Good day one and all.
This is supposed to be the match preview of our game against Fat Sam and his gang of relegation standard players, but honestly, I neither care nor can be bothered writing it.
There is zero interest in this game and even less in it from me. Is there anyone left that is looking forward to watching our team? For me it’s become a chore, something I feel obliged to do, but frankly it feels like a complete waste of my time. This game and the next few will tell us nothing other than whether we finish towards the top of midtable or towards the bottom.
The season has lurched from one disappointment to the next. From the moment the season started without Ozil in the team, I have predicted a bottom half finish, that ignominy might be avoided, but it’s touch and go.
Arteta has his tried and trusted PR ,with variations of “I take full responsibility for everyone else being crap”
He has made one crippling balls up after another.
We are 10th in the league, went out of both domestic cups early door and failed to grasp the lifeline of the Europa league, despite not once having to play a half decent team. I don’t believe there is a single valid ecuse for this season’s debacle.
This is not a great squad of players, but, it is no worse than the 5th best in the league, so we need a coach that can at minimum achieve that. Arteta is not that man.
The project has failed, He has failed and if we as fans, and a club, fail to see this failure, then we will be getting exactly what we deserve.
I think we are stuck with the owners and their business model, but we shouldn’t be stuck with Arteta.I don’t care who bought the players, how much they cost, how long their contract tie us to them, the first job of the manager is to get them at least performing to their par. Their par is not this.
So that’s me for today, Mr. Happy . Sorry, but “POSITIVELY Arsenal” today, I am not!
Pedantic George.
Positively Arsenal 
Says the man who damned UE from before day 1 and called for Arteta “only man for the job”
LikeLike
You are right Stan, I was 100%wrong about Arteta . Something I never deny.
LikeLike
Arteta should commit Hara Kiri
LikeLike
Unai Emery was damned before he was appointed as he couldn’t speak the language. It was a stupid appointment.
Proven top level PL coaches were too good for the Kronke’s:
Benitez
Rodgers
etc.
Appointing a proven and experienced No.2 like Phelen at Utd.? No point in the Arsenal fans kidding themselves is there? Kia or Edu do not want anyone else interfering with their work! This is simple stuff, for any simple mind. Sven said it! Not me. Quotes are there.
Arteta is just a well dressed puppet. He lost all respect in the camp/club/wider sport with that Ozil call. Not even Mourinho…Rookie Arteta never had any hope after he kowtowed to the super agents early doors. He’s not a coach. He’s a marketing agent. A bad one.
It’s over. The lack of fans at this time will draw this sorry story out.
LikeLiked by 1 person
What’s funny is how quickly the pirouette from the parasitical blaggers and youtubers has been.
A graceless shameless turn to simply repeat what George and Shotta have been saying the whole season long, when all season long they were slagging George off for saying what they are saying now. Shameless hypocrites who only look to the lowest common denominator, the bottom dollar. I have a newsflash for them: Clicks will be down for a mid table club.
As with Emery the self appointed spokesmen of the fans are months and months behind the curve of what the fans are actually thinking and saying to each other. How many football blaggers does it take to pump up a football?
LikeLike
Areta is not the main problem in my eyes.
The problem is with whoever saw fit to hand a rookie manager with no actual managerial experience in any league to be head coach of a multibillion pound outfit.
Rank amateurs at the highest level.
What did they use as a measure to determine that this guy could do any of the things that he said he would do?
Training stories at Man City and a reference from his mate PEP.
No achievements or record in the game as manager to measure against.
Just blind faith.
And they still back him after this further highlights their incompetence.
Raul Sanelhi was another disaster for the club brought in by the same clowns.
Said it before and say it again KSE is damaging for this club. The decline I see in Arsenal started with KSE getting full control of the club and at the time I thought he was better than Usamanov (more fool me).
KSE need to do a lot better and maybe bring in people who have experience and deeper connections with the club. Jack Wilshere was saying they stripped the club of proper Arsenal people and it shows. This club is almost unrecognisable to the one I related to.
