Thought I'd start a thread for Arsenal as I'm feeling quite optimistic for the season ahead. A young squad that showed plenty of promise without actually achieving anything is being bolstered with some astute purchases.
Gabriel Jesus is a very astute signing imo. I don't see him as a City cast off. Guardiola, though undeniably a fantastic manager has issues with centre forwards. Even Aguero wasn't a guaranteed starter and I think the young Brazilian has fallen victim to that as well. Guaranteed a starting position and he should really thrive.
I don't know much about Vieira but his name promises greatness!
Zinchenko is another excellent City player and if Arteta can entice him to Arsenal with the promise of a guaranteed starting position that's another amazing addition.
The only fly in the ointment is the fact that in Conte, spurs have finally found a serious manager and one who seems able to get Levy to open his purse much wider than usual. They have brought in some excellent players and will provide dangerous competitors.
Of course the crucial question is how close we will get to City and Liverpool. Closer perhaps but not close enough. Chelsea will be stiff opposition too. I predict the United car crash to continue!
Deal done for Zinchenko. That's great news. Excellent player. Really improves the squad
Currently beating Sevilla 6-0 in a pre-season friendly. Cause for optimism for the Arsenal fans there.
Yes, definite reasons for optimism. Palace on Friday will give us a better understanding of where this team is I think though. Jesus seems to have brought a real fluidity to forward play. He's not a bad finisher either!
No Tomiyasu, Tierney, Smith Rowe or new signing Vieira today which shows how squad strength has been improved. Also shows that we're still pretty injury prone!
Tough game after it looked like it was going to be a walk in the park. Palace turned the screw after we scored. The defence played well and new boy Saliba was brilliant - composed and clinical.
2 0 was perhaps a little tough on Palace but that's a great result to take from Selhurst Park
Leicester provided quite a stern challenge yesterday but the quality of Arsenal's forward play was the difference.
Jesus really looks like he wants to prove a point and his contributions were excellent, with 2 goals and 2 assists and pretty unlucky not to get a hat-trick. Martinelli had a brilliant game too. He has really matured this season and seems much stronger both in possession and in the tackle. Having his fellow countryman alongside him is firing him up.
The energy of the whole team throughout the game was excellent, especially considering the conditions out there.
Saliba was very unlucky with the own goal but it was great to see the support he got, both from the crowd and his team mates after it happened.
Early days but its hard not to begin to feel very confident with how the team is playing.
I listened to that one on the bike, very entertaining game.
Another impressive win this evening 3 - 0 at Bournemouth. It felt like the team had plenty more to give, but it wasn't necessary! Saliba with a quality finish from 20 yards was the icing on the cake
Villa were pretty dirty last night. They also really rode their luck with a goal direct from a corner and Arsenal missing countless chances.
It was very sweet to get the winning goal immediately after they scored though and cut their celebrations very short!
Injuries beginning to mount in typical Arsenal style. I wonder if any of Partey, Zinchenko, Elneny, Odegaard and Ramsdale will be fit to the trip to Old Trafford on Sunday. With United finding a bit of form it should be a good game.
Just seen that after this is how long it took Arsenal to score after conceding this season (this has happened 4 times)
2
1
8
3
That shows a very good mentality. Hopefully we can keep it going.
There's no doubt that the Arsenal squad is inferior to that of City and almost certainly that of Liverpool. Jury's out with Chelsea, United, Newcastle and Spurs but there's no doubt this season's Arsenal team is a major upgrade on last season.
Deadline day for transfers today, wonder who will strengthen still further. Talk of corner scorer from last night Douglas Luiz joining Arsenal
Tough to lose the game today especially after having dominated for long periods.
The game really swung on the 3 subs made by Arteta after United got their second. We were really on top and the goal was to totally against the run of play. The disruption caused by changing the 3 players at once led to United's third as the team was not set but we also ceded control for the rest of the game.
3 subs at once should only really be made as a Hail Mary. When you're so far behind either tactically or on the scoreline that the team really needs to shake things up. It may not work but it may pay off.
To do it when you're the better team makes no sense. I really hope Arteta learns from this
Great result and performance yesterday. On paper this looked a tricky fixture yet Brentford were completely nullified. They barely laid a glove on Arsenal throughout the 90 minutes.
After the annoying international break it's Spurs. Can't wait!
Good win against Spurs team who I was reasonably confident that we would beat.
Yes they've started the season well but I wasn't in awe of their performances whenever I watched them.
They didn't deserve the point they got against Chelsea and I thought the big win against Leicester really flattered them.
We were too good for them on the day and even though the result was put to bed by the sending off, I was sure we were heading for victory before that happened.
Looking forward to Sunday, I'd happily settle for a point right now 😉
Quote from: Ali on October 05, 2022, 11:20:44 AMLooking forward to Sunday, I'd happily settle for a point right now 😉
Liverpool over recent seasons have regularly comfortably dispatched the Gunners. I'll be happy if we can make things a bit more difficult for you!
Quote from: dom on October 05, 2022, 11:52:45 AMQuote from: Ali on October 05, 2022, 11:20:44 AMLooking forward to Sunday, I'd happily settle for a point right now 😉
Liverpool over recent seasons have regularly comfortably dispatched the Gunners. I'll be happy if we can make things a bit more difficult for you!
I'm in no doubt you most certainly will Dom 😁
Well we managed that and even managed a win. Not quite sure why Liverpool are struggling so much this season. They were excellent yesterday.
