Match Reaction v Chelsea

[Marc Overmars]

Crippszola is by far the most technically gifted player we have and always likely to produce at least one moment of quality a game, but considering his ability I expected him to be our go to guy and he's not really lived up to that billing. He's just as likely to go hiding as the rest.

Although I was thinking if you took any Spanish midget out of their national set up and put them in a pub team environment, they'd blow hot and cold.

[Niall_Quinn]

Crippszola is by far the most technically gifted player we have and always likely to produce at least one moment of quality a game, but considering his ability I expected him to be our go to guy and he's not really lived up to that billing. He's just as likely to go hiding as the rest.

Although I was thinking if you took any Spanish midget out of their national set up and put them in a pub team environment, they'd blow hot and cold.

Exactly. Barca press when they are winning, they press when they are losing, they even press when they are drawing. Their aim is to get the ball and control it. I'm not sure what our tactics are. Looking from the outside without being party to the actual instructions being issued it seems to be start slow, allow the other team into the game, apply pressure at the end if things aren't going our way or sit back and invite pressure if they are. We all know by now how the team will react in any given circumstance. We've seen it for years. Doesn't matter who comes in they all fall into the same system. It's like we set out to disrupt our own momentum. I suspect it has something to do with conservation of energy based on some crazy statistical model.

[Injury Time]

Exactly. Barca press when they are winning, they press when they are losing, they even press when they are drawing. Their aim is to get the ball and control it. I'm not sure what our tactics are. Looking from the outside without being party to the actual instructions being issued it seems to be start slow, allow the other team into the game, apply pressure at the end if things aren't going our way or sit back and invite pressure if they are. We all know by now how the team will react in any given circumstance. We've seen it for years. Doesn't matter who comes in they all fall into the same system. It's like we set out to disrupt our own momentum. I suspect it has something to do with conservation of energy based on some crazy statistical model.

Any other manager would give Theo* a rocket from the "jog" track back when we are under pressure/ being hit on the counter, the scary thing is I think you could be right

Eta *not just Theo, other lazy players are available.

[Power n Glory]

He's playing in a system that inexplicably performs when we are up against it but relaxes when we gain the merest advantage. It can't be all eleven deciding to play this way simultaneously. It must be some sort of fucked up tactic that fails to work season after season. The players get instructions before they go out on the pitch. The instructions are faulty, or at least they don't maximise the potential of the team. I suppose Wenger would claim over the course of a season his tactics do work because we keep hold of that 4th spot. But it must be confusing for certain players when the tempo is shifting all the time and there's no opportunity to get a steady rhythm going and build control of the game.

In regards to defending and off the ball pressing, I think that it’s maybe down to Wenger and his tactics. But the way I see Jack charging around, pointing and getting frustrated with others that aren’t doing the same…it just looks as if there is no organisation and people do what they want when it comes to defending. It doesn’t make sense to see Jack pressing hard while everyone else just jogs.

But there is still no excuse for why a player of Cazorla’s ability can go missing for so long. He’s probably knackered but a central midfield player can’t hide like this. He needs to keep things ticking and we shouldn’t be looking to Wilshere or Diaby to carry the load.

[Cripps_orig]

Cazorla requires the rest of the team to be firing, he can't drag the game along by himself. Arteta and Cazorla may not be the most expensive options (which is why Mata and Silva are at the chavs and the gypos respectively) but our "worse" alternatives are not bad players by any stretch of the imagination. We've got much bigger problems that these two.

Arteta is

[Japan Shaking All Over]

I have only seen the last five mins+added on and the goals at the end.
Why the hell cant we play with the same kind of energy that we did for the parts I watched........
By the sounds of it we did our usual Sunday stroll first half and only came to life in the second.......I dont want to hear any more excuses that we were good in the second half......we lost over two halves plain and simple and as the old cliche goes it is two halves that a game is over.

[bignev]

Arteta is

English muthafucker. Do you speak it?

[Japan Shaking All Over]

Can feel a Cripps moment coming on

[Newguy]

English muthafucker. Do you speak it?

w-w-w-what???