The Season So Far.....

[IBK]

What this season has shown us so far is that we are pretty much in the same place that we have been in for the past 5 years. We have a squad of talented players who lack a) the consistency and b) the star quality needed to do more than challenge for 3rd or 4th place.

Of course, we have a captain who has been both consistent and represents our only player with true star quality, but its clear that he is worn out - and can't be expected to win games almost single-handedly as he was earlier in the season.

I disagree strongly with those who say that we lack talent in our team. IMO the only team in the league with more talent in it is Citeh. We have a few players likely to develop into true stars - Oxlade; Szceszny; Wilshere and Gibbs to name four - and decent players in almost every position. You don't go on winning runs like we have done without talent. And you don't get some of the results we have got without togetherness and fight.

What we lack at times is focus and discipline - and that is frustrating as hell.

Its easy to be over critical. There isn't a team in the league that has not had a shocking result or 2 this season. For all our gnashing of teeth over Milan away remember that the two top teams in the country played Thursday night football and don't any more. For all the disappointment of last Saturday, we are still above the team people have been creaming over all season. For all the money at their disposal Citeh are doing a good job of emulating us in 2008. United are being carried over the line, as always, by the most exceptional manager this country has ever seen.

So taken as a whole, it hasn't been a bad season. It feels worse because there is such strong reason to believe that this is as good as its going to get under the current regime.

[Letters]

there is no buzz around the club..

I don't know how you assess that but there's definitely been a buzz in the crowd recently, a real feeling that this lot are playing for each other, playing for the shirt and heading in the right direction. You get more player chants than there used to be, an indication that the connection between fan and player, so lamentably lacking at times in the last few seasons, is coming back.

This has been a ridiculous roller-coaster of a season which has at times been very depressing and at others fantastic. But you need the lows to appreciate the highs. As for whether it's been a good season. If we finish in the top 4 after our start and the events of last summer then yes, I think it will have been. If we collapse again now and don't then not so much.

[Letters]

No buzz? Really?

I think there's been a massive buzz about the place just recently.

Definitely. Anyone who has been to games recently will have felt that. (That's not a dig at you FY, I know you can't get there for obvious reasons but there has been a real buzz at the Emirates of late)

[Japan Shaking All Over]

What this season has shown us so far is that we are pretty much in the same place that we have been in for the past 5 years. We have a squad of talented players who lack a) the consistency and b) the star quality needed to do more than challenge for 3rd or 4th place.

Of course, we have a captain who has been both consistent and represents our only player with true star quality, but its clear that he is worn out - and can't be expected to win games almost single-handedly as he was earlier in the season.

I disagree strongly with those who say that we lack talent in our team. IMO the only team in the league with more talent in it is Citeh. We have a few players likely to develop into true stars - Oxlade; Szceszny; Wilshere and Gibbs to name four - and decent players in almost every position. You don't go on winning runs like we have done without talent. And you don't get some of the results we have got without togetherness and fight.

What we lack at times is focus and discipline - and that is frustrating as hell.

Its easy to be over critical. There isn't a team in the league that has not had a shocking result or 2 this season. For all our gnashing of teeth over Milan away remember that the two top teams in the country played Thursday night football and don't any more. For all the disappointment of last Saturday, we are still above the team people have been creaming over all season. For all the money at their disposal Citeh are doing a good job of emulating us in 2008. United are being carried over the line, as always, by the most exceptional manager this country has ever seen.

So taken as a whole, it hasn't been a bad season. It feels worse because there is such strong reason to believe that this is as good as its going to get under the current regime.

Good Post Ice as most of your posts are anyway

I would add that I think that we have the base of a good team and can improve on that we some shrewd business this summer - but I wont because when I do, I get accused of talking the same shit ad in previous years.

I truely believe that whether it is under Wenger or not we can be even more of a threat with a definite statement in the transfer market, I have said before that, yes we have had some seriously bad moments this year but why should we thonk we are shit when we stand third in the country, on the same points as the team that people were splaffing their pants about as been the new pretenders?

I have read that a result against Citeh will set up our clash with Chelsea as the battle for fourth, it may do but why should we be thinking of fourth when we are third. Why do people right us off at a drop of a hat, call us shit after our first league loss in 8 games?
Am I happy with the season, no cos we didnt win anything but yes cos we have shown a stronger appreciation of what it takes to be a team. Consistency is needed as well as some needed talent in certain positions then we may dare to believe again.. . . .or even buzz a little

[Cripps_orig]

If it was a one off season then id say its been ok to decent

However its the same old shit as previous season so its been a shocker. We've had a couple of good runs in October and March but far too little to make it a good season.

