Leno – 6, a good outing today to be honest.
Bellerin – 5, his usual average self.
Holding – 6, solid at the back and interesting up front.
Gabriel – 6, solid.
Cedric – 4, a poor outing.
Xhaka – 6, solid.
Partey – 4, disappoing.
Saka – 6, a good showing but clearly needs more time.
ESR – 5, looking for rhythm but industrious.
Willian – 3, his usual poor self.
Laca – 5, interesting link-up, a great but missed opportunity.

Pepe – 6, decisive.
Auba – 6, decisive.
Martinelli – 5, clearly hungry.
El Neny – 5, more impact than Partey somehow.

Should have been a victory, ends in a draw…Lack of cutting edge up front and some nervy moments at the back especially with Cedric. Nothing won but nothing lost either. Disappointing. Slavia has not lost at home in a long long time. It is going to be an interesting game in Prague.

“We don’t know what goes on behind the scenes at Arsenal, but I have to say there’s a few of those players in the front part of the pitch who looked like a little mafia against Liverpool. It looked like a group of players who weren’t comfortable, like there was a disconnect between them and the manager. The manager looked like he’d had enough of them. He had that glazed-eye look. It’s instinct, but we’ve been around football for long enough to know when a group of players are disinterested.” Gary Neville. “Neville suspects the perceived disconnect may be related to Arteta’s decision to drop Aubameyang for the north London derby last month after the Arsenal captain reported late on the morning of the game” (skysports.com)

So do you believe that Auba and his acolytes (Pepe, Laca primarily) actually tried to basically show Arteta that they are not happy with him and his tactics? I think that Neville may be reading too far into the abysmal display against LFC. That said, you can’t totally discard his reading of the game as he has been in the game for so long and knows about player-managers’ dynamics…

If Neville were right, we would have another “Ozil saga” in our hand with Auba as the key actor and the Board would have to make some tough choices in terms of moving Auba, Pepe, Laca to back Arteta or to back the players against Arteta. I think Arteta will be backed by the board but let us see…

Anyways – do you think that the situation is as bad as Neville thinks it is? Is there a real disconnect between the forward players and the coach?

“At all levels, effectiveness in this area is about showing our pride and passion for service,
communicating purpose and direction with clarity, integrity, and enthusiasm. It’s about championing
difference and external experience, and supporting principles of fairness of opportunity for all. For
leaders, it is about being visible, establishing a strong direction and persuasive future vision;
managing and engaging with people in a straightforward, truthful, and candid way.” (Extracted from: UK Civil Service – Competency Framework – 2012 – 2017- Civil_Service_Competency_Framework.pdf (publishing.service.gov.uk)

I think that at this stage, the only person that is showing any proficiency in this area is Arteta but then again, he is probably struggling in other areas as the team he is managing is inconsistent in performance and not delivering results or creating value for money…

I am more worried about the pitch though…There are different types of leaders:

• the quiet ones that lead by example such as Tierney and maybe Odegaard or Saka too. But then, we would benefit from hearing them being louder on the pitch. Make their presence felt to their teammates and opponent so maybe it would be good to unleash them and let them speak up too…
• The louder and passionate ones but whose performance do not always match their loud mouth like Leno, Luiz and Xhaka for example.
• …I can go on and on and on..

The point is that we want a few players – one on every line (GK, Defense, Central Mid, Forward line) – that does not only lead by example by being a steady performer but is also not afraid of speaking up.

I cannot see Leno improve and would love to see him go and replaced by a good GK that is not afraid to speak up.

For all his talk, Luiz is just too inconsistent. Holding is still not ready to be the backline boss, Bellerin can’t be that boss either and Gabriel would also need at least another year to hold that role. Can Mari be the one? Maybe…But I think, we just need Tierney to just assume that role. He is clearly captain material.

Xhaka tried but his performances and temper got the best out of him so he can’t be it. I am hoping that Partey will be our leader in midfield as of next year. Otherwise, we ll have to ask ESR to take on that role…

Up front, I think that Auba tried but he is not doing great, is he? Laca could play that role but he is not an automatic starter so let us just for Saka. His understanding of the game is great and he has been playing well since he came into the team. Martinelli also is a fearless and gives his best every time he comes on the pitch.

So let us give power to our promising young players: Tierney, Partey or ESR and Saka and for God’s sake, let us get rid of Leno. What a mistake to have chosen him over Martinez!

