Hi all.
There we have it, our first league defeat and well earned it was.
We kicked off with three defensive midfielders with little or no creativity between them ,and low and behold , we created nothing, zilch, nada, nowt. The first half hour, 11 v 11, was awful turgid stuff which resulted with zero attempts on goal. It was slow laborious stuff and we turned the ball over cheaply time and time again. By the way, they were far form being good. It was poor. But what is most annoying is that we set up in a way that “poor” was almost inevitable.
Then, yet again, we got a man sent off for the third time this season, because of careless play, and for the third time……stupidity. Trossard’s ball was a shocker, but Saliba absolutely fooked the job up when he yanked him down. It was a red, sorry, but it just was. We the tried to cling on for a draw, like we have managed to do the two previous times, but this time without Saliba. We needed a miracle, and didn’t get it.
So I’ll say this now, and it’s not a knee jerk reaction, this has been coming. We have not been playing as well as our lofty league position suggests. Results have been better than performances in general. We are fantastically solid in defence, that’s a fact, but fluidity and flare are thin on the ground, with Saka being the only bright spark in these two dimensions, and one individual isn’t enough in a team game.
Now we go into the Liverpool game minus Saliba. Here’s hoping.
Pedantic George.
Positively Arsenal 
once again Arteta in his after game presser seemed to be convinced that the only thing wrong with our performance was that Martinelli did not score the one and only chance we had, Mikel believes that was all we should have needed to win this game, maybe he is right, maybe if we had taken the lead with our only chance we would have won the game, but for me there is something fundamentally wrong with a game plan that relies on scoring the one or two chances you create.
our squad was left 3 players short in the summer, and the 22 we have includes several who are very injury prone, and we know Arteta does not trust the youth, so we left ourselves handicapped, and so far this season we have had lots of injuries and suspensions, our squad is not built for either, but if you mention this you get accused of being arteta out
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Yep it was awful and we set up to play backwards and retain possession rather than instinctively going forward. Trossard’s ball, although poorly executed, was one of hundred going backwards as if Bournemouth had just won the champions league and not a bang average side in the Premier League who like all sides can cause you trouble at their place.
That said in most circumstances in recent seasons incidents that far from goal are automatically given a yellow and to overturn that it must be a clear and obvious mistake by the ref.
With distance from goal, the ball going down the right channel and Ben not having to get to the ball but simply get between striker and goal once the striker had collected it, only a clairvoyant would know if it was denying a goal scoring opportunity. It was decision we wouldn’t of got.
To make things worse the demon of the Pigmol is sitting in the stands earpiece in and texting while the VAR decision was made. Now am I saying there was skulduggery going on, well maybe.
Three games where we haven’t got maximum points and three games with red cards.
Yes we haven’t been brilliant in all three games but some sides don’t have to be.
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Ed, you are 100% correct last season’s squad was better but Mikel and Edu have always favoured the buy-ins rather than the academy. In the end Eddie, Emile and Reiss had to follow Martinez and Willock out the door just to get any kind of football. You can fully understand Obi-Martin, the latest in a long line of youth players, who are walking out early.
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Yes, it was disappointing but I felt that we were beginning to work our way into the game just before the red card. Stirling was starting to see more of the ball and a bit of momentum was building. Who knows what would have happened had it stayed 11v11 but it takes no great stretch of the imagination to think it could have ended up as a fairly uninspiring but ultimately moderately efficient 2-0 win. I think (being fair) a small and dryish pitch, new midfield and forward combinations, and the disruption of the international break were unlikely to see sparkling football from the word go.
Still (even in these transitional times) Aunties don’t suddenly become Uncles so all that’s left is to moan about inconsistent refereeing and disappointing managerial decisions, hope for rather better next time and to keep fingers crossed for the return of our two most creative attackers.
I’ve been lucky in the ticket ballot for the first time, so am Emirates bound for the Shakhtar match. I shall take my cub-reporter’s notebook with me.
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