” Arsenal had just 21 attacking possessions and Villarreal having 20, both teams seemed very content to probe, see if a mistake would be made, and otherwise settle for 0-0.” – Scott Willis (by the numbers)
Think about the fact that we have had these 2 spanish sadomasochists as managers of a team that played pure attacking football for 22 years, playing the same throughout all age groups based on producing players that will be comfortable within the system now being made for almost 2 years to play a poor man’s Diego Simone system. waste of AW’s good years of work if you ask me.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Well said everyone.
Yet, look at some other blogs and they are happy to advocate more time and more players, with little or no blame going in arteta’s direction, or if there is it us still nor his fault or he should be given another chance.
It is sad that the wishful thinking for so many over the last few months had still not turned to reality.
There is no future with arteta other than more if the same or worse.
I have no problem with him as a player or a person but as a manager he is hopeless.
The longer he hangs on the lesser his chances together another equivalent job.
The more often he blames the players and his predecessors, ie wenger, the worse it will look for him.
Please kroenkes put him and us out if our misery.
I was completely ambivalent about the loss on Thursday night and cannot see me building up any enthusiasm for the next few games either.
2 negatives make a positive. It seems we can no longer have positivity without negatives first.
LikeLike
After hearing Uni speak at the start of season fans event many were enthusiastic, including myself, even though I was unhappy about the way Arsene was treated.
The point about not minding if we win 4-3 as long as we won was a hint towards good attacking football and I certainly didn’t mind his English wasn’t perfect.
However when that type of football never materialised and the football started getting worse and after 18 months his English hadn’t improved it was an indication he was lazy, ignorant or incompetent.
Anyone who needs to learn anew language in their new job and doesn’t deserves to be fired.
As for Mikel the many years of Arsene protests and Uni’s failure has bought him more time than he would normally be allowed. Maybe the SL fiasco has even added to that as well.
Football can change massively very quickly especially in the off season so maybe that’s what we have to hope for although I don’t think there will be much breath holding even amongst those wobs so intent on blaming Arsene for everything that they are still backing Mikel even though the Titanic has already started listing.
There ” I see no ships” attitude is comical at times an incredulous at the same time.
Anyway we have four games to play and I am willing the team, especially those squad youngsters to play with the extra freedom our position allows.
LikeLike
While I’m sure everybody knows by now I’m always hoping for a youthful side (although as ED, has pointed out we cannot hope to see Ballogun and Azeez as they played the other night) whoever plays COYG.
LikeLike
“Anyone who needs to learn anew language in their new job and doesn’t deserves to be fired.“
I agree Ian!
but I’ve yet to see a football coach at any club succeed when they can’t speak to or with their players: what was the thinking behind Emery’s appointment?
“Well bumble along through the first season and then things will improve”?
Was this the same thinking behind appointing Arteta?
What kind of thinking is this?
LikeLike
ian it will likely be the following 18 on show today
Leno, Ryan
Bellerin, Cedric, Chambers, Holding, Gabriel, Tierney
Elneny, Ceballos, Partey
Saka, Pepe, Martinelli, Smith-Rowe, Odegaard
Aubameyang, Lacazette
if any of the attackers are not fit for the squad then maybe Nketiah or Nelson gets in
LikeLike
With Nelson’s season ruined by Kia and Edu brining in Willian and Arteta doing what he is told, Willock etc. it’s hard to see how good young talent at the club will get a chance over some useless chump like Suarez who is signed up to a super agent.
The quotes from Sven were not bitter, nor cynical, he was simply stating the club has chosen a new different model (one they’ve been failing out).
The silence of the petty blaggers on the change of model over the last few years at the club is truly remarkable. They should be called out for this obfuscation.
LikeLike
fins the thinking of appointing Emery was that he was a proven winner in the EL, a very experienced man, even coached PSG, there was little flaw in the notion that he could step in here and do a good job.
I would say there was far more reasoning to appointing Emery than there was in appointing Arteta. With Mikel I think the reasoning was that he just might be the next big thing in management, and we took the punt on him, former captain, Pep’s sidekick, but as time as gone on it looks like we got a Peter Taylor and not a Bob Paisley or Joe Fagan.