9 wins out of 10 is a fantastic start but I'm not counting any chickens just yet. I remember a season , early to mid eighties when United (probably under Ron Atkinson) won their first 10 matches. I seem to remember them sinking without trace after that.
Edit, it was actually the 85, 86 season. Here's an article about it ...
https://www.fourfourtwo.com/features/when-manchester-united-won-their-first-10-games-and-still-gifted-title-liverpool
Mad to think how football has changed since then, no live football and following Heysel, no European football for English clubs.
I was a little premature with my previous post. We hit 9 wins from 10 matches today. Toughest game of the season to get there too.
Leeds were fantastic today and Arsenal really rode their luck. The 2nd half, in particular, was a real tough watch. They harried us and pushed the normally composed Saliba way out of his comfort zone.
I think that was arguably the best performance by an opposing team against the gunners. Man U were more clinical when they beat Arsenal but Leeds were the better team and produced a better performance.
Bamford was being lauded on MOTD2 for his performance after being introduced in the second half, but I can't help but think it wasn't getting their full attention; as happens far too often, he fell to pieces at crucial moments, fluffing chances that had they have fallen to Gabriel Jesus would have been clinically put away.
Leeds did deserve a point though.
Perhaps, but Bamford had much more influence on the game in his 45 minutes than the somewhat muted Gabriel Jesus had in his 70+. Unlucky not to get his 100th goal. His hair is a mess though! Could anyone show him the way to a hairdresser's?
A draw away to Southampton is not the worst result but Arsebal should have been more comfortably ahead at the end of the first half.
Southampton really came into it in the second half and probably deserved their draw. The Arsenal team is beginning to look a little weary and the squad is beginning to look like its not strong enough to maintain a title charge. Jesus is becoming less and less effective by the match and could really do with a rest
Convincing win against a Forest team that didn't look half as good as they did last week.
The team had appeared to be running low on energy and inspiration over the last few weeks, so it was good to see both of those things returned in spades today.
That felt like a really important win. On a day when Saka and Martinelli didn't perform, it took a real team performance to take home 3 points from Stamford Bridge. The 2 central pairings, Xhaka and Partey in midfield and Saliba and Gabriel at centre back were both immense. Gabriel Jesus up front annoyed the hell out of the Chelsea back line and despite the lack of goals was another key part of the victory today.
Great to head into the World Cup break with a 5 point lead at the top of the table.
The game wasn't straightforward though. The team were struggling initially, both with the injury to Xhaka and apparently with a bout of food poisoning to a few other players. Xhaka's replacement, Vieira, appeared very nervous and the team weren't playing well at all. Eventually they settled into their task and 2 second half goals leave Arsenal sitting at the top of Christmas tree for the the first time since 2007.
Nothing to celebrate yet but Arsenal deserve their position. Long may it last!
Rumours that the injury to Gabriel Jesus could be a serious one. That's a major blow to title aspirations if confirmed.
Quote from: dom on December 04, 2022, 05:21:50 PMRumours that the injury to Gabriel Jesus could be a serious one. That's a major blow to title aspirations if confirmed.
He underwent successful knee surgery today. Could be out for a while as he recovers from that. Wonder whether Arteta will try and find a replacement in January. Nkeitiah hasn't been brilliant whenever he replaced the Brazilian so could be necessary
Despite going behind Arsenal ran out comfortable winners against a tough but uninspiring West Ham side. The 3 forwards all scored on the night snd the pick of the bunch was Nkeitiah's who turned on a sixpence to completely throw his defender and finished brilliantly. Perhaps we don't need a replacement for Jesus?
From what I've seen, Arsenal are a joy to watch at the moment, with all their players clicking and at the top of their game.
Martin Odegaard in particular is different gravy; Arsenal's De Bruyne.
He is a very special player. Unbelievable ball control and vision. Real Madrid's loss is Arsenal's gain.
Another away win yesterday and 4 goals scored at the AMEX is impressive. The 2 and almost 3 conceded not so much.
Great weekend though with City, Newcastle, Spurs and Chelsea all dropping points.
Tough part of the season coming up with some very difficult matches. If we are still top by mid-Feb I'll begin to believe.
Fair play to Newcastle last night - they came with a game plan to not concede last night and they carried it out to perfection. Doubling up on Martinelli and Saka and flooding central areas to restrict Odegaard worked for them to perfection. At times it felt like they had comfortably more than 11 people on the pitch.
Arsenal should have had a penalty when Gabriel was hauled to the ground but overall Howe deserved his point.
The important thing is that this doesn't derail a wonderful season. After the cup game against Chris Q's Oxford we have the small matter of the North London Derby at WHL. Important to get a win there!
Comfortable win in the end but Oxford made sure we fought for it.
Worrying that we had to start with the our first choice front 3. Saka hobbling off before Spurs on Sunday wasn't a good sign.
The drop in quality from Partey and Xhaka down to Lokonga and Elneny is huge and shows how equally large the gap is between Arsenal's and Man City's squad who swatted aside Premier League Chelsea with a much changed squad with no noticeable drop in quality.
Happy with Vieira's second half performance and to see Smith Rowe on the comeback trail. Nkeitiah another bright spark. His finishing might just be better than that of Gabriel Jesus
Feck Chelsea!
Eight points clear now at the top now and the Arsenal fans must be starting to believe. Will be an interesting second half of the season.
Big and important win yesterday. The first half was exceptional and the second showed how far the defence has improved since last season.
City still have the best squad and both they and United have much stronger strength in depth than Arsenal, so if they do win the league, it will be down to keeping the core 15 players fit and in form
"Its between City and Arsenal for the league", United may be involved.
