We did what we always do when in a position of ascendency. Got a nose bleed and fell flat on our faces.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ernesto
God help this lot if they don't beat Bournemouth.
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We did what we always do when in a position of ascendency. Got a nose bleed and fell flat on our faces.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ernesto
God help this lot if they don't beat Bournemouth.
Arsenal haven't won after trailing at half-time in the Premier League since October 2011
:doh:
Not completely surprised by that stat. I mentioned last night we very rarely come from behind to win games, if we don't score first it's always a struggle.Quote:
Originally Posted by Munchies
Though I guess by the same token if we score first we seldom lose.
Let's wait until May to see what the gypos do. If they can bottle it to an even greater degree than us we may find ourselves at the top of the table when the counting finishes. We'll have "won" the title and if everyone else fucks up the following season we could retain it. The start of a dynasty.Quote:
Originally Posted by Marc Overmars
It's because Le Bumbling Idiot doesn't know how to change the play if his one trick pony isn't winning the race.Quote:
Originally Posted by Munchies
West Brom?Quote:
Originally Posted by Marc Overmars
This.Quote:
Originally Posted by IBK
Although...how many games is that? How often have we been trailing at half time?Quote:
Originally Posted by Munchies
I woke up today thinking yesterday's match was just a nightmare, but unfortunately it wasnt. The more I think about it, the more I cant believe what a bunch of toothless cunts we have in the team. Frankly speaking, my signature will tell what I think of AW and his management skills but I cannot believe the footballers didnt have it in them to pull up their socks and put up a show. Sometimes the players have to overcome the handicap of the manager and play for the club. Shocking performance! The players should be docked a weeks wage for that shit.
Handicap of the manager :lol:
So far he seems to have been less of a handicap than the managers of the other clubs who should be contenders.
What's simple is - don't start debating officiating when you've been humiliated 4-0. That's it, really.Quote:
Originally Posted by Master Splinter
Who are the Gypos? Liverpool or Scum?Quote:
Originally Posted by Arsene Wenger
Terrible result, another trashing to add to the long list of thrashings in the last 10 years, worse still this lot aren't even a top team.
We've seen it before though haven't we, when the pressure is on we collapse faster than a house of cards in a hurricane.
If you mention the officiating in a 4-0 defeat you deserved then you're trying to make excuses end of, using the words, freak result is also an excuse, it wasn't a freak result it was a deserved result, there's nothng freaskish about it, it's happened many times before to Wenger teams.Quote:
Originally Posted by IBK
Yep. There was no pressure on the City game.Quote:
Originally Posted by Özim
Yeah, it sounds like a poor excuse. Definitely not a freak result either because we've seen the team play like that before. It's just the scoreline that looks different and maybe why MS says it's a freak result. But if we take into consideration his complaints about the ref and the game had ended 2-0 or 3, would it still be classed as a freak result? We lost 2-0 there last season! It's not as if this is an odd result. We've done it before against opposition we should be beating and you don't even have to look that far back. Sheffield Wednesday, Olympiakos and West Ham are a few examples this season. We had Monaco putting three past us last season along with Stoke going 3 goals up at before HT last season as well. Anderlecht in the CL? It happens too often to be a freak result. We just have games where we totally switch off.Quote:
Originally Posted by Özim
We beat City last season as well. If you're thinking pressure only applies to one game when challenging for the title, you need to think again about what pressure is. It's a constant thing. Very thin margin for errors when you're chasing for the title like this. We're looking at a sustained period of pressure and we have to stay focused for the distance. It's constant pressure unless we slip out of the race or take the lead with a big enough margin for a couple of errors.Quote:
Originally Posted by Letters To Santa
There is always a certain amount of pressure on every game. It builds as you go through a season, but I dispute the assertion that when the pressure is on we collapse. There was arguably more pressure on the City game - they could have leapfrogged us and they are title rivals.
Really? You look at one game. I look back at November because we had an opportunity to go top above City back then also. Let's look at it.Quote:
Originally Posted by Letters To Santa
Nov 8th - We're level on points with City before playing Spurs. 25 points for both us and City. City draw in their early kick off with Villa. Beat Spurs at home for the later kick off and we go top. Massive opportunity but we failed to turn up. A very flat performance, similar to what we saw against Southampton, never mind going top of the table, this was a NLD and we were at home. We were lucky to get the draw and only responded to their first half goal with 13 minutes left on the clock. The draw at least kept us in 2nd and level with City who had Liverpool next so there was another opportunity the following week. We had West Brom.
