Originally Posted by
IBK
Yes, the concern definitely is that Arteta may have peaked. There are some mitigating circumstances - look at Liverpool last season after they had been pipped by Citeh to the title by a point the previous one - off the top by 9 points, there can be fallout.
But I agree with others that the issue could well be that our manager's natural focus is on defence/possession and not in sharpening our attack. Given what we are seeing in the league - even Pep, the manager who seemed previously willing to play without an out and out striker revised his approach when buying Haaland - this seems a somewhat outmoded approach (could Arteta be living a bit in the past from his Citeh experience?).
Its funny how we have gone so quickly from having what was considered the most cutting edge tactical manager in the league (with Guardiola) to the likes of Iraola; Maresca; Slot and even Espirito Santo and Emery showing that their tactical nous is equal to his.
It's Arteta's blind spots that may prevent him from making further progress with us. It's too early to assess whether our current form will continue, but the signs are suddenly not particularly optimistic.