So nice to hear that, it's been a while!
Marvellous! Arsenal really dominated that game in the second half and deserved the win despite the fact that United played well and really made a game of it. 50 points in 19 games is some going
That was a great game, I would agree that Arsenal deserved the win. I'm disappointed that United couldn't cling onto that point but it keeps the season interesting a bit longer. I still think City will end up top of the league.
They are still favourites for me too but they're going to have to be at their brilliant best to do it
I imagine Nkeitiah can't be too far from an England call up based on recent performances. As the all time record scorer at U21 level, he should be getting his chance with the seniors
So a defeat to City at the Ethiad means Arsenal are out of the cup. The team held their own though at a ground where a lot of heavy reverses have happened in recent years.
Will take the 1 0 loss on the chin and look to take something off them in the league meeting in a couple of weeks
Next up though is newly appointed Sean Dyche at Goodison. I wonder what shithousery he has planned next Saturday morning.
Jorginho? A step down from Caicedo no doubt, but a step up from Elneny (who's injured anyway) and Lokonga. If Arsenal win the league this May then it will have been 12 million well spent.
Didn't see much of the game yesterday. Was out on the bike and got back for half time. Then the dog had a grooming session poorly organised for 2pm. I did manage to see the Everton goal. Essentially though, I'm in denial and as I didn't see it, it didn't happen.
That disappointment has been tempered somewhat by Spurs beating City. Strange, uncomfortable feeling wanting Spurs to win, but delighted they came up trumps.
Hopefully Arsenal can return to winning ways next weekend against Brentford
Tough run at the moment, 1 point from 3 games has really opened the door for City and potentially United too. We really must respond with a win with 2 trips to the Midlands in the next 2 games, Villa and Leicester.
Arsenal played some excellent football last night and the team were on a par or ahead of City for much of the game. 2 mistakes, 1 of them hideous, really decided the game last night. Need to cut that sort of stuff out.
https://twitter.com/UpshotTowers/status/1626206845177315329
Quote from: Slim on February 16, 2023, 10:57:51 PMhttps://twitter.com/UpshotTowers/status/1626206845177315329
Those were the days. Looking back, Football almost seemed like an amateur sport back then.
Ended up with a much needed victory but a lot of effort was required to get there against an awkward Villa side.
Ultimately it was ex-Arsenal keeper that made the difference. He was booked for constant time wasting and the ref added on 6 minutes as a result. In that time he headed Arsenal into the lead after Jorginho crashed the ball onto the Villa crossbar. Then the World cup winning keeper was left stranded upfield following a Villa corner allowing Martinelli to walk it into the net.
He had it coming. Not just the timewasting, not just the negative comments about Arsenal when he left, but his awful behaviour when winning the World Cup. I think karma can call it quits now!
Who thought City would drop points yesterday,? Forest are on a good run but I was expecting a comfortable win for Guardiola. Not getting that 2nd goal really cost them and the title race has taken another little twist
Another Midlands away win, this time at Leicester.
The attack misfired yesterday with a few of Arsenal's attackers not quite on their game. The defence was outstanding though with Ramsdale not having to make a single save. Saliba and Gabriel have formed an outstanding partnership in central defence and full backs White and Zinchenko (captained yesterday due to the anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine) are both highly gifted and intelligent players.
Martinelli (one of those not at their best) settled matters expertly after being beautifully set up by Trossard. Both of the January acquisitions, the Belgian and Jorginho have settled very quickly and well. Both were excellent yesterday.
Arsenal may not win the league but the journey is a very enjoyable one.
Leicester's xG yesterday was recorded as 0.01, I think the lowest recorded by a Premier league team this season.
Missed the game yesterday as ee were in Belfast attending the Neighbours farewell celebration concert (don't ask!)
Plenty of furtive glances at the mobile screen indicated that a 4 0 win was being achieved. Couldn't ask for more from the game in hand over City. 13 matches to go, 5 points clear.
Was looking like a poor result today. A goal down after 15 seconds and then a second from Bournemouth's only corner.
Ridiculous stats today. Arsenal had 81% possession and approaching 80 touches in the Bournemouth box. Bournemouth had 7 in the Arsenal area. You have to argue that Bournemouth were incredibly efficient scoring 2 goals from their 4 shots. Arsenal needed 31 to score their 3 goals.
I always believed that City's strength in depth would tell in the end to decide the title. But if a player like Nelson, on as a second half sub, can get an assist and a 97th minute winner maybe the difference in quality isn't as big as I thought it was.
Reckon that afternoon has taken 5 years off my life!
Nice to win a game comfortably without troubling the heart! Thanks Fulham! They weren't quite on their game and Arsenal took full advantage.
11 games to go. I had a little look at the remaining fixtures, a little optimistically I think following today's game. Draws at Liverpool and Newcastle and a loss to City would be 7 points dropped. City would need an almost perfect record to beat that.
Injuries and sendings off/suspensions can derail but Arsenal have put themselves in a fantastic position
A potentially costly Europa League exit to Sporting Lisbon last night. We'll see how much of a toll extra time and penalties has taken with the quick turnaround to Palace on Sunday.
Injuries sustained to Tomiyasu and Saliba will hopefully not be too serious.
Tomiyasu out for the season and Sali ba's injury has to be carefully managed, whatever that means.
He wasn't in the squad for the home match against Leeds, but I'm hoping he's able to start at Anfield next weekend. Holding against Salah is a scary thought.
