Arsenal v Newcastle. 03/01/23. 19:45

[Marc Overmars]

Looking forward to this, expecting an exciting game.

Got to show Newcastle respect but hopefully our extra quality counts in the end.

Let’s fuggin go!

[Xhaka Can’t]

I hope we score goals.

I also hope Newcastle fail to score goals.

[Letters]

I hope we score goals.

I also hope Newcastle fail to score goals.

:gp:

[Marc Overmars]

Smith-Rowe is back and could be involved.

Saka and Saliba are a booking away from a suspension. Wouldn’t mind so much if they got it now with Oxford next up. Better than missing Spurs or United.

[selassie]

This is the first of three huge games that could define our season. I have watched Newcastle a few times this season and they are a really good side, they deserve to be 3rd and amongst the challengers. If we play well then I am confident of a narrow win, but we are going to need to be 100% on our game tonight because they have the potential to cause us big problems.

I am really looking forward to the game, COYG!!!

[Mac76]

0-3 Almiron hatter

(This will almost certainly happen actually, as I'm sorry to say i was stupid enough to put him on the bench this gameweek, in favour of Nunez, who predictably Nunez-ed last night)

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Arsenal: Ramsdale, White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko, Xhaka, Partey, Saka, Odegaard, Martinelli, Nketiah.
Subs: Turner, Tierney, Holding, Tomiyasu, Vieira, Lokonga, Elneny, Marquinhos, Butler-Oyedeji.

Newcastle: Pope, Trippier, Botman, Schar, Burn, Willock, Longstaff, Guimaraes, Almiron, Wilson, Joelinton.
Subs: Dubravka, Lascelles, Lewis, Manquillo, Anderson, Ritchie, Murphy, Saint-Maximin, Wood.

[Marc Overmars]

Team picks itself at the moment.

Only slight question is Tierney or Zinchenko.

I think Zinchenko is actually better suited for away games.

[Mac76]

Zin is defintely Arteta's first choice, nothing we can do about it

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Come on Arsenal!

[Marc Overmars]

Ramsdale’s kicking isn’t great.

[Marc Overmars]

Odegaard volleys over.

Similar chance to the one Ozil scored from against Newcastle years ago.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Odegaard over!

[Marc Overmars]

Got in behind a few times.

Barcodes defending stubbornly.

[Marc Overmars]

Playing VERY well.

Need to score.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

We're such a threat. :lol:

[Marc Overmars]

Good work from Eddie but Xhaka fluffs the shot

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Guimaraes booked, run at him!

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Send him off!

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Nketiah booked. :lol:

[Marc Overmars]

Gabriel looping header just wide

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Gabriel header, not far off.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

All gone so sloppy. :lol:

[Marc Overmars]

Odegaard booked

[GP]

Ref has lost the plot

[Marc Overmars]

Xhaka booked now.

This is getting a bit careless now. We need to be careful we don’t give the ref a decision to make.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Xhaka booked. :lol:

[Marc Overmars]

Joelinton should have scored

[Marc Overmars]

HT 0-0

Started well then it descended into some shithouse nonsense. Has the makings of a 0-0.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Joelinton should do better there.

[21_GOONER_SALUTE]

I think I'd take a draw ATM....a draw and us coming out of this game with no reds or suspensions is looking pretty good to me now.

We just don't look mature enough to come out with all 3 points at the moment.

Kudos to Newcastle, the most organised and disciplined team we've faced so far.

[Marc Overmars]

We’ve got the quality up front to nick this but it’s very important we don’t lose our minds getting into a scrap with them, especially with this referee being so card happy.

They have options on the bench to change the game too and we don’t.

[Ralpheroo72]

Not very fluid, becoming a shit fest. Need a second half like one against West Ham, can’t see it though.

[21_GOONER_SALUTE]

Team picks itself at the moment.

Only slight question is Tierney or Zinchenko.

I think Zinchenko is actually better suited for away games.