You know how they say teams going for trophies always have a bad patch sometime in the season like Spuds have recently, we have had a bad season with a good patch for 7 years in a row

[Power n Glory]

I can't really judge until the summer has passed and gone. We need consistency on the field and in our approach to each game but we the squad needs to remain consistent. No more cutting and changing. Losing Cesc and the injury to Wilshere has really disrupted our play and in a season where we finally have players on both flanks that can run at defenders and stretch play. For years, we've struggled with width because we've had Arshavin and Nasri out playing wide and pushing into the centre which makes everything congested. We haven't had that problem this year because we've had Theo, Gervinho, Ox as well as Gibbs and Santos on the left helping on attack. There has been a real improvement in that area. But it comes at a point where our central midfield has been weakened and we've missed Cesc, a player that can make those unmarked runs into the box from deep.

But anyway, for me, it all depends on the summer. If we keep the squad together and add more key players into the squad, then we're heading in the right direction. But we can't afford to lose more key players from the first team. This team has to gel and we need to be in a position where all areas are solid. We finally have a good goalkeeper, let's keep it that way. Our defence is still shaky, but nowhere near as bad as they were last season. We need to keep them together. The same goes for the midfield and attack. The constant chopping and changing just sets us back a year or two and we need to have an established first team. If we lose another key player this summer, it's a hammer blow to the players confidence and we'll end up going in circles. We need to get it right this summer and that's what I'm waiting to see. The players have to feel confident going into the next season.

[fakeyank]

No buzz? Really?

I think there's been a massive buzz about the place just recently.

IMO we have this buzz every season when we put an unbeaten run. Yes, we had great wins against spurs and milan just like how we had great wins against Barca and Chelsea last season or the run to the CC final.

[Özim]

Being out of all competitions by February is very poor to be honest, I personally don't think it's been a good season, 3rd/4th place is all very good but it's been that way every season for 6 years now as someone says it's where we always are and I don't really value that very highly.

Best win of the season by far for me was the win against Spurs, but derbies can throw up unexpected results however we did play very well in that game. The Chelsea win was good but let's face it Chelsea have been really poor for much of the season, they're on a downard spiral and needs some major changes themselves. Good win against Liverpool but in the league they've been a no-show surprisingly.

I've seen all this before to be honest, we're either in the hunt and totally collapse, or drop out of everything and put a decent run together convincing Wenger his team is 2% away from domination, I can see very little changes in the summer and a similar season next season to be honest.

Wenger's shown in the last 6 years he's incapable of delivering a winning team, he took a massive gamble on RVP's fitness and it worked out but let's be honest here that's pure luck, as much as I like the guy he's not managed to stay fit for years, take him out of the equation and where would we be?

All in all not a great season IMO.

[Ollie the Optimist]

from a fans point of view, this has been the best season since 2006. some horrific moments in there but some amazing highs. take milan for example, lost 4-0 and hten came within inches of coming back. the scum game, the chav game, even the man city away game made me feel proud.

ive said it before and ill say it again, this is a different arsenal team to recent ones, one with fight, pride and above all they know what it means to wear the shirt. these players are not ones who will quit for moeny, thye are ones who will stay and win for us because they are us. not nasris etc, but leaders and winners and one as a fan i love.

ive really enjoyed this seaon as a fan, its been brilliant, the stand out moment being henry scoring hte winner against leeds. that was one of footballs best moments to me.

[Cripps_orig]

from a fans point of view, this has been the best season since 2006. some horrific moments in there but some amazing highs. take milan for example, lost 4-0 and hten came within inches of coming back. the scum game, the chav game, even the man city away game made me feel proud.

ive said it before and ill say it again, this is a different arsenal team to recent ones, one with fight, pride and above all they know what it means to wear the shirt. these players are not ones who will quit for moeny, thye are ones who will stay and win for us because they are us. not nasris etc, but leaders and winners and one as a fan i love.

ive really enjoyed this seaon as a fan, its been brilliant, the stand out moment being henry scoring hte winner against leeds. that was one of footballs best moments to me.

Getting knocked out by Milan is a high for you?