The Leeds game was comfortable enough in the end. They weren't at their strongest but still made the first half hour or so relatively uncomfortable. Jesus scored a pen from our first shot on target. The players relaxed after that and the result was never in doubt.
City looked ominously good yesterday so its looking like Arsenal will need to get pretty close to 94 points (City's total if they win all of their 10 remaining ganes)
Missed most of the game today but based on the last 20 minutes, Arsenal were lucky to come home with the point. Could be a very valuable one come the end of the season. Thank you Aaron Ramsdale!
Well you could say Arsenal rescued a point tonight, but against the bottom of the table club that was surely a must-win.
3 points from 3 matches is not league winning form.
It's still been a fantastic season. Champions league virtually secured with 7 matches to go and nailed on for 2nd place. Not many would have predicted that at the start of the season, certainly not me. Even though on current form its looking increasingly unlikely, any sort of a result against City will keep Arsenal in the hunt.
The fat lady is maybe warming up but she still hasn't sung yet!
Big game tonight. Looking at the form of both teams and I'm not too optimistic about getting a result. The loss of Saliba and to a lesser extent Tomiyasu has really affected the defence and make us very leaky. It also means the team has a less stable platform from which to build attacks.
This is the real difference between City and Arsenal. Put our first 11 against theirs and the difference in quality is minimal. Once either team starts to draw on its reserves City are well ahead, almost unaffected with having to replace any number of their nominal first 11. This is where City will in all likelihood win the league.
Hope I'm wrong but its looking like a City win tonight and the league virtually sealed for them. Who knows though. I'm hoping at least that Arsenal show that they are worthy opponents and prove that they merit their league position this season
I think a City win is the most likely outcome but it could be a cautious and cagey affair.. both sides might take a draw right now but neither can afford the other to get three points out of the encounter.
Whatever happens, as a neutral I hope it goes down to the last game of the season, but I fear after the reverse fixture at the Emirates that City have a significant psychological advantage which will be decisive tonight and hence on the run in.
City just too good. Completely smothered Arsenal and they just couldn't compete. I would have been happy enough with 3 1 but Arsenal just had to let bloody Haaland score!
Quote from: dom on April 26, 2023, 02:42:01 PMI'm hoping at least that Arsenal show that they are worthy opponents and prove that they merit their league position this season
City were at their absolute best last night and Arsenal certainly weren't. They didn't show themselves to be worthy opponents. Hopefully we'll get a little closer to them next season.
You never know, there could yet be a twist. City still have seven games to play.
Quote from: Slim on April 27, 2023, 10:06:23 AMYou never know, there could yet be a twist. City still have seven games to play.
Anything is possible especially with City still involved in the Champions League and FA Cup. I think last night proved though that City are the best team in the league, by far, and fully deserved to be crowned champions.
From where the team was a year ago, Arsenal can feel delighted that the title race carried on as long as it did.
Didn't comment on the 3 - 1 win over Chelsea that briefly put Arsenal back to the top of the table. When you look at the Chelsea team and bench it looks formidable. So many excellent players. They play so poorly though that the Gunners must be cursing that they didn't score more and allowed Chelsea to score. They were quite sloppy last night and will need to get a lot tighter when they play Newcastle on Sunday.
Saka seems to me like he needs a rest. Playing very poorly, looks worn out.
Magnificent performance today facing an intimidating stadium and a very physical Newcastle team - sometimes over physical. Really restored my faith in Arsenal after a few questionable performances. 2nd guaranteed and we can still hope against hope for the title!
Form really seems to have deserted Arsenal. The monster that is City would always take advantage of so many slips. From being ambivalent I've really gone off City and their doped up squad. I have empathy for Liverpool that so many of their league titles were taken from them by a team that doesn't play by the rules. City have 3 players for every position on the pitch, and the 3rd in City's case would walk into virtually every other team in the premier league. Even with that they very rarely seem to get injuries - I'm really beginning to think Haaland is some sort of android.
Having said that, only winning 2 games out of the last 7 is really poor form and Arsenal didn't deserve to win even against fairer opposition. 2nd place is guaranteed and that is going to have to be good enough.
I'm hearing that City have discontinued their interest in signing Declan Rice, so he's probably going to Arsenal.
Better for his career than City, where he wouldn't have got as many games.
City's interest probably pushed the price that little bit higher, but I'll be delighted if he comes on board. Chances are Xhaka and Partey may well not be with the team next season so that's a big hole in midfield, that he will help to fill.
Rice and Havertz in - looks like Jurrien Timber from Ajax soon to follow and maybe a couple of others too. Building on a strong squad. Shaping up to be a good window, and a complete change in transfer strategy from the scrimping and saving (relatively speaking) from a few years ago.
Arsenal can't moan about other teams spending more. Expectations will rise in accordance with those inflated fees!
Rice is clearly a good signing - the acquisition of of Havertz baffles me though, a real dud at Chelsea. Ditto Mount for Salford Quays Utd.
Quote from: Matt2112 on July 06, 2023, 11:11:20 AMRice is clearly a good signing - the acquisition of of Havertz baffles me though, a real dud at Chelsea. Ditto Mount for Salford Quays Utd.
Think of De Bruyne and Salah!
Everyone had a disaster of a season at Chelsea. I imagine both Mount snd Havertz will fare much better away from the toxic atmosphere there.
Quote from: dom on July 06, 2023, 06:42:22 PMQuote from: Matt2112 on July 06, 2023, 11:11:20 AMRice is clearly a good signing - the acquisition of of Havertz baffles me though, a real dud at Chelsea. Ditto Mount for Salford Quays Utd.
Think of De Bruyne and Salah!