It certainly looks like Arteta will be given at least into next season to get it right, maybe the FA Cup win does warrant we give him that time, maybe not. But I do suspect that the opinion put forward by a journo yesterday that Arteta’s PR skills and his communications with Josh and Edu etc are much better to these guys than they are to the players, and so he is still highly thought of by our high ups, and so he will be getting funds for another batch of players this summer, 3 first choice players, a right back, a CM and an ACM, and some squad players too, don’t be surprised to see someone like Bertrand brought in as back up to Tierney. Arrons from Norwich and Bissoume from Brighton for the RB and CM spots, and then its all down to what happens re Odegaard.
The big thing I dislike about Arteta’s pr since Thursday is how he really has put all our problems at the players feet, and suggested that its all gone wrong since he left as a player here five years ago and how he needs to bring in lots more players. That team on Thursday had only 2 players who started for AW in his last home game 3 years ago to the day. Last summers 3 big targets Gabriel didn’t play a minute in the game, Willian was a late sub, and Partey was very poor. Another signing Runarrson was not even eligable to play as he had to be replaced by another new signing mid season.
LikeLiked by 1 person
fins do not try and excuse Arteta for the signing of Willian, as Arteta, Edu and Willian himself all claim Arteta was the driving force on that move, he wanted Willian, bad, he phoned him over and over to convince him to join.
The Arteta PR machine would have us believe that he is a manager for youth, but the evidence at AFC suggests he is far more a manager for experienced players. Saka forced his way in and was so good he could not be left out. ESR came in when we were so bad Arteta had to try something new, well I say new, a No.10 was what we all could see the team needed, but Arteta was not having any of that as long as Ozil was at the club, ESR done enough to keep his place, but the rest of our youth combined barely seen game time.
LikeLike
After seeing LaboGoon, showing his true colors by using Twitter to slag George for this blog I had to make a comment. For 15 years I’ve been on blogs with many of you guys and the worse fan to be associated with is the hyper Gooner who is more pro-Arsenal than the owner or the manager. Then you discover they have no principles when it comes to the style of football or the ethics and values of the management. Many of us supported other blogs until we discovered their principles were lacking or shifted with popular opinion. Suddenly these guys became Wenger-outers, now they are Arteta til I die. Labo Goon has proven he is one of the two. Thank god he revealed himself early in the game.
LikeLike
team is in
Leno
Chambers, Holding, Gabriel, Saka
Elneny, Ceballos
pepe, ESR, Willian
Martinelli
subs Runarsson, Bellerin, Tierney, Cedric, Partey, Odegaard, Lacazette, Aubameyang, Nketiah
LikeLiked by 1 person
so Cedric can’t get a game even with Tierney out and a change at right back too, isn’t it great we got him on a four year deal, key signing and all
LikeLike
wba: Johnstone, Furlong, Bartley, Ajayi, Townsend, Yokuslu, Gallagher, Phillips, Pereira, Robinson, Diagne.
Subs: Button, Robson-Kanu, Livermore, Diangana, Peltier, O’Shea, Grant, Gardner-Hickman, Taylor
LikeLike
FT: West Ham 0-1 Everton
that puts EFC 6pts ahead of AFC with the same number of games played
LikeLike
Why should anyone try to understand what Arteta is getting at?
Looks like a team for treading water.
I have no BT and am not concerned.
LikeLike
Eds I can’t believe a word of the PR behind the signings though maybe Arteta had a role.
For me he’s still a rookie coach in Edu’s paw.
West Brom starting well against the rookies team.
Took the commentators three minutes to reflect that it is strange it took Arteta till today to try Saka at LB after Tierny’s injury given that Saka got into the England team earlier in the season as a LB/LWB.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Only West Brom but it took 15 mins to show that he was always the better option over Xhaka at LB.
LikeLike
Emile Smith-Roweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee 1-0 to the Arsenal, a great finish from six yards out from a Saka ball in
LikeLike
Pepeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee oh what a great long range strike from pepe to make it 2-0 to the Arsenal
LikeLike
No surprise it’s Saka’s assist for the opening goal after he found his range from LB and his team mates started to find him after the opening spell of the match.
Playing Xhaka at LB was a truly bad move.
Not an easy chance, not had any easy chances yet and for me that is a top class finish from ESR.
Followed up by Pepe finding space for the first time as West Brom tire a little. Another good finish. 12th goal for Pepe.
