Training session v Citeh (home).

[Xhaka Can’t]

In that position. With that run in.

Yes I believe Wenger would have got us in the top 4.

All it would’ve taken was one win.

However, since then we spent over £100m in the wrong places and the malaise and decline has continued to accelerate at an alarming pace from an already alarming final third of last season.

There is no structure, there is a toxic culture and an uninterested and unimaginative ownership.

We have all the ingredients lined up to ensure things turn out as badly as possible.

[Letters]

Oh well, Arteta will sort it all out

[Bumble]

I don't think it was an error getting rid of Emery. But it was an error getting rid of him with no plan about who to replace him with
That's the bit that makes me facepalm.

that was the problem.. they didn't have a plan as they didn't really want to get rid of Emery. Think it was a case of crossing fingers that we would pull a result or two out of the bag and go on a half decent run that Arsenal do sometime come up with.

But that failed and that's the problem.... however there are experienced managers available that would surely improve the current situation. obviously we cant just bring in any manager to improve things. but I think we need someone with experience of English football.

in terms of the game... our back four get a lot of the blame but I think our midfield when its either gendo or xhaka... do not have the mentality of stopping goals at any cost. draw a foul, or bust a gut to get in the box... they both just amble back.

[dostoy]

Who bought Ozil ?

Who let his contract run down until he had barely 1 year left ?

Who then offered him 350k a week to stay ?

Ozil is everything that is wrong with this club and he is STILL here ?

A lot of the problems we have now is Wengers fault and I cannot see it changing until Ozil and about 5 others are removed and replaced with better, hungrier players who have more heart and more determination.

[Letters]

Who stopped playing Ozil but didn't get rid oh him either despite having had 3 transfer windows to sort it out.
Who made Xhaka captain.
Who spent another summer not sorting out our defence?

[Bumble]

Who stopped playing Ozil but didn't get rid oh him either despite having had 3 transfer windows to sort it out.
Who made Xhaka captain.
Who spent another summer not sorting out our defence?

I think you find that he delegated naming Xhaka as captain to the players. So that was a good move.

I actually think Ozil wasn't totally hopeless yesterday. He got the ball a lot.

[Blink 1nce Quince 2wice]

I think you find that he delegated naming Xhaka as captain to the players. So that was a good move.

I actually think Ozil wasn't totally hopeless yesterday. He got the ball a lot.

Me too, but the walking off slowly did irk me, though I don't think it was as bad as when Xhaka did it. Different scoreline and opposition etc.

[dostoy]

Who stopped playing Ozil but didn't get rid oh him either despite having had 3 transfer windows to sort it out.
Who made Xhaka captain.
Who spent another summer not sorting out our defence?

There was improvement last season but this season has gone backwards, most of that was due to the players that Wenger signed.

I hated Wenger because he was diabolical and so predictable.

Emery made mistakes this season but look what rubbish he was left with.

[Letters]

There was improvement last season but this season has gone backwards, most of that was due to the players that Wenger signed.

...wasn't the improvement last season due to players Wenger signed? Last season was closer to Wenger's squad than this year's

I'm not saying he is blameless but last season's end result tells me we are not that bad. I honestly think the right manager could come in and improve us significantly.

[I am invisible]

There was no point holding on to any of Wengers men. They were part of the problem. Men with sight that refused to see the calamity unfolding slowly before their eyes. Even with Wenger gone and Emery`s 18 months its still as if nothing has changed. Our concept of the game is so not fit for purpose. The first goal came from Fernandinho running past 3 players and no one put in a tackle. No one. It then ends up with our defence who as we know would take flight at the sight of 3 hard charging Bambi`s coming at them.

The club needs a clearout if possible. Every person involved in the training and recruitment regime who has been here in the last 5 years is tainted with the same redundant philosophy. Our transition is slow, we never takes shots from outside the box. We cannot sense danger and snuff it out unless its already 10 yards from the keeper and then we all collectively panic. No leaders, no fight, no playing style. Its as if the disease of a decade has filtered through like a contagion. every single player has it. AMN wakes up each morning feeling like hes won a 100 million lottery. At which other club would a clearly inferior player like him get so much playing time. Ozil thinks as long as he makes 2 killer passes a game, he is worth his mighty coin and why would anyone dare take him off. He sees players like KDB making a difference to his team but doesnt care. He has a WC winners medal after all. Guendueozi, should be in the reserves, he is a nothing player at the moment, that kid Davies at Everton is a much better player and only plays a bit part for them and is far from a complete player, However Guen is a bedrock of this sad team

A new manager of a new mindset is needed, even in a short term capacity. Freddie will relegate us, he is part and parcel of the bad system, so he cant see his way to fixing it. i see Freddie, I see Merts behind him, that gangly, cowardly, dopey giraffe. I see failure

Yeah, I agree with most of this (although I do think you’re being harsh on Ljungberg and Mertesacker) - as soon as Wenger and his men were gone we should have wiped the slate clean and started building out the club’s own coaching, scouting and analytics staff, independently of whoever we brought in as manager / first team coach.

Things like basic defending shouldn’t ever come down to whoever we happen to have in charge of the first team at any given moment - the club itself should be drilling that into our players as a basic standard that’s expected of every first team player. The first team coach should then be brought in to apply the finishing, tactical and motivational touches - he shouldn’t have to come in to teach the players fundamental skills.

By all means allow each new first team coach to bring a few trusted lieutenants with him - that just makes sense - but their entourage should always augment a backbone of the club’s own coaching staff: Arsenal men who should be learning and absorbing new ideas from each new head coach to make sure the club is retaining and adding to its knowledge, and constantly evolving its footballing identity.

Honestly, I’d forget any thoughts of hiring someone like an Allegri for now - there’s no point in even approaching that level of coach until we have some basic standards in place again (and/or some significant funds for them to overhaul everything, neither of which we have). What we should be doing is chucking money at the behind-the-scenes defensive coaches at Juventus, the scouts at Leicester, etc, etc - all the people who keep churning out air-tight defences and unearthing gems for their clubs, year after year, coach after coach. We can start looking at galactico-level coaches once we’ve got our house in order, but at the moment it feels like we’re a million miles away from that point...