I also think Tierney could be useful in this game as Martinelli is totally marked out. Proper overlapping runs from Tierney could be the secret to breaking the Toon.

[selassie]

We need to calm down, it looked like frustration was starting to seep in towards the end of the half. If we step up we can win this but we need to be disciplined and a bit more savvy with our offensive play.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Come on Arsenal. :bow:

[Marc Overmars]

Positive start

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Oh Xhaka, FFS.

Come on.

[Letters]

Come on Arsenal. :bow:

:gp:

[Marc Overmars]

Ramsdale you lucky boy

[Ralpheroo72]

Far too casual

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Fucking hell Ramsdale.

[Marc Overmars]

They’ve made it pretty hard for Martinelli to find space.

[Marc Overmars]

Playing better now.

Not easy to get in behind them though. Can see why they’ve got the best defence in the league.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Good effort from Martinelli.

[Marc Overmars]

Final ball just not there.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Wilson off, Wood on.

Almiron off, Murphy on.

[GP]

Almiron looks like a ventriloquists puppet

[GP]

haven’t seen anti football like this in a while

[McNamara That Ghost...]

White off, Tomiyasu on.

[Marc Overmars]

Martinelli glances a header just wide. No one following it in.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Martinelli header so close.

[Marc Overmars]

Ramsdale looks so unconvincing flapping like that at corners.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Willock off, Saint-Maximin on.

[Marc Overmars]

Eddie shot saved

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Pope saves to deny Nketiah!

[Marc Overmars]

5 mins added

[Marc Overmars]

Barcode corner :sick:

[Marc Overmars]

FT 0-0

Horrible game

[McNamara That Ghost...]

0-0 FT. Oh well, can't win them all.

[selassie]

We never looked like winning, never in control of the game. We can't win them all.

[GP]

Clear pel not given at the end. Of course.

Newcastle are a horrible side. Even prime Stoke weren't that shithouse.

[Ralpheroo72]

Pish

[21_GOONER_SALUTE]

haven’t seen anti football like this in a while

:haha: You gotta give it to them, they were perfect to the tee...I mean it felt like I was watching a Serie A side from the 90s!

[21_GOONER_SALUTE]

We never looked like winning, never in control of the game. We can't win them all.

I've got to agree with this.

For the first time I felt like we didn't have the players (both on the pitch and on the bench) to win this kind of game.

I'm just glad we didn't get any suspensions or red cards.

[Letters]

0-0 FT. Oh well, can't win them all.

This season is the closest we’ve come to that not being true!
But not a disaster of a result

[HCZ_Reborn]

In some ways a predictable result, third game in eight days and playing a side that doesn’t concede many, and both sides unbeaten since September

I think the claim that we don’t have a player that can overcome shit housing teams is not unreasonable. For me even before Jesus got injured I feel we could have done with a Mitrovic style player

[Marc Overmars]

Couldn’t get going at all, which was down to the Barcodes turning the game into a shitfest.

I guess it poses the question over squad depth, hopefully we get the Mudryk deal over the line soon. Definitely felt like we didn’t have any options to deal with the most stubborn team we’ve faced so far.

Ah well. Hopefully Chelsea get a result against City and it’s as you were.

Spuds next. At least they’ll play football which should mean our attackers get more space to play.

[selassie]

I've got to agree with this.

For the first time I felt like we didn't have the players (both on the pitch and on the bench) to win this kind of game.

I'm just glad we didn't get any suspensions or red cards.

Aye, in the grand scheme of things it wasn't a bad result. As MO has said, I'm hoping for us to secure the Mudryk signing as we desperately need to add quality depth / rotation options.

Apparently we are in negotiations with Atletico for Joao Felix (it's on Sky Sports) so it sounds like we are looking to address the offensive side of the team.

[Marc Overmars]

Felix would be an interesting move. Likely to be a loan though and an expensive one at that. Would only make sense if we had an option to buy. Saying that, that kind of transfer worked with Odegaard so you never know.

