Arsenal on the slide?

We're not in decline.

We're just a bit shit at the moment. Emd of. Nothing that a few changes won't correct.

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Originally Posted by LDG

We're not in decline.

We're just a bit shit at the moment. Emd of. Nothing that a few changes won't correct.

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(tm)

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Originally Posted by Coney

If you plot that alongside the average of, say, the top 4 sides each season, it will take into account (partially) how good the opposition in the league was in that year. The 'points scored' on it's own means less than some think. If several of the lower clubs had a shit year and we scored more points, it does not mean we played better than a year where the lower clubs played well and we scored fewer points. Factoring in how the other top sides did helps to take that effect into account.

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OFMG. Someone who understands something! :faint:

You're right, league points total is not an absolute figure but a relative one. However, I just can't be bothered to run those figures. Is it still a wavy line?

Of course the only figure that people really care about is league position, and that goes:

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Originally Posted by Fist of Lehmann

OFMG. Someone who understands something! :faint:

You're right, league points total is not an absolute figure but a relative one. However, I just can't be bothered to run those figures. Is it still a wavy line?

Of course the only figure that people really care about is league position, and that goes:

1
2
4
4
3
4
3
4

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Which also shows stagnation, not decline. It's a flatline. And league position is also relative.
Points gap between us and the champions may be interesting too.
Quite what any of these show I don't know but none show a clear, straight line decline.

Sure.

But the point is that league position does show you where you are relative to you opponents (if not how close) whereas bare points totals, taken in isolation, do not.

The difference is evinced the pattern, waviness in the points totals, bottoming out in the league position.

You're right though that neither pattern shows necessarily an ongoing decline.

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Originally Posted by Fist of Lehmann

OFMG. Someone who understands something! :faint:

You're right, league points total is not an absolute figure but a relative one. However, I just can't be bothered to run those figures. Is it still a wavy line?

Of course the only figure that people really care about is league position, and that goes:

1
2
4
4
3
4
3
4

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Originally Posted by Letters (TPFKA WWTL@WHL)

Which also shows stagnation, not decline. It's a flatline. And league position is also relative.
Points gap between us and the champions may be interesting too.
Quite what any of these show I don't know but none show a clear, straight line decline.

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Lettuce don't suppose you have the cost of your season ticket(s) over this period....

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Originally Posted by Letters (TPFKA WWTL@WHL)

Which also shows stagnation, not decline. It's a flatline. And league position is also relative.
Points gap between us and the champions may be interesting too.
Quite what any of these show I don't know but none show a clear, straight line decline.

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Letters, the "decline" argument appears to be a variation of the "If you are not with me, you are against me" mentality. Specifically, "As Arsenal are not winning trophies every year, therefore they must be in decline".

I agree that the points gap between the champions and Arsenal would be interesting to examine.

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Originally Posted by Letters (TPFKA WWTL@WHL)

Do you think we'll do better when Wenger goes? Really?

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Benitez. I'm serious. We'd win the champions league within three years if he was our manager.
I'd love it if Wenger went right now and we hired Benitez

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Originally Posted by Injury Time

Lettuce don't suppose you have the cost of your season ticket(s) over this period....

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Don't think it's increased significantly actually. But then it was far too bloody expensive to begin with.

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Originally Posted by Toronto Gooner

Letters, the "decline" argument appears to be a variation of the "If you are not with me, you are against me" mentality. Specifically, "As Arsenal are not winning trophies every year, therefore they must be in decline".

I agree that the points gap between the champions and Arsenal would be interesting to examine.

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Wrong, sir.

Stagnating and spectacularly capitulating on an annual basis whilst those who you use to be clearly ahead of start catching up and the environment in which you use to dominate evolves without you adapting could be interpreted as decline.

It may be circumstantial and subject to interpretation; but when competition stiffens and you start been seen as making up the numbers -- it could be interpreted as "decline".

Would you agree then, that, we have just been making up the numbers the past few seasons?