Also someone made a point about Guendouzi yesterday. Like him or not like him – the guy has got personality and skills. Can he now channel this and be a good player for us? The jury is out…

So when we are recruiting, we want players with personality and I think we need to look into the EPL for these types of players. Players like Mings, Grealish and Ward-Prowse would be great for example. They don’t hide. If we are going outside the EPL, take players that are not only promising but also demonstrate leadership qualities and are proven leaders and communicators. You want 11 warriors great, we also need at least 4 leaders on the pitch including a captain that brings the team together and can motivate and lead the group…

As we were discussing the possibility of including Foden, Grealish or Mount in our squad, I reflected on our squad both in terms of starting XI and depth.

As Henry rightly mentioned after our win against the Spurs, we need to find consistency in our performances and as Arteta said, we need to improve our game management as well. But Henry also mentioned that we have a good squad overall and it is hard to argue against that. It is just we also have inconsistent players and players that can give goals aways or get red carded or commit fouls when there is no need for it…

Based on the above and looking at our squad, I think that it is fair to say that:

1. We could use an upgrade at the Right-Back Position;
2. We could also use a better player in midfield to play along side Partey;
3. We could also improve on the left wing too.

There is definitely also a shout for improving our GK and CB options but I don’t think we will invest in either of these positions this summer since the club backed Leno.

RB – I think the pressure is mounting on Bellerin now as Cedric is clearly making a case to be our starter, but Cedric is by no means a great RB, he is just better than Bellerin at the moment. We need a defensively reliable RB who can also provide inputs to our attacking game, just like Tierney on the left 🙂 Easier said than done but Emerson (Sevilla, on loan from Barcelona) is really impressive in La Liga and may be persuaded to join AFC’s growing Brazilian contingent. Some have also mentionned Lamptey from Brighton and the former Chelsea player Trippier is also said to be considering a return to the EPL but do we want a former Spurs?

CM – Here we have the conundrum of how we want to use Partey. Do we want him to play as a CM or as a DM. If the former, then we need someone who could also cover the defense. If the latter, then we need someone who could drive the ball forward and pass the ball. Xhaka’s form has been rather fine since the Christmas holidays but he can still be a liability and looking into a more composed and reliable player would be of great value for the team. I didn’t see much of him but Ward-Prowse is getting a lot of positive reviews while it could be difficult to tempt Ndidi/Kante to join us. Other options include Veretout, Pellegrini and Aouar for example.

LW – Auba plays there, Willian plays there, Martinelli plays there, Saka and Pepe can play there and we also saw that ESR can play there too! It seems that it is a well covered position but in reality, we need a pendant to Saka. Someone who can really play as a LW – score and create goals while also putting in the defensive shift. In that sense, Grealish makes a lot of sense to me but it is unlikely that we could afford him. There is also Kostic from Frankfurt who has a great engine and delivery and last but not least, we have Depay who is expected to leave Lyon for free this summer. There are others like Cunha, Raphinha amongs others but if we want to really boost this position, we need someone with lots of creativity like Grealish or one that will put in a great shift for the team like Kostic IMHO.

Leno – Emerson, Holding, Gabs, Tierney – Partey, Ward-Prowse – Saka, Smithe-Rowe, Grealish – Auba

Ryan – Bellerin, Luiz, Mari, Cedric – El Neny, Xhaka – Pepe, Odegaard (?), Martinelli – Laca

+ Willian (?), Azeez, RN, Balogun.

Does that make sense to you? Do you think that with these three additions we would be credible EPL title contenders?

Do you think that we are only three players away from being title contenders? Or do you think it is five? Which positions would you target and why?

RC78

In these Covid-19 times, we have been hearing about agility and resilience when discussing supply chains, government and businesses. I feel like the term “resilience” is one that has not been used frequently with AFC in the last decade or even 15 years…

We used to have Lehmann – Lauren, Toure, Campbell, Cole – Ljunberg, Vieira, Silva, Pires – Bergkamp, Henry…All of them were considered talented, robust and strong players…They didn’t suffer too many injuries overall and were able to regularly play full seasons usually except for the odd season…

Yesterday, I thought our team was “resilient” and was ready to put in the shift and work rate required to outmuscle and muffle Tottenham. Then, I thought to myself – when is the last time that I felt like this about our team and I came back to the Wenger teams from 1998 to 2006…

So is yesterday’s squad our most resilient one? Isn’t there a case to include Holding, Mari or El Neny?