I’m really hoping Smith-Rowe can rediscover his 2021 form. That would definitely feel like a new signing.

Whatever happens, we need some new options if we have serious designs of winning the league. It’s not acceptable that we were chasing the win tonight and couldn’t make a single substitution that could have changed the game. Tierney was the only feasible option but you can’t be relying on a left back to break down a team with the bus parked.

[Mac76]

I also think Tierney could be useful in this game as Martinelli is totally marked out. Proper overlapping runs from Tierney could be the secret to breaking the Toon.

I was thinking this during the game, Arteta should really have given it a go once the game got to 70 mins or so.

Overall a stubborn performance by Newcastle and a bad ref but still we shpuld have done better, we reverted to some poor decision making, players hanging onto the ball too long in attack and we overpacked the midfield, am still not sold on the whole Zinchenko playing inside thing, it left Martinelli isolated last night.

But anyway, we're now 8 pts above Citeh and they go to Chelsea next... :popcorn:

[Mac76]

Almiron looks like a ventriloquists puppet

:lol:

[Ollie the Optimist]

It wasnt our best performance but that referee last night was one of hte worst I’ve seen (and for both sides). He completely lost control after about 20 minutes. Of course nothing will be done by the premier league and hell keep getting games and being awful.

That penalty check by VAR when Gabriel had his shirt virtually ripped off, how can they say that 1. It wasnt a clear & obvious error & 2. That its not a penalty given the referee booked Nketiah earlier in the game for touching someone’s shirt for about .2 milliseconds.

[selassie]

Felix would be an interesting move. Likely to be a loan though and an expensive one at that. Would only make sense if we had an option to buy. Saying that, that kind of transfer worked with Odegaard so you never know.

I’m really hoping Smith-Rowe can rediscover his 2021 form. That would definitely feel like a new signing.

Whatever happens, we need some new options if we have serious designs of winning the league. It’s not acceptable that we were chasing the win tonight and couldn’t make a single substitution that could have changed the game. Tierney was the only feasible option but you can’t be relying on a left back to break down a team with the bus parked.

Aye, Felix deal is a loan.

Yeah agree on Smith-Rowe, need him back asap and firing all cylinders.

Yeah we absolutely need to invest in the squad now if we want to continue to challenge for the title.

[IBK]

Couldn’t get going at all, which was down to the Barcodes turning the game into a shitfest.

I guess it poses the question over squad depth, hopefully we get the Mudryk deal over the line soon. Definitely felt like we didn’t have any options to deal with the most stubborn team we’ve faced so far.

Ah well. Hopefully Chelsea get a result against City and it’s as you were.

Spuds next. At least they’ll play football which should mean our attackers get more space to play.

The interestign question is whether a Mudryk or a Jesus would have won us the game last night. Fresh legs yes but hardly 'plan B' types...

[Marc Overmars]

Jesus makes so much happen in the final third that I think we probably would have at least created more than we did. Eddie has the work rate but his movement isn’t as cunning.

Ultimately though they were doubling up on our dangerous players at every opportunity so it would have been difficult regardless. There’s clearly a reason why they’ve got the best defence in the league and have only trailed a game for a matter of seconds this season.

Frustrating night but fairly harmless in the grand scheme of things. Just have to hope getting blunted for the first time this season doesn’t affect the confidence, especially with a trip to Spurs next.

[IBK]

Jesus makes so much happen in the final third that I think we probably would have at least created more than we did. Eddie has the work rate but his movement isn’t as cunning.

Ultimately though they were doubling up on our dangerous players at every opportunity so it would have been difficult regardless. There’s clearly a reason why they’ve got the best defence in the league and have only trailed a game for a matter of seconds this season.

Frustrating night but fairly harmless in the grand scheme of things. Just have to hope getting blunted for the first time this season doesn’t affect the confidence, especially with a trip to Spurs next.