Everyone had a disaster of a season at Chelsea. I imagine both Mount snd Havertz will fare much better away from the toxic atmosphere there.
That seems a case of conveniently putting the cart before the horse; the performances of a professional on c.£200K/week should transcend a toxic atmosphere.
On paper Chelsea had one of the strongest squads in the league last year. And yet they spent most of the season playing like a lower mid table team. They were atrocious and plenty of the players involved were on as much, if not more, than Havertz. Of course nothing is guaranteed but Arteta's judgement has proven to be pretty good recently and he has a lot of credit in the bank for last season's performance. I'm prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt.
This is a player, after all, who scored the winning goal in last but one Champions League final . Bear in mind too that Chelsea seemed to insist on playing him as a centre forward which I don't think is his favoured position.
In fairness, he was pretty impressive at Bayer Leverkusen which of course is why he caught Chelsea's eye in the first place. It wouldn't be at all surprising if a canny operator like Arteta gets him to settle a lot better and find his best form.
You have to wonder about Potter. Considering the disaster he made at Chelsea and the fact that Ze Derbi has made Brighton an even more impressive unit since he was appointed. Brighton's biggest difficulty under Potter was scoring goals. This continued for him when he took over at Chelsea. He may also have had difficulties with managing the egos that come with as big a club as Chelsea. I really think they let Tuchel go too soon. Be interesting to see what Pochettino makes of them. With all the transfer activity they are going to be a completely different team.
Here's a prediction - Poch will not be managing Chelsea at the start of the 24-25 season.
I like it. I think Boehly will probably want out if that comes to pass as it will mean (in all probability) that Chelsea have had a terrible season
Nice to start the season with a bit of silverware. Yes it's only a glorified friendly and the win was only achieved on penalties after a 102nd minute deflected goal led to an equaliser. But a win is a win, especially against Guardiola's City. Team looked solid too.
Was at a family christening today and missed most of the game. I did hear most of the 2nd half on the journey home. The last thing I heard on the radio as I ran into the house, was something like this game feels like it is destined to finish 1 - 1.
Virtually the first thing I saw when I got the tv on was Garnacho putting United 2 - 1 up.
What a finish to the game! If the rest of the game was like that I missed a corker! Perhaps a little harsh on United but that's football!
So another win for Arsenal, without being over-convincing. They have struggled at Goodison over the last few years so any kind of win was welcome.
It seems though that the team is not fully clicking at the moment. Hopefully the combination of Champions league football and the North London derby will get the team running on all cylinders
Good win last night and it was a great performance. True, PSV granted Arsenal forwards a lot more space than they are used to in the Premier League but they took full advantage. Good prep for Spurs at the weekend!
Quote from: dom on September 21, 2023, 09:19:53 AMGood win last night and it was a great performance. True, PSV granted Arsenal forwards a lot more space than they are used to in the Premier League but they took full advantage. Good prep for Spurs at the weekend!
Stupid psv coach will never learn. He does this to all his teams, stubbornly holding on to something everyone sees does not work. And then he surprised he is let go before the season is over.
Good win for the Gunners.
Good if not pretty win for Arsenal against bete noir City.
All the more satisfying that it happened even with the ref and VAR doing their job. Kovacic should have seen red and could have been dismissed twice but only received a single yellow. There does seem to be a certain leniency given to City with regards to yellow and red cards over the last few seasons. You don't need much of an imagination to picture what would have been the result had Xhaka or Caseimiro been the perpetrator.
Scrappy goal but I'll take it. Only fly in the ointment is that Arsenal are behind Spurs on goals scored. How long 'til they become 'Spursy' again?
Arsenal 1 up against Liverpool at half time - you've got to think they need to avoid defeat to stand any chance of winning the league. If they lose they'll be 8 points behind Liverpool.
Oh I typed too soon .. 1-1 in the third minute of stoppage time in the first half.
1 feck up apiece. Was nervous beforehand as that was a must win!
Nice to return to this thread to see we could have been 8 points behind Liverpool in February!
Very tense game tonight, certainly gave my stent a bit of a working over. (Wonder what's more demanding on it, climbing a tough hill or watching extra time and then a penalty shootout? )
Great mentality from the Arsenal penalty takers. Nerves of steel!
Wonder who do we get to play in the quarters?
Not a game for the neutral today, but with my red lenses I was very impressed with Arsenal's organisation and application defensively.
Would have liked a little more going forward for Arsenal especially against a weakened City defence.
9 games to go. All to play for.
Listened to the game while on a bike, very good point for Arsenal
4 games to go and still all to olay for.
Can Brighton do to City what Everton did to Liverpool? Season kind of hinges on City not getting 3 points tomorrow and again when they play Spurs.
Arsenal have 2 tough away matches at Spurs and Man U. We need to win both of those as well as both home fixtures. 2 points dropped in either WHL or old Trafford might not be fatal but any more will be for sure
Well Arsenal have kept Sky happy by ensuring the league won't be decided until the last game.
United played well considering their poor form and injury problems. They actually dominated possession. Arsenal were quite poor but only one thing mattered (well 3 things)
The "Arsenal Ultras" on a special forces mission:
https://twitter.com/AwayDays_/status/1790260639018918369
That was a serious performance and a serious result. To go to WHL with an understrength team against a fully fit Spurs and return with 3 points is a real signal of intent.
Magnificent performances from Raya, Saliba and Gabriel. But the whole team defended like monsters and despite plenty of possession Spurs were made to look largely toothless.
