Arsenal 0-1 West Ham Match Reaction

[IBK]

I generally leave it for a while to comment on a game, and try to be as measured as I can when I do.

But as stated above, this was a nadir this season that has exposed issues with this team and the management that bode very badly for Arsenal going forwards.

Which other team do we most resemble? Man City. It provides a little perspective when seeing us through this prism. Football is changing before our eyes. It no longer seems that rigid, system based football is the path to success. I've been struck recently watching other teams play by how possession football has become outdated. We play most of the time at walking pace. Patiently waiting to try to shift a defender out of position to try to create a chance that requires absolute precision and finishing. If teams do not come to try to attack us, we have struggled for 2 years to break down low/mid blocks. But teams have worked this out. There is much more disclipline in defending, a focus on overloading our players coming in from wide positions, and most important of all our opponents are primed for the inevitable moment when we lose possession with our players up the pitch. It's all about quick transitions and exploiting these...and having the rapid, potent attack to do so. Possession is meaningless both in attack and defence...as we have seen with increasing frequency.

It is extremely worrying to me that Arteta has not reacted to this development - either with his approch to matches or recruitment. At a moment when it's all about attacking from transitions and creative MFs and forwards who can explint this, we have neglected these key positions. Where reaction, speed of thought and spontaneity in moments is winning games we are dependent on a seemingly inflexible system. We have had injuries, yes. But since Odegard's return we have been more or less full strength in MF and defence - the areas that Arteta has focussed on with his recruitment. Where has his defensive mindedness got us? For a while now we have been vulnerable to almost every rare counter-attack mounted by inferior (on paper) opposition. Our much vaunted defence is looking ordinary while our attack is almost non-existent.

More worrying is that Sesko and Zubimendi are not targets who particularly move the needle in the changed tactical landscape that is emerging.

Arteta is held out a a master tactician. A master tactician should not be undone like we were by West Ham on the weekend, or frustrated by Leicester until a Hail Mary from Merino after 81 minutes against Leicester. The subs on Saturday were embarassing.

To the game itself. Our players looked like did not believe that they would win that game, and certainly played like the league is already gone. There was no drive, no desire, no bravery, no craft. This sobriquet was harsh last seaon and the season before, but we are bottlers this season. I don't care about the injuries to Saka; Martinelli and Havertz, or at least this does not explain the limp performances we have seen since Dubai. It's like the fight and self belief have drained away since falling at the final hurdle last season. Winning players step up when circumstances are against them. Our players almost to a man have shrunk and handed the title to Liverpool on a platter.

I've largely kept the faith in our manager this far. What I am seeing now sees me starting to agree that we won't win anything under him.

[Mac76]

To talk about bottling it is unfair IMO, they've probably just been run down by all the injuries, sendings off etc plus Liverpool's ability to get enough points to stay well ahead

I also think there's a general naivety about a young manager and (in general) young squad, Odegaard annoyed me a lot on Saturday, too far over to the right and often trying to be too clever

I agree Arteta's tactics are our main failing, I think he should be moved on but he won't be, that's why I keep saying we need more ruthlessness a la Abramovic's Chelsea, yes there was a LOT wrong with that regime but they knew what they (and the fans) wanted and second places (even first places sometimes) weren't good enough

And that's not saying the owners are complacent, I just don't think they know enough to realise Arteta's failings and there's no-one at the club to tell them

I think Edu's departure was highly significant, I'm now really concerned some players, e.g
Saliba, will move on as they lose the belief that we can win anything

[Mac76]

Oh and while I hate the media pileon with Arsenal, I do think we're embarrassing sometimes with our kiddie 'ultras', cheesy anthems, dogs etc, I feel like this somehow comes back to Arteta's naivety, it's good he's re-connected with the fans but we don't need all this crap

[HCZ_Reborn]

I think we are honestly over complicating things in a way that we don’t need to.

I think there are parallels with Man City for sure, in that you can’t remove key players from a team and expect anything positive from it.

As for our vulnerability to counter attacks, it really is as simple as Arteta’s insistence on playing Partey at 6. It doesn’t work and it leaves our centre backs exposed.


There’s no point discussing a system change that will allow us to become more efficient going forward, because we simply don’t have the players to facilitate this. Even if (as we should do) we swap Rice and Partey around it’s not going to exponentially speed things up. The reason as I kept trying to explain to NQ the last couple of days we become slow and ponderous in the opponents half is that we lack the ability and confidence to dribble past them or execute a swift pass and move style. I suspect strongly that Odegaard is not fit, his constant decision to play more conservatively I suspect is to avoid further injury.

The one thing I noticed is that we were trying to utilise Merino as a typical centre forward by sending crosses into the box, but West Ham are good at defending crosses. We didn’t have an alternative strategy, and the only player with electric pace was Nwaneri who was marked out of the game and eventually went off with a knock (hopefully just a precaution).


