Yesterday’s horror show at Anfield has brought out all the usual media clichés, memes and tropes about Arsenal Football Club. No fight, no leadership, no spirit, no heart, etc.
As readers are familiar, conventional ideas based on feelings and opinions have no appeal to me. There is need to identify the real objective reasons for this sub-standard performance and support real solutions rather than engage in hyperbole and vitriol. That is if we truly care for the club, rather than our own egos.
Arsene Wenger in the post game presser expressed his dissatisfaction with the performance:
“I think from the first to the last minute we were not at the level requested for such a game and not physically, not technically, not mentally were we at the level and we were punished and that’s basically it. You can of course analyse the chances we gave away, but I just think overall that the performance was not at the requested level.”
But he was careful not to offer his opinion as to why it was substandard:
“That’s a question that is very difficult to answer straight away after the game and there are some reasons, but I don’t think I have too much to come out on that now.”
We as fans are entitled to our own opinion. Many have been quick to suggest there was lack of commitment by want-away players prior to the close of the transfer window. Those of us who witnessed a very lackadaisical performance by Samir Nasri in his final game for the club prior to his Manchester City transfer have good reason to believe it is déjà vu all over again.
Outplayed in midfield
While there may be truth about lack of commitment by some team members, I am more concerned about how easily we were outplayed in midfield. Possession statistics are very misleading having Liverpool and Arsenal at 49% and 51% respectively. While Arsenal apparently had superiority, most telling was AFC’s inability to turn possession into goal-scoring opportunities. The data makes horrible reading. Liverpool had 18 shots on goal with 8 on target. In comparison Arsenal had 10 shots on goal, nearly 50% less, but zero on target. Watching the game it was obvious Arsenal’s midfielders were easily pressured and did not have the ability to retain possession or make forward passes into dangerous areas where the forwards could make good shots thus forcing the clearly skittish Kaius to make saves.
Whoscored.com summarized Liverpool’s strengths as the following:
- Created a high number of chances relative to their possession
- Stole the ball often from the opposition
- Were effective at creating goalscoring opportunities from the flanks
- Were effective at creating goalscoring opportunities from counter attacks
- Were strong at finishing
In contrast they concluded Arsenal had “no strengths.” (Brutal.)
Compare this to the similar fixture last year, Sunday, August 14th, at the Emirates when Arsenal lost 3:4 and the same analytics indicated Arsenal’s strengths as:
- Were effective at creating goalscoring opportunities through individual skill
- Were strong at finishing
Those with vibrant memories will recall Arsenal was playing poorly that day. The club was down 1:3 at the 61st minute mark when a certain little Spanish magician entered the fray and from his deep-lying midfield position helped retrieve some honor from a bleak position. It even worsened to 1:4 but Santi helped to stem the tide and bring it to a respectable 3:4 final score.
With Santi starting every game from then onward to October, when he finally succumbed to his current long term injury, Arsenal was an unbeatable force. I have kept banging the point since then. Arsenal’s midfield has a big giant hole, and needs a deep-lying playmaker to make the system work. This is a technically based team that needs technically accomplished players, especially in midfield, to play according to its DNA.
Arsenal’s midfielders are collectively inferior to main rivals
Based on EPL data, the brutal fact is, collectively Arsenal’s current crop of midfielders are arguably of inferior standard when compared to its main EPL rivals. I used data from Whoscored to compare like with like. For midfielders returning to their current teams I compared their 2016-17 data for Goals, Assists and overall Average Rating. By the way Whoscored classifies players like Alexis and Walcott as midfielders when in my opinion they are primarily wide forwards. In these cases and for similar players from other clubs they are excluded from the analysis. Similarly players classified as defenders but who played primarily as defensive midfielders, e.g. Emre Can, I include them in the analysis.
| Club | Goals | Assists | Avg Rating |
| Liverpool | 43 | 30 | 7.27 |
| Manchester City | 24 | 35 | 7.22 |
| Chelsea | 26 | 26 | 7.10 |
| Manchester United | 18 | 16 | 7.09 |
| Tottenham | 34 | 27 | 7.00 |
| Arsenal | 16 | 25 | 6.92 |
The data makes somber reading for all gooners. Among the top-6, of the returning midfielders from 2016-17 Arsenal is dead last in goals-scored and second from last in assists. Top of the list is Liverpool and hopefully the data should shut up the screaming imbeciles who think they are chopped liver.