Leno – Cedric, Luiz, Gabs, Tierney – Partey, Xhaka – Saka, Odegaard, ESR – Laca

The work rate from Odegaard, ESR and Laca was particularly impressive and so was Tierney’s. Saka had a bit more issues but clearly that was an exception for him. Partey, Xhaka and Gabs also showed great resilience and fighting spirit and Cedric and Luiz are not to be overlooked either in this department.

Now and given the question marks around Luiz and Xhaka’s ability to be consistent, is there a case to replace them by Holding or Mari for Luiz and by El Neny for Xhaka?

This brings another set of questions for us: What do we do with Bellerin? How do keep Auba (our best scorer) in the squad and whose place does he take (Laca’s or ESR’s?)? Where do Pepe, Willian and Martinelli feature?…

Anyways – make your most resilient XI and share your thoughts 🙂

A resilient line-up started and a very good start to the game punctuated with a beautiful ESR’s strike on the cross bar…A few minutes later and on their first incursion in our half after 30 minutes of play, Lamela scored a screamer with a Rabona! What a goal! But being by far the best team at the Emirates, we came back through our Norwegian playmaker who converted another good cross from Tierney. Overall, we came back right before half-time and it was the least we deserved after hitting the cross-bar by ESR and the post through Cedric!

Second half, we started oddly with Tottenham playing better but we were not to be outdone and in the end, Lacazette managed to get a PK after being played through beautifully by Pepe. Lacazette then scored a good PK, through a nicely taken penalty.

After that, we created some chances but truth be told, Tottenham started to threaten us but Lamela went from Spurs hero to Spurs villain by getting himself sent off for a blatant foul on Tierney. But AFC being AFC, we still remained fragile and Kane scored a header but was off-side and then hit the post on a free-kick.

But the North London Derby was to be ours in 2021 and we saw the game through to Arteta’s relief and joy!

Here are the ratings:

Leno – 5, no saves and no big mistakes. Just average.

Cedric – 7, a good game for him.

Luiz – 6, nothing bad nor good.

Gabs – 6, nothing bad nor good.

Tierney – 7.5, an assist and a good defensive game.

Partey – 5.5. Seems to be struggling with the physicality and pace of the EPL still. Had some random shots but overall, an average outing

Xhaka – 6.5. A solid performance in the middle.

Saka – 5. Looked jaded from the on-set. Pepe – 6. Looked lively, a great pass to Laca for the PK but could have done more.

Odegaard – 8 – What a game for him. At the heart of our passing and a good goal for him in the end. Played well.

ESR – 7 – An excellent first half, a great strike and unlikely not to score.

Laca – 8 – A goal, a very good performance up front. A constant nuisance. MOTM

Arteta – 8. Great team selection and set-up

A year has gone already since most countries entered into lockdown to limit the spread of Covid-19. The lock-down meant that stadiums could not host home or away fans and that players could finally hear their coach’s instructions on the pitch. No atmosphere, no songs, no noise, no home advantage or hostile stadium…

At the same time, the debate was still raging about the VAR. Some were in favour and some against. Some say that it denatured the game and some said it made if fairer. On my side, I think the VAR is ok but the refs just have too much room to interpret rules as they wish…The lack of consistency cannot be solved by VAR or anything for that matter. Below you will be able to read a passionate plea from LBG about stadium and the VAR. Thanks LBG!

“Today was a bit of a watershed for me, as the Club ask Season ticket holders for confirmation of their personal log in details, presumably in advance of their future request for money.
On another site I offered recently, in a debate whether the 70s/80s/90s players were as good as those of today, my current feelings about the game I have loved all my life.
The best current players, as highly tuned athletes are probably “better”, but the sport is definitely not. Covid has shown us what the sport used to be. It is a shadow of its former self WITHOUT THE PEOPLE THE GAME IS FOR….THE CROWD.! Ordinary people with passion for their team. In their place the new “prima donnas” have have risen up and taken their place on the stage, and I for one am fed up with them – referees, VAR, ” players representatives”, FIFA, UEFA, pundits, newspaper so called experts, are ruining our game as they compete for their 15 minutes.
If we ever get back to full capacity stadiums again, I believe the ordinary supporters are going to rebel if all the “spoilers” are not pushed aside, and the game be allowed to return to relative simplicity. And the Clubs will soon find, if they are not careful, that the rebellion will be led by those ordinary supporters, like me, refusing to pay, no matter how much football and Arsenal is in our blood. Yours truly, LBG”.

So another disappointment in the EPL today. It is becoming a bad habit and within that bad habit, we are now including a new bad habit, which is to give away leads and easy goals right before half-time although we dominate the first half…What a disaster!