LikeLike
HT: Arsenal 2-0 West Brom
Smith-Rowe and Pepe with fine goals to give us a two goal lead. WBA started very brightly but it came to nothing, and once we scored we have had them in big trouble. Saka having a great attacking game from left back
LikeLike
Willian and Saka having fun down the left vs the useless Furlong. Am impressed.
LikeLike
I also was a big supporter of Arteta’s appointment.
This was because my confidence in who the club would appoint was low following the Emery appointment. Not only language issues but a poor record with flair attacking players etc.
And because of the fear that the rumours surrounding Mourinho at the time were more then rumours. Then again even Mourinho knew how to manage Ozil.
I agree he’ll be here next season. No point endlessly moaning but something does seem odd when some plundits say they can’t comment why certain players get selected. Hopefully the young players will continue to impress and force their way in.
LikeLike
not sure how we did not score another one there
LikeLike
lacazette on for martinelli who really never got into the game
LikeLike
robson kanu gets a yellow for giving elneny a bloody lip
LikeLike
tierney on for ESR
LikeLike
Sam Dean
@SamJDean
·
5m
Kyle Bartley with a rallying cry for his troops: “Come on, one goal and they’ll shit themselves”
and a few minutes later we let in an awful goal defensive wise, we let a guy run the length of the pitch and score. Woeful defending
LikeLike
after being very much on top, we are now hanging on, 15 minutes plus stoppage time left to play
LikeLike
Williannnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn with his first Arsenal goal, a freekick from 30 yards out, beats the keeper on his near side. Fine freekick
WBA now relegated
LikeLike
Three fine finishes.
The next game will tell us more.
LikeLike
FT Arsenal 3-1 WBA
ESR, Pepe and Willian with our goals. There goal was a length of the field solo goal, awful defending from us on it.
We started slowing, then got in to it, scored and took over, wasted some good chances, and then let them back into it and it was nervy for a while, but worthy winners in the end and Big Fat Sam and WBA are relegated from the EPL.
LikeLike
4pts off spurs in 7th, 3 games left for each of us, we have Chelsea next, then Crystal palace and Brighton. CFC might put out a weakened team on Wednesday as they ahve cup final on Saturday
LikeLike
REDaction Gooners
@REDactionAFC
Ceballos, Willian start on Wednesday- we riot
this REDaction is meant to be a fan group, they get lots of support from the club, lots of interaction with the club, and this is the sort of shit the tweet
LikeLike
Good to know the big blaggers are willing to give Arteta more time.
Shame they weren’t willing to give more to time to another manager who won a cup then came fifth.
#transparentfrauds
LikeLike
The XG for the West Brom game.
Oh my.
There’s a thing about this style of football:
It was shit with one of the best squads in the history of the game with Mourinho at Chelsea.
And: it doesn’t get better with poorer teams.
It is, in fact, by the numbers: a shit style of football.
How many youtubers or arsehole blaggers does it take to point this out?
A simple truth known by all in football?
How many billy big blaggers does it take to pump up a football? What a shower!
LikeLike
The funny part is all the WOBs are now going on about ESR and Saka and why they are the only exciting thing about this team when those are the 2 players who are trained in the Wenger style of play since they were kids.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Oh no, it’s all down to Mikel obviously.
I’m noticing the media and pundits all seem to be selling the whole Arteta needs his players for his big project etc etc. Stinks to me, the same way they harangued Wenger for years till the fan base started they are trying to prolong the Arteta project because they know it will harm the club. Apparently if you don’t back Arteta 100% you are not a real supporter. I hope things get better but I’m not holding my breath.
LikeLike
I find it amusing that Arsenal Women, needing a draw to finish third on points, and Aston Villa Women, needing a draw to survive relegation, played to a 0-0. Just like the old days in Serie A!
LikeLike
900ft arsenal had already secured 3rd spot as our goal difference was over 25 goals better than man utd’s women,
I see Jill Roord has left arsenal womens team today, after a great season, seems AFC are signing or have signed a replacement for her, Aston villa’s Japan international Mana Iwabuchi
LikeLike
it will be interesting to see who will be arsenal women’s new manager
LikeLike
A new podcast is up
LikeLike