It’d nice to see an Aguero farewell with a CL trophy and heavenly if they win it courtesy another stoppage time Agueerrroooooooo
Conversely, who do you think had/ is having a stinker of a tournament?
Ruben Dias for me. After being praised so much throughout the season AND winning player of the season, he was absolutely rinsed by Germany. In the rest of the games too he looked very suspect and I only saw Pepe doing most of the defensive work.
In attack, Mbappe is the obvious name that comes to mind.
Kind of poetic that in the worst finals performance of Messi, Argentina finally win a trophy!
La Pulga gets the elusive!
Neymar had a great game, let down by his teammates in the end.
On a side note, saw a few Sinovac ads and couldn’t help but associate some conspiracy in the whole Covaxin deal suspension in Brazil
Does anyone else feel Arsenal are driven a lot by emotions and mentality instead of the quality of the players?
Certainly you need to have a minimum requisite ability, but after that on different match days the team performs starkly different not because of the players or the tactical setup but their mentality.
A decently good squad against Nottingham, poor gameplay because the players didn’t seem up to it. A depleted squad against Liverpool 4 days later, went down to 10 men and churned out an exceptional performance. Same story against City, despite not having anywhere the same level of excellence they gave City a run for their money.
Tottenham game, at home, important match, churned out a great 1st half display. United game, very important, hadn’t won at Old Trafford since several years, United in a poor form, recently sacked their manager, went 1-0 up with a near fluke and then eventually lost. For most of the game it felt like Arsenal didn’t believe in themselves, I believe a win at OT wasn’t out of the reach if only they weren’t scared(?).
Everton game, possibly the worst performance in the league this season. A very winnable game lost due to mental complacency.
A lot of the Arsenal players are just not right in the head. There seems to be a clear void of leadership. I like Xhaka but he’s not going to become captain anytime soon, plus he’s a very polarising figure so maybe it won’t happen again at all. Apart from him, mentally strong individuals are in short supply here at Arsenal.
At one time I was growing in confidence about a top 4 finish but recent results and developments have ended that optimism. Nothing short of a near miracle can ensure a ‘good’ transfer window. Haven’t plugged the midfield gap, still don’t have a striker, don’t have a decent backup for Tomi.
The Vlahovic saga was pretty embarrassing and now unless Edu does a deadline day Wenger, Arsenal would definitely miss top 4, an omission of their own making entirely.
@KingSlayer23 I disagree on Arteta. Sure he isn’t a Guardiola, Klopp or Conte but he certainly isn’t in the league of OGS (can’t say much about Lampard, haven’t watched his teams enough)Arteta certainly has tactical nous and his style is distinctly visible in the team now. OGS wasn’t ever tactically excellent and he also lacked the requisite coaching competence (as corroborated by sources inside the club)Right now it’s more of if the club can support the manager with signings he wants because he’s the first manager in the last 5-6 years at Arsenal who’s atleast given a good competition to top clubs.
Look, OGS did a lot of good despite the shortcomings of the coaching staff, the team Mourinho left behind had become highly dysfunctional and the way he revived the team last season in Prem was commendable (especially after the abysmal start and that 1-6 hammering). Everyone is entitled to their opinion so I can't say you are wrong but I don't think one can reach the final of the Europa league or score 9 goals in one PL game or defeat Guardiola 3 times a season, etc, etc. without distinct tactical clarity. He had a playing style but he didn't have the cutting edge coaching ability to win trophies.
Personally, I would not mind if Arsenal continues with Arteta for several years :P
Mate I don’t think you got what I’m saying. I mean OGS isn’t tactically ‘excellent’. He definitely knows his stuff which helps in getting the results you’ve mentioned. But at the same time he also oversaw some pretty pathetic games. Sometimes it’s weird seeing so many United fans defend OGS despite him clearly not being enough. I’m not even talking about things from a results perspective. If you look at results, Arteta due to his 8th place finishes shouldn’t have a job. I tend to view things in context, so even if Emery had better or similar results compared to Arteta, with him the team wasn’t on any well defined path.
OGS always gave me some Wenger vibes. On days the players clicked, they produced some excellent free flowing football. However with how modern day football is, Wenger wasn’t able to replicate his earlier success and couldn’t sustain his brand of football since it requires the young hunger, innocence etc in the players. Idk if this makes any sense but in OGS and Wenger, I see an attitude of keeping football a ‘beautiful game’ instead of the tactical intricacy it has become nowadays.
United under Ole had a well established squad and I believe he should have delivered much better results. If I remember correctly, he did oversee that game against PSG. Compared to that game, in 2021 his squad didn’t have a visible identity, it was the same overall. As much as I hate United, they didn’t progress under OGS. With Arteta, despite what a lot of people think, there’s a stark change in how Arsenal played in the win against City (2020, FA cup) and the loss against City recently. Despite losing, they actually took the game to City and dominated for a lot of the game. Arsenal currently have the youngest squad in the league, there are serious depth and positional problems and despite this, he’s got the team playing some structured football again.
Ultimately football is a business and it’s the fine margins that will decide the future of managers so I’m not too attached. You may feel my opinion about OGS and Arteta is wrong but it’s not just my own belief. I trust the word of people who’ve been in this game for years when they say how tactically adept someone is. I watch almost all United and Arsenal games, even when exams are near :P plus I try to be as free from bias as I can be.
I’ll judge Arteta when he has a complete squad at his disposal which will definitely take another summer transfer window. On the same note, I hope Rangnick doesn’t move upstairs and continues his manager role at United :P
On a lighter note, I feel that the transfer window is the most entertaining period in football. For reference, someone spotted a Rolls Royce with a number plate reading ‘15 AAK’, which looks like IsaaK, so Arsenal fans are now convinced it’s Isak because the car was recently registered and his agent is apparently in London too. The fans managed to crash the vehicle registration website and are now scouring Instagram stories of his teammates to look for any transfer clues XD
It’s peak silly season and I absolutely love this!
@Arsene ever since I made my last comments I made a case to watch every Arsenal game (given that everyone was so confident about growth under Arteta) and I can't disagree any longer that tactically he has done something really positive with this squad....transfers too now appear to be inch-perfect (read Ramsdale and Odegaard) so yeah barring injuries I feel Arsenal are set to take top 4 spot, they even have a well-spaced fixture to allow good recovery periods.United actually lost onto top 4 hopes after the Burnley draw only and then Watford draw and City loss have more or less sealed their chances...they squandered all the points in easier fixtures long before the testing ones began...there is no hope now
The growth is there but the oncoming fixtures aren’t kind. Arsenal enjoyed a good fixture list in the recent past but now in the crucial period of the season very difficult fixtures are piling up.
Though I’m hopeful, I’m still preparing for disappointment. Liverpool tonigh, Villa on Saturday. Also play Chelsea in a future midweek and then play United on the following Saturday. Still have the London derby to contend with :/
However, if Arsenal prevent a loss today, that would be a proper step up. That being said I’m still very happy with how squad is playing right now and also impressed by their mentality. This team looks like a proper professional no bullshit team. Might not have the best players, but have an amazing team which I’m very proud of :D