What most concerns me is that although Wenger has bought quality players in Lacazette and Kolosinac to improve the forward-line and defense repectively, unlike his main rivals he has been unable to sign a top-top midfielder. Liverpool has brought Salah as an AM and he was rated 7.48 in the Scudetto, United has bought Matic who had a 7.01 overall rating at Chelsea last year, City has bought Silva who had a 7.29 rating in Ligue Une and Chelsea bought Bakayoko who brings a 7.27 overall rating from Monaco.
I am not arguing that any of these new players will suddenly become world class at their new clubs but they are clearly making an effort to strengthen with at least 7/10 players. Apart from Ozil, all other midfielders at Arsenal were less than 7/10 last year. This I would suggest is the root of Arsenal’s current midfield woes.
In my last blog I argued Arsenal will challenge based on the consistency of the club and its manager over the past 21 years and the evident efforts to strengthen the squad this season. The emotional outpouring of wailing and gnashing of teeth after the Liverpool defeat strengthens my contrarian conviction. There was a similar outpouring last year and the margin of defeat was far less. The data leads me to the conclusion that the manager knows where the weakness lie and will use the last days of the transfer window to try find a fix.
PS: I must take a temporary leave of absence from blogging to take care of some pressing issues. Hoping to return after the international break.
Positively Arsenal 
the Algerian FA’s official twitter feed has revealed that Mahrez has been allowed leave their squad to complete a transfer to a new club
he has been linked to many clubs, latest being that he is back up choice for Barca if they don’t get Couthino
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Mandy
So many conflicting reports, as always, about our financial situation. To my simple mind, an owner withholding let alone withdrawing (don’t even know if that’s possible) money the club has itself earned is an absolute bum.
An owner who gets the club do whatever the hell it wants with its own money but has no inclination to use a dollar of his own is just an ambivalent figure, you can praise him for showing sanity in a mad world or curse him for not being a sugar daddy and saviour, but ultimately he’s just there, not good or evil, Lord or Devil.
What’s this guy? I don’t know. I lean towards at least a bit of a git, but i don’t know. If Wenger’s the man I think he is, I’m not sure how he could tolerate the club’s own money, earned through football and commercial activities, being held back. Not now.
Finally, worth considering that an owner who simply does nothing and adds nothing would probably look a bit like an owner taking stuff away in the current environment, purely because of what other clubs and owners are doing, i.e. straining, risking, diddling books I expect, taking loans (if that still goes on much) and, as we know in a few cases, putting in massive amounts.
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Perhaps Arsenal have alreDy bumped up massive pay rsies to several key players ? “Pay them what they want, Vengah !!!” was the fans demand just a month ago.
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Final transfer day
Lucas deal hasn’t happened yet
Mustafi is still at club – that could all have been bullshit.
Replacement for Ox.
Left Back cover.
This central midfielder person, all needed unless Santi Cazoerla turns up after the international break in Shining armour stiding a white unicorn.
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Why do we need a replacement for the Ox? what of Iwobi / Walcott / Campell?
Left back? why was Gibbs let go? thot it was cause we got Saed K?
Hope Mustafi stays… plus Kos, Per, Chambers, Holding
Santi is really missed and so rare to replace… what of Wilshere?
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What the flaming Nora is going on at Arsenal???
It looks like asset stripping!
And I cannot fathom why Wenger would sanction any of it. The talk of Mustafi leaving is the most bonkers story that refuses to go away.
I wanted Ox to stay obviously but he seems to be getting duff advice and has ideas above his station. All the time spent injured and now he fucks off in a huff? Twat.
The club is a shambles and so are the performances. Next home game should be an insight to general fan feeling and I’m not looking forward to going!!
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George
I hope you didn’t mind my mini rant? I had to get it off my chest and this place seems the most sane!!