In terms of recruitment this summer I think as well as a striker and a winger we clearly do need another ball playing midfielder. The alternative this season is to move Odegaard to 8 (assuming he’s fit enough to even play which I highly doubt) move Saka to 10 (when he’s back) and Nwaneri to the wing.

Playing Rice and Partey against West Ham at home is unnecessary (or at least it would be without the injury pile up we have)

But as for Saturday, ultimately we could have played more conservatively and come away with a point or a scrappy win, but really the result simply reflects only one thing…the paucity of choice available to us currently

[Letters]

To talk about bottling it is unfair IMO

Yeah, it's just become a lazy stereotype about us.
We didn't bottle it last season - ok, we lost vs Villa but we literally won every other sodding game. How is one slip in what, 18 games bottling it?
We didn't this season either. There was nothing to bottle - we have never been ahead in this race and have been plagued by injuries which have given us no chance of taking advantage of Liverpool's slips and putting some real pressure on.
That said, we should have had enough to beat West Ham. We're just running out of steam.

[HCZ_Reborn]

That said, we should have had enough to beat West Ham. We're just running out of steam.

This is where I seem to be at odds with most of the people on here. Because I don’t think that’s the case. Well not so much the running out of steam bit…I just don’t think it’s especially relevant

When you have no strikers, your first choice wingers are also unavailable…your chief play maker is clearly unfit and you are relying on a 17 year old to make it happen for you. I don’t think there’s a question of “should” in terms of having enough to beat anyone.

I was disappointed by the result Saturday, in that I was hoping against hope that somehow we could make something happen from nothing. I’m not being uncharitable to us either, I don’t think there is any team in the league in the situation we are in who can be expected to turn up and win games…with the possible exception of teams that have pretty much resigned themselves to being relegated

[Mac76]

There’s no point discussing a system change that will allow us to become more efficient going forward, because we simply don’t have the players to facilitate this.

I only half agree, as you say elsewhere in that post Nwaneri has pace and Trossard's also capable of a breakaway, the odd occasion in recent games someone's played a searching ball forward it's often led to a good chance or a goal

And in any case it's the way we always play even with Martinelli, Saka (who admittedly I'm not sure is as good on the break tbh but then we never get the chance to see it really) and Havertz

There's a lack of willingness to try anything risky and i think it's the stranglehold Arteta has placed on players

[HCZ_Reborn]

I only half agree, as you say elsewhere in that post Nwaneri has pace and Trossard's also capable of a breakaway, the odd occasion in recent games someone's played a searching ball forward it's often led to a good chance or a goal

And in any case it's the way we always play even with Martinelli, Saka (who admittedly I'm not sure is as good on the break tbh but then we never get the chance to see it really) and Havertz

There's a lack of willingness to try anything risky and i think it's the stranglehold Arteta has placed on players

A breakaway is dependent on opposition teams committing players forward, that is only going to happen if teams find themselves a goal down.

If your point is we don’t employ the counter enough even when we are in a position to do so, then yeah definitely agree with that.

But against most teams especially at the Emirates it’s kind of a moot point

[IBK]

I do think we have bottled it. Maybe not by failing to win the league, but certainly when it has come to opportunities to at least put pressure on Liverpool. The manager as good as said so much about Saturday's game, and we did not play like title winners against the likes of Bournemouth; Fulham; Everton; Brighton; Newcastle (not to mention our cup exits). We have been profligate when it comes to scoring from clear chances throughout, and have had more defensive lapses and mistakes than I can remember for a long time. I am not saying that we have a God given right to win every game, but injuries or not our players have not stepped up when needed too many times. When Odegard was hiding on Saturday, when we played with no intent or drive and simply looked limp; when once again we were at sixes and sevens for their goal it's difficult not to reach the conclusion that we wilted when it counted. And this is by no means the first time we have been found wanting when Liverpool have dropped points. While admittedly this has not been the case throughout, too many times I have not seen a team with the fight needed to sustain a title challenge. Objectively, a review of our season won't focus on injuries first and foremost. It will show a team of players who, while they may have faced insurmountable odds in winning the league with key injuries and lack of player investment, failed to reach their potential.

And BTW I specifically said that we did not bottle it last season.

[Letters]

When you have no strikers, your first choice wingers are also unavailable…your chief play maker is clearly unfit and you are relying on a 17 year old to make it happen for you. I don’t think there’s a question of “should” in terms of having enough to beat anyone.

I just feel there's goals in this side. Admittedly that opinion is starting to fly in the face of evidence, but Nwaneri looks likely, Odegaard can score, Rice chips in here and there.
I basically agree with you though and it's why I think you're being a bit harsh on Arteta. Yes, we are light on squad depth and yes we needed a striker but I'm not sure Arteta is responsible for transfer dealings. And we're still above everyone but Liverpool - they've been lucky with injuries and have had Salah on absolute fire all season.