Yes - I guess what Jesus does is attract often 2 defenders leaving another of our attackers free, in a way that Eddie doesn't. As you suggest - win against Spurs and we are firmly back on track. Why is every game such a big one these days?

[Niall_Quinn]

Hasn't Jesus scored a mere 5 goals compared to that City bloke who has 21? Kind of implies he's not actually a striker. Eddie's a very good young player though. Shows many positive signs in his play. Raw, still. But I'd bet on him to double Jesus' tally every season, if given the opportunity. Jesus is a good player, but he's not a striker, in classic terms.

[IBK]

Hasn't Jesus scored a mere 5 goals compared to that City bloke who has 21? Kind of implies he's not actually a striker. Eddie's a very good young player though. Shows many positive signs in his play. Raw, still. But I'd bet on him to double Jesus' tally every season, if given the opportunity. Jesus is a good player, but he's not a striker, in classic terms.

Yes - its kind of odd that we have come to value Jesus as a facilitator for how the team plays rather than as a striker. It's reminiscent of Pep's previous incarnations where a striker appeared to be of secondary importance.

[Mac76]

The reason why Xhaka needs upgrading is summed up very well here, he may not be quite the disaster area he was but he still isn't good enough for where we want to be:

https://twitter.com/adamkeys_/status/1610957841556463619

[IBK]

The reason why Xhaka needs upgrading is summed up very well here, he may not be quite the disaster area he was but he still isn't good enough for where we want to be:

https://twitter.com/adamkeys_/status/1610957841556463619

Yet you ignore:

Xhaka was one of our best players against Newcastle. This isn't a criticism of him. This is an example of how Arteta could have changed things to disrupt a very structured unit with a right footed dribbler who loves to cut in, rather than a left footer who naturally goes wide.

There is a difference between a player 'not being good enough' and acknowledging that a system could be changed to suit the game state. Your confirmation bias ignores the fact that Xhaka has been one of our best and most effective players this season.

[LDG]

The biggest issue for me the other night was that in playing Zinchenko, it left Martinelli crowded. The overlap and threat of Tierney woild have given us more options from that side of the pitch.

I think Chenko was played as an extra guard against that weirdo teethy eyebrow wanker who got subbed off. At that point releasing Tierny would have been a good move

[IBK]

I agree with this.

[Niall_Quinn]

Xhaka is a catastrophically flawed player, which means he's a pretty decent player by today's standard. He has no real clue how to play the game, but that's not a required attribute for a modern PL player so you can't hold it against him. For example, will he mindlessly pass it across his own back line? Of course. That's what well-paid shit-klickers do. Because they don't know any better.

Maitland Niles was a fairly decent prospect in midfield. He could kick a ball to an intended target, a big plus in the PL. He sometimes played forward passes, a very rare gift.

It's apparently difficult to argue against Arteta because his dogshit team of pretenders somehow leads the league. You can't ask more from the guy, even if the challenge is almost non-existent. Trouble comes when you compare modern day "success" with real football. The two things aren't equivalent or comparable.

Why do I diverge? Because by these lowly standards, Xhaka is a good player. You have to understand, their term "good" is being used relatively. He's not ACTUALLY a good player, obviously, but he's good compared to the absolute dross that infests the PL today.

In Arteta's coma-ball system, Xhaka is a linchpin, our sideways and backwards game would collapse if we had to rely on Partey to pass a ball over more than 2 yards.

[21_GOONER_SALUTE]

I think Arteta could have done either; bring in Tierney to add more width and release the pressure on our second most likely player to score (Martinelli) or removed Xhaka and go with someone who is naturally more of a goal threat (Viera); he did neither which suggests he really believed the boys out there would break them down eventually ( wishful and arrogant if you ask me) or more likely that Newcastle would make a big mistake which we would capitalise on (again a bit wishful), which might be why he was so incensed on the penalty claims.

He gambled and though we didn't lose, the Man City result shows we clearly didn't win or gain much from the game either. Arteta really needs to watch this game several times and learn from it. Its a master course on how to neutralise us.