Arsenal v FC Zurich (03/11, 20:00 GMT), BT Sport 2

I can see Eddie getting sold next summer. I think his new contract was as much about protecting an English asset as it was him actually ever becoming a goal scorer for us. He’s played near enough every minute of the group stages but hasn’t really given Arteta anything to think about. He’ll never start PL games unless it’s forced through injury or suspension.

Saw the highlights. Looked like a decent enough performance. We aren't ruthless enough in front of goal, but at least we're making chances which we weren't really last year.
At least we're not at that level we were when it was 0-0, or we were 1-0 down, and it was one impotent "attack" after another where you could see we'd not sure if we were playing till midnight.

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Originally Posted by Letters

Saw the highlights. Looked like a decent enough performance. We aren't ruthless enough in front of goal, but at least we're making chances which we weren't really last year.
At least we're not at that level we were when it was 0-0, or we were 1-0 down, and it was one impotent "attack" after another where you could see we'd not sure if we were playing till midnight.

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We were really hanging on at the end, could easily have been 1-1

Well, sure. That's the danger of only scoring one. But we were good value for the win. Need to put away more of our chances, but the improvement from last year is obvious.

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Originally Posted by Xhaka Can’t

Yes, I had a look at that last week after we drew with Southampton and was surprised with where we ranked in scoring.

But something just doesn’t pass the eye test here. On balance of play, it doesn’t look right - it appears we should be scoring more and there are games that have ended up much closer than they ought to have been as a result of not getting the goals our play merited.

I think we got lucky last night - though maybe if Zurich had scored, we would’ve stepped up and got another one if needed.

What I’ve most impressive this season is our reaction after conceding - there have been at least a couple of times where we’ve gone right back up the pitch and scored.

This team is much more resilient, but that can be exhausting as well - I’d love to have at least the option of having another reliable striker on call.

Problem is, if FFP hits anyone, it will likely be us.

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You can’t win 5-0 every week. Do you remember us struggling to 1-0 wins against Bolton and West Ham with Ljungberg goals to win the league?

We can be pretty demanding. I get that we have to be more clinical at times, but last night showed you can be thwarted by good goalkeeping, and against Southampton, brutal defending or crap refereeing.

We just need anothee option for the times its not going so well. Something more direct

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Originally Posted by LDG

You can’t win 5-0 every week. Do you remember us struggling to 1-0 wins against Bolton and West Ham with Ljungberg goals to win the league?

We can be pretty demanding. I get that we have to be more clinical at times, but last night showed you can be thwarted by good goalkeeping, and against Southampton, brutal defending or crap refereeing.

We just need anothee option for the times its not going so well. Something more direct

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I agree pretty much entirely, but there is an element that is not quite there. Our play, if anything should be producing more goals. All parts of our team are working together as a cohesive unit more than I’ve seen since the mid 00s. And they work hard - which is a pre-requisite for success, particularly when you haven’t got hundreds of millions of pounds to throw at a team until you get it right.

I think we need a more clinical finisher to complement what we already have and to provide that extra depth we’re going to need to solidify our place in the top 4. For the first time in well over a decade, we’ve built a team that doesn’t need major surgery. With a little ingenuity in the January transfer window, we can really build something with this team.

They have character, a work ethic and players who are likeable. Their play so far has to have earnt the trust of management who should now be in a position to make further investment in them and the team.