Team looks so coherent and organised. Credit to Arteta and his team
Looking back to Sunday, that was some game. I really think we're beginning to see the complete manager that Arteta is. Wenger was undoubtedly a purist and at times that was beautiful to watch. Mikel is more of a pragmatist. Where ever he can find and exploit a competitive advantage he goes for it. From being pretty ineffective with free-kicks and corners Arsenal are now the best team in the league with this aspect of the game.
Wenger wanted players with exqusite skill and even though Arteta wants those too, he knows that is not enough. For years and years Arsenal had a tendency to be bullied out of their game, to be pushed around - opposition players believed Arsenal could be got at and exploited that to the max. No longer, Arteta's team won't be pushed around.
To see how successful this tactic is, just look at City's reaction after the game. Silva, Haaland, Stones in particular all sounded like winghing kindergarden toddlers. Arsenal have got under City's skin.
They obviously preferred the old Arsenal - wouldn't any opponent? The Arsenal that lost 5 - 0 after having a man sent off!
Now they just have to learn not to kick the ball away. Ok for other teams to do it, but not Arsenal. As soon as they work that out, they will be flying.
3 away games against Spurs, Villa and City - 7 points. Any Arsenal fan would have bitten your hand off for that at the start of the season
True, but at the same time, despite that - you're still behind two of those teams in the league.
Quote from: Slim on September 25, 2024, 06:09:16 PMTrue, but at the same time, despite that - you're still behind two of those teams in the league.
Yeah, City are City, point I was making is that Arsenal have had tougher fixtures than anyone else. And to be only 2 points off top despite that bodes well.
Leicester have equalised against Arsenal as I type, from 2-0 down I believe (I've been listening on 5 Live while doing ohter stuff).
Mixed feelings. The Arsenal fans have been a bit cocky recently but I'd love Gary Lineker to live through Leicester going down again.
That was a bizarre game. Arsenal were so dominant in the first half Leicester didn't get a sniff. The 2 0 score at half time was probably flattering to Leicester.
Leicester improved in the 2nd half and Arsenal were guilty of being a little laid back and before I knew it it was all square.
The game then reverted to type with an utterly dominant home team hammering their opponents without finding a way through. The Leicester keeper played out of his skin, some fantastic saves amongst the 13 he made. Trossard hit the post and it was beginning to look like 2 points lost.
But corner expertise told again and Havertz got the luckiest goal of his career (I imagine).
Hopefully lessons have been learnt for the slackness that allowed Leicester in.
Arsenal deserved to lose yesterday. Saliba was perhaps a little unlucky to see red but Arteta was very timid after the red card. He brought on another defender who's short pass back to the keeper gave Bournemouth their second.
I think he should have gone for it. It was a very dull game as a result and Arsenal lost anyway.
I've just seen the 96th minute City winner in the Wolves game. Somehow Silva's budge into Jose Sa was not interfering with play. I'm sure that had that been Arsenal it would have been disallowed. Furthermore if City had been playing Bournemouth yesterday and Stones had fouled Edilson the yellow wouldn't have been upgraded. In those 50/50 decisions that could go either way, they invariably go City's way
A while since I posted here. Who'd have believed back then that City would crash so badly and that it wasn't Arsenal that would have taken full advantage. Fair play to Liverpool for transitioning so smoothly from Klopp to Slot. Still some hope for Arsenal but any slip ups from them and you'd have to think that the league title is heading to Anfield.
Good win tonight against a very strong at home Brentford and a similar performance will be required at Brighton at the weekend. The next couple of months without Saka is a complication Arteta could have done without but he'll have to find a way.
Glad to see Arsenal win at the weekend because it keeps the title race alive, but actually I was pleased to see the lad sent off for that tackle. Sick of seeing cynical fouls like that, it's just cheating.
I must admit that some of the comments against Oliver, "it's the worst decision ever in the history of football" were a tad over the top. Arsenal got the win too so it wasn't a huge deal
Having said that, with my partisan hat on, I do hope the ban is rescinded. He's a fine player who shows a maturity much greater than his 18 years. Great technical ability too and much needed in the squad with all the defensive injuries
3 match ban rescinded so he's free to play against Man City, Newcastle in the Carling cup semi and Leicester.
In terms of the rules of the game as they stand, I think that overturning the ban was the correct decision
Enjoyed the result against City yesterday. The nature of it after years of being battered by them was particularly satisfying. The strong start came about by such a string press that City couldn't deal with it. Very unusual for a Pep team but it looks like Arsenal were aware that the current City team are not as assured in playing out from the back as they used to be, yet they still play that way.
After the first 25 minutes though, Arsenal became a little too risk averse. This allowed City into the game, and Raya made 2 brilliant stops before Haaland equalised.
That was the moment when Arsenal let the shackles off and completely dominated City. Those 4 unanswered goals did not flatter the home team at all.
City were left to petty acts of petulance. How did Bernardo Silva escape a red, yet alone a yellow! Superb player but he really went down in my estimation yesterday.
Biggest plus yesterday was the performance of Lewis Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri. Future is beginning to look in safe hands as they move to centre stage.
I think that result yesterday means that Liverpool have the title in the bag now. I did have a faint hope that City might catch them but that's not realistic now.
Think they were already too far off the pace to be honest. Arsenal not reinforcing their forward line today has probably handed the title to Liverpool anyway. Was a tough ask even if they had ventured into the transfer market
What is it about Newcastle? They must have some sort of hex over Arsenal. Played them 3 times and have beaten the Gunners each time. Barely laid a glove on them tonight. Unfortunately for Arsenal they still have one more match up this season.