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Dexter .. rant away… that’s a sound enough rant.
the performance vs pool warrants a rant all by itself talkless of the follow-up dramatics…
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DC Inter have said they tried for Mustafi, but it looks like AFC won’t do the deal as can’t get the replacement they want, namely Johnny Evans.
Monreal is left back cover
ox replacement, well its back up to Bellerin, so will probably now be Ainsley Maitland-Niles
12 hours of the window left, lots of players who still need to be moved out of arsenal, we wait to see if Alexis will be one of the out going
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Arsene Wenger missed the Uefa coaches conference yesterday, the first time he has missed it, and it has been this close to the end of the window before. Sounds like he is working hard on things
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latest rumors
Arsenal happy with their transfer business,
bid from LCFC for Chambers turned down
Mustafi move to Inter is off, he is staying
Perez still looking to get loan move to deportivo
Debuchy to get his contract cancelled by mutual consent and he will sign for Marseille
Alexis will only leave if Arsenal can get Draxler
Arsenal favorites to sign Mahrez
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statement by Kujtim Mustafi reads: “I am his agent and I’m sitting here relaxing at home. Nothing will happen today.
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Arsenal will not accept a Deadline Day cash offer for Alexis Sanchez, according to Sky sources.
The Gunners believe they have done good business in selling Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain for a fee understood to be £35m while in the last year of his contract, but want to keep hold of Sanchez as they do not have enough time to sign a suitable replacement.
Arsenal insist they have not received any further offers for Sanchez after rejecting a £50m bid from Manchester City.
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the transfer window in Spain does not close till tomorrow
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reports that Arsenal have asked LCFC for £28M for Calum Chambers, LCFC have offered £20M
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Newcastle and Everton in for Lucas Perez
Arsenal linked with Barkley again – find this one funny as fuck
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this on Arsenal.com will boil piss
’My phone is red-hot on transfer deadline day’
After 84 days, the summer transfer window will close on Thursday night.
It’s one of the most stressful days of the year for many managers – so what does a typical deadline day entail for Arsène Wenger?
“I wake up very early every day, transfer deadline day or not,” the boss told Arsenal Player. “You’re on alert and you look around Europe. The phone is red-hot most of the time.
“It depends whether you’re a buyer or a seller, or whether you’re both. If you’re a buyer, you have to put pressure on a club very early because you know you need some time for administration, for regulations, to get approval from the Premier League, to finalise their contracts.
“Usually, your lawyers inside the club are on alert and know they will have a sleepless night. Then there’s a transfer deadline that you have to respect. Usually, it’s not an enjoyable day because it’s a huge pressure on the day.
“When you sell, it’s similar because the club who buys has to make the decision and the player has to agree on the last day. There’s a lot of uncertainty on the day and sometimes that is the most difficult thing.
“You have four or five different cases and then you share the work. One does that, one does that, and so on. Overall, you have to coordinate and you call each other a lot.
“Afterwards, you want to sort out all of the practical problems, such as where they stay, how quickly can they find a house, what sort of shape are they in. You make a physical test to see whether they’re ready to start or not.
“Usually you have a week to test the players because it’s international break. Sometimes they don’t even come back here before the end of the international break because they go away with their national team. There’s a lot of practical details to sort out afterwards.”
Copyright 2017 The Arsenal Football Club plc. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit being given to http://www.arsenal.com as the source.
Read more at https://www.arsenal.com/news/my-phone-red-hot-transfer-deadline-day#1pKijwhFHpGAioUL.99
Read more at https://www.arsenal.com/news/my-phone-red-hot-transfer-deadline-day#YsrrUxmfHvM0LQS8.99
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Arsenal confirm the sale of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to Liverpool
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Arsenal think they’ve done good business?
Christ on a bike. It’s all about making a profit! That’s their goal.
I can’t see us being any stronger than last year and we are up against at least three teams who on paper at least are stronger than last season.
Even at my most optimistic I can’t even see us finishing fifth.
Something needs to give at the club. It’s just fucking wrong and smacks of complacency or mis management. Or both.
