw everything they’ve got at us to try and cling on to their place in the Premier League.

It will, as the Duke of Wellington said of the Battle of Waterloo, be a case of “hard pounding.”

Villa are in the drop zone with two games to go. Their only chance of survival is to catch Watford, who are three points ahead of them (also with two games to play) and a better goal difference.

Fail to win tonight, and Villa are effectively down.

Couple that with the sheer amount of games our squad has played recently and the need for rotation and this result is far from certain.

Since the restart Villa have won only one game (against Palace) but they have had one of the toughest runs-in of any team, with almost all their opponents in the top half of the table including Liverpool, Man Utd, Chelsea, Wolves and Sheffield United.

There would be something typically Arsenal-ish about beating Liverpool and Man City then losing to lowly Villa, but I have a feeling we’ll come through this one OK.

The optimism in our squad is obvious and few of the players are guaranteed a start in our FA Cup Final team, so all are playing for places.

With another game on Saturday and then a week’s rest before the Final, I expect El Patron to make quite a few changes tonight.

Here’s my predicted (preferred) line up:

Martinez

Soares – Sokratis – Holding – Kolasinac

Torreira – Xhaka – Willock

Saka – Nketieh – Nelson

My team may be more radical than Arteta will go with, but we’ll see.

I’m sure that Nketieh will start after completing his harsh three match ban and Nelson deserves another shot after scoring on his last appearance (and playing well).

This will be a very different challenge compared with our last two games, where we sat back against superior teams and soaked up pressure.

Villa are clearly nowhere near the class of Man City and Liverpool. However, they need all three points so they will have to come at us.

I would be tempted to play a tight defensive game and hit them on the break, even though their league position suggests we should try to just come out and steamroller them.

We’re getting better at playing out from the back and we have players with the speed and skill to kill Villa on the counter, hence my ostensibly cautious approach.

Grealish is the stand-out talent in the Brummies’ side. He’s also their top scorer in the PL with seven. It’s quite striking (pun intended) that not a single Villa player is in double figures for goals this season, a fact that goes a long way towards explaining why they’re in trouble.

I have two concerns from an Arsenal perspective: our vulnerability at set pieces (as in the second Spuds goal) and the risk of injury to any of our key players.

Fingers crossed for a win and to maintaining the outside chance of qualifying for Europe through our league position as well as the FA Cup.

RockyLives

What is a professional footballer?

They can be heroes, they can be villains. They are symbols of our tribe (or of some enemy tribe). They are cyphers into whom we pour our hopes and dreams, but also our fears and frustrations.

Sometimes we forget they are people, just like us but with better foot-eye co-ordination.

I was reminded of this when watching David Luiz’s interview with BT Sport after his man of the match performance against Manchester City on Saturday night.

During the conversation, with Luiz still flushed from his recent efforts, he gave the usual professional footballer answers, praising his team mates, referring to “giving one hundred per cent” and so on.

He was also honest about the gulf between Arsenal and the likes of Man City (“the other team is miles away in front of us, but we were humble…”).

But then the interviewer got to the question he really wanted to ask. Just a few weeks earlier Arsenal had succumbed to a humiliating defeat against Manchester City in an empty Etihad Stadium, and Luiz had been the chief villain.

The Brazilian had gifted City a goal just before half time and then, early in the second half, gave away a penalty and got sent off in the process.

The interviewer obviously wanted to raise these past indiscretions but didn’t quite have the courage to just come out with it. Instead he beat around the bush:

“And what a different story to the Premier League game against Manchester City just after the restart,” he mumbled, “when there was a lot of criticism of Arsenal’s spirit, a lot of criticism of the defending…”

Luiz knew what was being asked and put the interviewer out of his misery by interrupting.

“A lot of criticism on me, no? You can say that.”

He went on to say that he had taken the blame for those mistakes and had been working hard every day.

It reminded me that the players we support and idolise and curse and criticise are not oblivious to what is being said about them.

While blogs like this one (and the many others in the Arsenal blogosphere) devote whole columns to how crap certain players are (I have done it myself), with plenty of pile-on in the comments, it’s easy to imagine that none of this negative vibe reaches the players. But it clearly does.

Luiz knew what we are all saying about him after the Man City league game. He already knew what plenty of pundits – amateur and professional – have long said about him (that he’s unreliable and accident-prone).

But his interview on Saturday was a reminder that he is trying. Trying to be the best he can. Trying to do his job. He talked about surviving.

It made me warm to him a little more, despite the frustration he can inspire.

None of this is to say that we cannot or should not criticise players. It’s our right as supporters and, often, it serves as a form of catharsis for us after a bad result. Angry people always want someone to blame and footy fans are no different.

But when we’re firing our barbs, let’s always keep a little space in our hearts to remember the humanity of our targets.

David Luiz will always be David Luiz. He will have mad moments in defence in the future, but hopefully he will have more games like Saturday’s, when his leadership, experience, bravery and skill helped propel us to another FA Cup Final.

He has been a zero and a chump for Arsenal at times this year. But the story of this season is not over and, who knows, maybe he’ll end it a hero and a champ.

RockyLives