Can Arsenal play PSV every week!
Read an interesting analysis by an amateur pundit on another site, this morning. The gist of it is that Arteta is suffering from PTSD from being overtaken by City last season, and it's made him a control freak who's more concerned with not losing than winning. Consequently Arsenal have lost their maverick swashbuckling edge and have become predictable.
In any case their draw with United yesterday sees their title hopes, with life support switched off already, lowered gently into a coffin.
In unrelated news, RVN has now lost 12 of his last 13 games with Leicester in the league. They must surely be going down now. Roughly, they'd need to take an average of 2 points from each of their remaining games which is approximately equal to Arsenal's form over the season so far. Ditto Ipswich, level on points with Leicester.
Shame because I like a tense conclusion to a PL season but it looks like the title and the relegations are already done and dusted. Will be interesting to see who end up third and fourth. I feel sure City will manage that, but who else?
And will United finish in the bottom half of the table?
Season had been limping to a disappointing end for Arsenal. The squad has not quite had the depth to cope with the injuries sustained over the season and the decision not to buy a centre forward in January is costing far more than a decent no 9 would have.
But then on Tuesday night Declan Rice decided to show the World his ability with direct free-kicks; 2 stunning strikes plus an excellent first time finish from Merino, the make-shift no 9 has put Arsenal with one foot in the semis.
Not counting any chickens though as playing Champions League specialists Real Madrid is never easy.
Good start to the season!
1 - 0 to Arsenal at Old Trafford
1 - 0 to Arsenal in the North London HR derby
And it continues 5 - 0 at home to Leeds.
Some very tough fixtures coming up and last season the injuries to 2 such crucial attacking players as Odegaard and Saka would have been disastrous.
It will still be an issue with the likes of Liverpool and Man City looming but it feels that Arsenal have the squad to cope. This will hopefully be the difference to last season
That felt momentous today. A last minute 2 -1 away win at St James' Park despite having a perfectly good pen overturned by VAR and facing a goalie in inspired form.
Completely dominating the first half an hour then going a goal behind. In the past Arsenal would have crumbled with that level of adversity especially in front of at a hostile, fervent crowd.
But the team has more strings to its bow than previously. A set piece goal is worth the same as a beautifully executed one from open play so I'm not having the criticism levelled at the team for working hard on that aspect of the game.
After a very tough opening 6 matches, Arsenal are looking well placed to perhaps go one better than last season
Another momentous evening! To make that Bayern Munich team seem ordinary just shows how far this team has progressed. Rice was imperious tonight. What a performance!
The draw in midweek against Wolves really knocked my belief that Arsenal were going to do it this year.
Even the convincing away win in N17 today hasn't reversed that.
I really feel the mentality or mindset has to change. Prime example today at 3 - 1 up. Instead of going for the jugular they sat back and Richarlison nearly made a contest of it as a result.
Happy for Gyokeres and Eze today. Eze really needs to be made to believe that we are playing Spurs every game between now and the end of the season. He's scored 6 goals, five of them against Tottenham!
couple of tough matches against Chelsea and Brighton - hard fought and they were both won through dogged determination and persistance rather than flair or creativity. Defensive solidity won the day, safe catchhes, tight marking, large headed clearances, not mazy runs or defence splitting passes.
Really not enjoyable to watch and with both games in the balance until the final whistle was blown, pretty stressful.
Still it's the points that matter and Arsenal have 7 more than City (although City have a game in hand)
No such thing really but Arsenal have 2 relatively easy games at home to come against Everton and Bournemoth while City have 2 tough away matches at West Ham & Chelsea, so it's quite possible that Arsenal will be 9 points clear with 6 games to go (City will have 7)
I've predicted City to beat Arsenal at the Ethiad in April but even with that I predict Arsenal to finish on 84 points and City on 80.
Will be fascinating but not much fun between now and May I imagine. With European trophies and domestic cups to play for as well, its going to be a fascinating enthralling and blood pressure popping couple of months.
Another little swing this evening. Thanks to West Ham getting a draw with City, Arsenal move 9 points clear. City have a game in hand still but that's no good thing with all the cup and European games left to play.
No Premier League games for a month now with FA and Carabao Cup and Champions League to take centre stage (as well as an international break).
And what about Max Dowman. Completely swung the game this evening. Keeps his feet on the ground and there's a massive future ahead for this lad!
Now a month and a bit later and it's all square. Same points same goal difference - City top as they have scored 3 more goals. So with 5 games to go it's a shoot out.
City with tough matches at Everton and in form Bournemouth.
Arsenal have to travel to in form West Ham and tricky looking fixture at Palace.
City also have cup semi final to deal with and Arsenal the Champions League semi final clashes with Atletico Madrid.
City are the in form team and heart breakingly they're probably going to do it again. However in the loss to City, Arsenal played a lot better than they had recently and hopefully this improved form continues. All to play for!
Slight advantage to Arsenal heading into the last 3 games (4 for City).
Fair play to Everton for the way they played; they looked capable of scoring every time they attacked in the 2nd half.
City were lucky to get the draw in fact as Everton should have had a pen from a corner and Doku's stunning equaliser was comfortably after the 6 minutes of added time
West Ham away looks the toughest challenge for Arsenal and Bournemouth away looks like the stiffest test for City. I imagine those 2 games will settle the league one way or another - exciting!!
Yes it was after the original 6 minutes but there was a certain amount of creative "game management" going on so the ref was right to extend the game a bit. I make Arsenal slight favourites at the moment, certainly.