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West Ham in for Jack Wilshere, season long loan, not sure if that means Jack has signed a new deal or if it would mean he is gone just to get him off the pay roll
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Dexter the “Arsenal think they have done good business” is directly in reference to the sale of ox
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£40M for ox is good business
but as it stands AFC over £25M in profit this window
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Matt Law reporting that AFC have told Wilshere he is free to leave
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Joel Campbell joining Betis
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Mahrez is set to join Barcelona
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according to SKY Virgil Van Dijk has left the Southampton training ground in the back of a blacked out car.
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the whole “arsenal have no money” thing seemingly is that we have to lower our wage bill, under the rules of the new TV deal a club can only rise their wage bill by 7% from the TV revenue increase, year on year, it can be risen from new or improved commercial deals, so AFC need to get wages down so they can pay new bigger contracts or any new signings. That is the whole “too many players” line,
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reports in Spain that AFC have agreed to loan Lucas Perez back to Deportivo for the season.
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Wilshere free to leave? Not free to leave on a free though,right? That would be too fecking weird.
Strange anyway if he’s off, or sad, when I think it was only a bleeding week ago I watched him for the reserves and saw so much of the old special talent in there.
I’d almost completely accepted it was over here before that.
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well rich it would be an odd one to let jack go on a season loan, even if we get a fee for it, as he only has 1 year left on his contract, so without an extension he would basically be going on a free now.
With ox gone, and cazorla still some time from a return it means without any new midfield signing we are on the bare bones, any injuries or suspension and we could be well short. Maybe there is some truth in the rumor of interest in Barkley
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9 and a half hours left in the window, I’m away off for a few hours, hopefully when I next log in Arsenal will have sold the players they don’t want and signed the players they do want. You never know we could get Draxler, Van Dijk and a CM, we can dream can’t we, well for next 9 and a half hours anyway. ha ha
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All things considered, other than Neymar’s move, bugger all unexpected or obviously significant has happened this transfer window
In spite of the World War One style heavy bombardment from the usual channels.
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Ed im pretty sure we won’t be getting VD
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Eduardo
No it said the whole transfer window. Not just selling Ox
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Oh shut up Dexter you tart
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Ahahaha
You plonker
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Ani
Would you keep Sanchez? I don’t get why it would be so terrible to keep him till his contract runs out we signed Saed on a free. Why is it so terrible if our plays honour their contracts.
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keep Sanchez, why should we strengthen an opponent…
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I like Sanchez Dex – I have no problem with our dynamic Chilean wearing the cannon for as long as he wants – great little player
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I want shot of Alexis if we can get Lemar, who in contrast is unselfish and can pick out a pass. Additionally he can dribble out of midfield unlike those present, beat his man in 1v1s and has a very good left peg. That’s my brain speaking not my heart.
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So it is going to cost the club £92 million to fill that giant hole left by Santi. Not even I could imagine it would be so expensive.
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Donyell Malen has joined Dutch side PSV Eindhoven in a permanent move for an undisclosed fee.
Read more at https://www.arsenal.com/news/malen-signs-psv-eindhoven#kO56tl8bDKFlDOai.99
Read more at https://www.arsenal.com/news/malen-signs-psv-eindhoven#y7lLRMepf21c6eTy.99
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shotta has he not turned us down,
Wenger is now in Paris, so we are being linked with Draxler and Rabiot from PSG
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Bbc reporting man city drops Alxis pursuit.
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I genuinely do not understand this last minute transfer madness.
Nothing makes sense with arsenal’s transfers
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TFL: It’s simple. Clubs usually get better deals on the last day of the market. Sellers must seller. Its like a produce market, you get bargains at the end of the day. Markets are different. Ex: In a fish market all the best fish is sold early. But if you don’t care about quality then you will get loads of poor quality fish on the cheap.
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TFL why only Arsenal transfers, Man City’s first bid for Alexis was last night, second one was not till middle of today.
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I suppose Arsenal as I really don’t bother with other teams that much. For us if we could bid 92 odd for lemar I am thinking we could have wrapped this up much earlier. I also the turmoil of the recent week or two with players clamouring to leave and getting ranked by Liverpool makes potential signings difficult as the reconsider.
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