Arsenal v Newcastle. 03/01/23. 19:45

[Mac76]

I also think Tierney could be useful in this game as Martinelli is totally marked out. Proper overlapping runs from Tierney could be the secret to breaking the Toon.

I was thinking this during the game, Arteta should really have given it a go once the game got to 70 mins or so.

Overall a stubborn performance by Newcastle and a bad ref but still we shpuld have done better, we reverted to some poor decision making, players hanging onto the ball too long in attack and we overpacked the midfield, am still not sold on the whole Zinchenko playing inside thing, it left Martinelli isolated last night.

But anyway, we're now 8 pts above Citeh and they go to Chelsea next...

[Mac76]

Almiron looks like a ventriloquists puppet

[Ollie the Optimist]

It wasnt our best performance but that referee last night was one of hte worst I’ve seen (and for both sides). He completely lost control after about 20 minutes. Of course nothing will be done by the premier league and hell keep getting games and being awful.

That penalty check by VAR when Gabriel had his shirt virtually ripped off, how can they say that 1. It wasnt a clear & obvious error & 2. That its not a penalty given the referee booked Nketiah earlier in the game for touching someone’s shirt for about .2 milliseconds.

[selassie]

Felix would be an interesting move. Likely to be a loan though and an expensive one at that. Would only make sense if we had an option to buy. Saying that, that kind of transfer worked with Odegaard so you never know.

I’m really hoping Smith-Rowe can rediscover his 2021 form. That would definitely feel like a new signing.

Whatever happens, we need some new options if we have serious designs of winning the league. It’s not acceptable that we were chasing the win tonight and couldn’t make a single substitution that could have changed the game. Tierney was the only feasible option but you can’t be relying on a left back to break down a team with the bus parked.

Aye, Felix deal is a loan.

Yeah agree on Smith-Rowe, need him back asap and firing all cylinders.

Yeah we absolutely need to invest in the squad now if we want to continue to challenge for the title.

[IBK]

Couldn’t get going at all, which was down to the Barcodes turning the game into a shitfest.

I guess it poses the question over squad depth, hopefully we get the Mudryk deal over the line soon. Definitely felt like we didn’t have any options to deal with the most stubborn team we’ve faced so far.

Ah well. Hopefully Chelsea get a result against City and it’s as you were.

Spuds next. At least they’ll play football which should mean our attackers get more space to play.

The interestign question is whether a Mudryk or a Jesus would have won us the game last night. Fresh legs yes but hardly 'plan B' types...

[Marc Overmars]

Jesus makes so much happen in the final third that I think we probably would have at least created more than we did. Eddie has the work rate but his movement isn’t as cunning.

Ultimately though they were doubling up on our dangerous players at every opportunity so it would have been difficult regardless. There’s clearly a reason why they’ve got the best defence in the league and have only trailed a game for a matter of seconds this season.

Frustrating night but fairly harmless in the grand scheme of things. Just have to hope getting blunted for the first time this season doesn’t affect the confidence, especially with a trip to Spurs next.

[IBK]

Jesus makes so much happen in the final third that I think we probably would have at least created more than we did. Eddie has the work rate but his movement isn’t as cunning.

Ultimately though they were doubling up on our dangerous players at every opportunity so it would have been difficult regardless. There’s clearly a reason why they’ve got the best defence in the league and have only trailed a game for a matter of seconds this season.

Frustrating night but fairly harmless in the grand scheme of things. Just have to hope getting blunted for the first time this season doesn’t affect the confidence, especially with a trip to Spurs next.

Yes - I guess what Jesus does is attract often 2 defenders leaving another of our attackers free, in a way that Eddie doesn't. As you suggest - win against Spurs and we are firmly back on track. Why is every game such a big one these days?

[Niall_Quinn]

Hasn't Jesus scored a mere 5 goals compared to that City bloke who has 21? Kind of implies he's not actually a striker. Eddie's a very good young player though. Shows many positive signs in his play. Raw, still. But I'd bet on him to double Jesus' tally every season, if given the opportunity. Jesus is a good player, but he's not a striker, in classic terms.

[IBK]

Hasn't Jesus scored a mere 5 goals compared to that City bloke who has 21? Kind of implies he's not actually a striker. Eddie's a very good young player though. Shows many positive signs in his play. Raw, still. But I'd bet on him to double Jesus' tally every season, if given the opportunity. Jesus is a good player, but he's not a striker, in classic terms.

Yes - its kind of odd that we have come to value Jesus as a facilitator for how the team plays rather than as a striker. It's reminiscent of Pep's previous incarnations where a striker appeared to be of secondary importance.

[Mac76]

The reason why Xhaka needs upgrading is summed up very well here, he may not be quite the disaster area he was but he still isn't good enough for where we want to be:

https://twitter.com/adamkeys_/status...57841556463619