Quote from: Slim on May 05, 2026, 02:53:02 PMYes it was after the original 6 minutes but there was a certain amount of creative "game management" going on so the ref was right to extend the game a bit. I make Arsenal slight favourites at the moment, certainly.
Yes on reflection that's fair - just the substitutions Everton made after the 90 minutes justify the extra game time. Hopefully that last gasp equaliser and point won't make a difference come season's end.
Tense night but worth it.
Champions League Finalists!
Gyokeres outstanding tonight, real centre forward performance.
Myles Skelly who had been abandoned all season comes in and was superb in replacing a tired and overworked Zubemendi. Should he have played there more often?
Ben White brilliant too.
And Declan Rice! What can you say. Such an engine, game after game, never tires! So intelligent with it!
So 4 games to go! 4 finals! Time to make history
100 + minutes of tension! So dominant for the first 20, so close but no opening goal. Then White goes off injured and Arteta makes mistake by bringing on Zubemendi and putting Rice at full back.
Impetus handed to West Ham and they did get a couple of chances, particularly when Raya had to make a smart save from Castellanos.
Poor Zubemendi had to be substituted back off to allow Mosquero on to play at full back and to allow Rice to play in his best position - central midfield.
The game meandered on without too many chances until Raya made a stunning save from Fernandes. Not quite sure how he didn't put it away but Raya stood strong and solid and that certainly had a part to play and enabled him to make the save.
A couple of minutes later and with 10 minutes to go some brilliant work from substitute Odegaard set up Trossard. Hopefully Odegaard is back to his best now - he played well.
Real drama at the end when Wilson's forceful equaliser was disallowed due to a foul on the keeper after a VAR review. I thought it was the right call but there are plenty that don't.
The tension! But the league is getting closer.
Feel a bit sorry for West Ham, as this result looks likely to relegate them and keep Spurs up.
So just one win away from a first league title in 22 years. And if City fail to beat Bournemouth this evening, even that won't be necessary.
It's not been pretty, case in point the game last night where Arsenal looked turgid at times. Burnley offered almost nothing but when the advantage is so slender,who knows what might have happened.
Hopefully Arsenal do end up winning the league. Flair has not been the first word you'd associate with Arsenal's performances this season and I can live with that if they do finish first, and, who knows, even clinch their first ever Champions League title the week after.
Whether they do or not they really need to play with a little more flair and enjoyment next season.
Arteta is the first former Premier League Player (yes and I know the league didn't start in 1992 but still worth mentioning) to win the league as a Premier League Manager.
Odd way to win the league, watching a highly impressive Bournemouth side prevent City from getting the 3 points they needed to keep the title going to the last day.
I was celebrating when on 90 minutes Brookes broke through the City defence and had the goal and Donnarumma at his mercy but contrived to hit the post. And then Haaland had to make me suffer by scoring when there was still a couple of minutes to go.
So it was an oddly flat feeling to win the league by watching another team do it on your behalf
After a while though it begins to sink in. The 22 years of waiting, of playing beautiful football but accused of being soft. Watching the Russian Oligarch and then Saudi Oil money come in and taking over the league. This conicided with Arsenal having a smaller budget to pay for the move to Ashburton Grove and made the fight even more unbalanced.
So like most of the league Arsenal were also runs right from the start of the season. From becoming a serial winner Wenger and so also his team became a bit of a laughing stock. Top 4 and maybe a cup was all that could be achieved
Eventually Arsene's time was done and you could argue that Emery wasn't given enough time but I thought it just wasn't the right fit.
Arteta was different. He had a real sense of purpose right from day 1. He had learnt well from the likes of Wenger and Guardiola. He'd been a player at Arsenal and understood the culture; understood it enough to be able to change it.
Purse strings were loosened too, allowing Mikel to persue the top level of talent that had so often gone to the likes of City and Chelsea and to the big guns in Europe. Also a bad run of form in the early days didn't result in his sacking, again something that we can be grateful to the Kronkes for. Sticking with the man they believed in. It was the right call, results began to improve and a second place finish showed Arteta was on the right track
2 further second place finishes showed that something was missing still. The edge to finally get over the line. What was the edge? I don't know exacty but its probably to do with a conviction that strength wins over flair, that attacks win matches but that defences win leagues. Also finding those small gains on and off the pitch make tiny almost imperceptible differences that add up to a big difference. Set plays is the big one obviously 19 goals from corners and a few more from free kicks is huge. Also to go a season without a red card or a penalty conceded is very impressive.
So it hasn't been the most exhillarating of title wins but that wasn't necessary after a 22 year wait.
I believe Arteta and his team (both the players and back room staff) are going to be around for a while. It's not easy to win back to backs but Arsenal can do it. I'm probably being greedy here but I'm hoping for a bit more flair next time round.
Can they win the Champions League on Saturday week? It won't be easy but why not!
Disappointing end to a great season. A win last night would have turned it into an outstanding one but not to be.
Arsenal had to defend last night and they did! For their lives.
PSG had 75% of the ball but only managed 4 shots on target. Their much vaunted attack could only beat Raya via a penalty. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who has been terrorising full backs all season was kept largely in check by Cristhian Mosquera, principally a centre back and only 3rd choice right back. Apart from the penalty of course.
The team were magnificent and lost essentially via the turn of a card.
I think the ref was right with both penalty calls but he was really harsh with Arsenal whenever they won the ball off PSG. The amount of very weak free kicks given to the Parisians was very disrupting and spoiled any chance of exploiting a turnover in possession.
Hopefully it won't be another 20 year wait for the next Champions League final