A great opening 30 minutes totally thrown away by Xhaka’s howler. We could have scored at least another goal before Xhaka’s mistake. Xhaka has more errors leading to goals than any other EPL players since 2016/7 and amounting to 8 in total. So for all his improvements, there is always an error in him and today, there was the error and a really bad one too. It is going to be the worse EPL mistake of the year by any players…Nowhere to hide, Granit. Nowhere…

The second half was really upsetting, especially the first 15 minutes where Burnley was by far the better team. We were much better once Laca came on and then Pepe also added impetus to our game. We were then robbed of a valid PK by the VAR and then the VAR decided that it was ok to actually do the right thing and not give us the PK for a shoulder clearance from a Burnley defender. But the last 15 minutes of the game were frantic with a sitter missed by Burnley through Wood and another one missed by Pepe: 1-1 also in missed big chances…Yet and in the stoppage time, we were again denied a win by the post after a good shot from Ceballos that had Pope beaten.

So this game kind of summed up our season in the EPL: promising at times, stupid at times and frustrating overall…

Leno – 5.5. A great save vs Woods and some improvements in his aerial abilities but should have just cleared the ball out rather than passing it to Xhaka on the goal.

Chambers – 5.5. A good performance after a long time away.

Luiz – 6.5 – A solid performance overall

Mari – 6. Reliable

Tierney – 6. Not at his best but still one of the ray of lights.

Xhaka – 3.5 – A howler and no revolt in the second half. A game to forget.

Partey – 5. Seems to need more games to get the necessary rhythm back.

Willian – 5.5. A decent performance especially in the first 30 minutes before fading away.

Odegaard – 5. Hardly average. Needs to pass the ball quicker and make more runs.

Saka – 6. Not at his best but still on of the ray of lights.

Auba 5.5. A good goal, a missed chance and then nothing in the second half until that blocked shots in the dying minutes of the game.

Laca – 5. Did add something to our game but did not come to fruition either.

Pepe – 5.5. Should have been awarded a PK, had a great look at goal on his volley but also missed a sitter. Conflicting performance but clearly added a threat.

Arteta – 5 – He will feel like we should have won but could not find a way to win the game. Another draw. Another 2 points dropped.

There is a debate about whether Arteta helped develop players since his arrival. I think overall some players have improved – whether it is due to him directly or whether it s through the Academy, assistant coach…we will never really know. We can just look at our players since he arrived and see if they have improved. Here is a list of Most Improved Players since December 2020:

1. Saka – our club’s gem. From a young player to a leader on the pitch…
2. Xhaka – from being a less than average player with lots of errors and red cards in him that polarized a lot of negative views to a reliable midfielder, he is proving many critics wrong despite the occasional stupid mistake
3. Pepe – Still finding his feet but clearly improving some aspects of his game

….

Anyways, what are your thoughts? Do you think that players have improved since Arteta took over and which is the Most Improved One?

For those that speak a bit of Spanish, Cebolla means onion. Onions are quite an interesting thing:

• Onions are vegetables, not fruits. Onions are often mistaken as fruits because onion bulbs can be used to grow new onion plants asexually. It is a bit like Ceballos: maybe he is a central midfielder after all who was mistakenly taken for an attacking midfielder until he joined Arsenal?
• Onions, you either love them or hate them but in any case, you cannot be indifferent to them. Some say, they do not like it because when you cut them, they make you cry. Some say, they don’t like them because of its taste or because they can’t digest them. Some say, that life without onion is a sin because they add so much flavour and fragrance to food and that they also love onion rings. It is a bit like Ceballos: He does not leave anyone indifferent: he can make you cry like the Benfica game or he can make you happy like his first game with us BUT we all recognize his game has flair.
• Onions have many layers and so does Ceballos’ game. Ceballos is now a more rounded player, he has definitely added defensive ability to his game, he is tackling more, intercepting more but this has come to the detriment of his attacking outputs. I think that everything will tick this season or next season for him. His passing is still on the high-end of the spectrum and he can definitely drive the ball forward.

So, the question is: what do we do with him at the end of the season? We have nurtured him since last season and I feel like he is developing well as a player. He is still only 24 and I think that at 25 Mln EUR, we should try to secure him. It seems that Arteta wants him to play as an 8 so let us do that. I think he is more important than Odegaard and between the 2, I d keep Ceba without any disrespect to Odegaard.

How do you feel about onions and how do you feel about Dani? I am not a fan of onions but I d like to keep Ceballos!