21st Nov - City get smashed 4 -1 to Liverpool. But somehow we lose to West Brom 2-1. Again, this is our opportunity to go top of the table and we scored first only to end up losing. All goals came in the first half but somehow we're unable to score in the 2nd half. Awful. But at least City lost as well so we're still level but Leicester City and Utd leapfrog us and City so we're now 4th with 26 points. Leicester leading with 28. So now we're chasing 3 other teams. We get the usual spiel from the manager about a good opportunity to respond against Norwich City. Our next game.
29th Nov - :lol: We draw against Norwich City. Truly pathetic. Man Utd and Leicester City happen to draw but City won their game. So City go back on top with goal difference. We stay 4th. Typical.
And here we are in December. We beat Villa and Sunderland. Beat City to go 2nd and should have won on Boxing Day to go top of the table. But luckily, we have another opportunity today because Leicester City and Man City play each other next. Beating City may have been more of a challenge because of who they are but they've been very inconsistent as you always say, we've beaten them before and it's one of those games where the players turned up. Maybe they liked the big occasion. But to be champions we're going to have to do more. January and February aren't easy runs. We need to step it up and not have another repeat of last month.
Although, interestingly, you didn't say so before the game.Quote:
Originally Posted by Arsene Wenger
But fair play, 100% of the 'predictions' you've made after a game have been spot on.
If you could just get the ones you make beforehand right you'd be cleaning up at the bookies.
Eh? We had some thread about "believing" didn't we? I think 4 people voted no. I said all the old signs are still there. It's a whole lot closer to reality than your cake tomorrow and yesterday never existed rhetoric. Though I admit, not even I thought we'd blow it 4-0. I'm still trying to gauge the result against our all time lows, it's right down there with the best of them. Another ultimate and comprehensive capitulation at a key moment in a season. Same pattern repeating over and over regardless of the players sent out. What could the cause be? The ref? The pitch? So hard to imagine.Quote:
Originally Posted by Letters To Santa
So, can I come back on in 4 weeks when we're on a good run and then mention the poor decisions?Quote:
Originally Posted by IBK
Or the next time Fellaini elbows a player in front of the ref and gets away with it, I can highlight his thuggery and the ref's incompetence as long as it's not against an Arsenal team on the end of a beating?
This kind of coherent, logical thinking makes so much sense that I admit comprehensive defeat.
I will also make note that admitting the team was pitifully poor in all respects is null and void as soon as you mention any other aspect of the game because that is instantly an excuse. I will submit to this linear, yet watertight line of thought from now on.
Great post, proof of buckling under pressure if you ever needed it.Quote:
Originally Posted by Power_n_Glory
The amount of excuses that are banded about by some people round here is unreal, we get hammered by an average team and the emphasis is put on referereeing decisions and so called "freak results", it's totally irrelevant to the result in this case so don't see why it even needs mentioning for this game, start a new thread about these rather than making excuses for the team and managers failures.
How many bad decisions go our way, plenty but we never hear a mention of these, I don't think we have any less or any more bad decisions that any other team.
If saying this is a freak result isn't scratching around for excuses then I don't know what is.
Choking is the one exemplifying characteristic of this team. Ever since the invincibles when Wenger decided to substitute characters on the field with his own weak-kneed mentality. This is a team built in his own image, they will always choke when the going gets tough. Every team knows how to play us. Just put in a few hard tackles and the entire team goes into its shell. Chokers and bottlers the lot of them.
So there was no pressure against City or today?Quote:
Originally Posted by Özim
There's only pressure when we lose.Quote:
Originally Posted by Letters To Santa
That pretty much seems to be some people's definition.
Being the diplomatic man I am :lol: I do see both sides to this debate, though do kind of favour the opinion that we still choke when the going gets tough.Quote:
Originally Posted by Letters To Santa
The facts are we have on a number of occasions had the opportunity to go top and we have blown it. Of course we were under pressure yesterday, more so after the horror show at Southampton and we responded well.
I think we will really learn a lot about this team over the next few months, for me it will pretty much make or break our season given the schedule which IMO is very difficult. Going to places like Stoke & Liverpool next month is going to be really difficult, especially if Sanchez is still out which seems quite likely. Chelsea at home isn't a gimme either.
If we fall short this year I don't think it will be because of 'choking'. I may be wrong but IMO the more likely cause will be burn out and/or injury problems.
Players like Ozil, Sanchez and Cech will win you the title but they can't do it on their own and a long term injury to one will see us struggling - although it was positive to see us get the City result without Sanchez.
A good signing or two in January could push us on but I'm waiting more in hope than expectation for that.
If we fall short this year I don't think it will be because of 'choking'. I may be wrong but IMO the more likely cause will be burn out and/or injury problems.
Players like Ozil, Sanchez and Cech will win you the title but they can't do it on their own and a long term injury to one will see us struggling - although it was positive to see us get the City result without Sanchez.
A good signing or two in January could push us on but I'm waiting more in hope than expectation for that.