Man City vs Arsenal 26.04.2023 Match reaction and player ratings

[Letters]

Didn't even turn up until the 70th minute.

That's not what happened.
We didn't suddenly "turn up", City took their foot off the gas, it was job done and they have the CL to think about.
Arsenal used to do this in their pomp, blow teams away and then coast, that's what City did last night.

But it's ok, Arteta is 'over achieving' and the players think 2nd + CL is alright.

Given where we've been over the last few seasons where did you think we'd finish this year? Top 4 was my expectation or hope.
If you'd told me that we'd be in a genuine title race I'd have laughed in your stupid face.
Any reaction to or analysis of this season has to be in the context of where we've been over the last few years.

[KSE Comedy Club]

That's not what happened.
We didn't suddenly "turn up", City took their foot off the gas, it was job done and they have the CL to think about.
Arsenal used to do this in their pomp, blow teams away and then coast, that's what City did last night.

You have to be in the game from kick off for that scenario to apply though, we weren't until the 70th minute - so I stand by what I said.

Given where we've been over the last few seasons where did you think we'd finish this year? Top 4 was my expectation or hope.
If you'd told me that we'd be in a genuine title race I'd have laughed in your stupid face.
Any reaction to or analysis of this season has to be in the context of where we've been over the last few years.

Expectations change with result and time though.
I would have agreed with you at the start of the season.

However, being so many points clear for most of the season, having our destiny in our hands and then throwing it all away in the same manner we seem to do every season is a bit different.

I feel completely let down now, and us finishing second just seems like a loser mentality to me.

[selassie]

You have to be in the game from kick off for that scenario to apply though, we weren't until the 70th minute - so I stand by what I said.




Expectations change with result and time though.
I would have agreed with you at the start of the season.

However, being so many points clear for most of the season, having our destiny in our hands and then throwing it all away in the same manner we seem to do every season is a bit different.

I feel completely let down now, and us finishing second just seems like a loser mentality to me.

We have had one decent season in god knows how long, expectations change but we are by no means a certified Top 2 side like Liverpool have been over the past 4 or 5 seasons up until this season.

This current Arsenal team at the moment is more like the Liverpool side that challenged under Rodgers with Sterling, Suarez and Sturridge than the Liverpool side that challenged repeatedly under Klopp. Whilst I do think we look like a certified top 4 side on this seasons showing, we certainly need to improve both the team and squad to maintain this challenge next season especially with the added CL games. To take the next step forward is all about further internal improvement, both the manager and players and also recruiting very well. We pretty much need to follow the "Liverpool Template"

[Letters]

However, being so many points clear for most of the season, having our destiny in our hands and then throwing it all away in the same manner we seem to do every season is a bit different.

I feel completely let down now, and us finishing second just seems like a loser mentality to me.

Well, I think that's fair. I mean, we were 8 points clear. But since that City have P13 W11 D1 L1.
We have certainly dropped points where we shouldn't have. But don't all teams do that in every season?
We've also picked up points in games where other seasons we'd have dropped them.
Overall it's been as much City being a relentless machine as us collapsing. The two head to heads have shown the gap between the sides.
They have some of the best players in the league and they can bring players off the bench who would walk into our team.

I am disappointed because there were a couple of moments in the season where I thought the title was possible. But, overall, there's no disgrace in losing the title to City. They're just at a different level to us. And we all know how they got there. Fuck them.

[HCZ_Reborn]

Well, I think that's fair. I mean, we were 8 points clear. But since that City have P13 W11 D1 L1.
We have certainly dropped points where we shouldn't have. But don't all teams do that in every season?
We've also picked up points in games where other seasons we'd have dropped them.
Overall it's been as much City being a relentless machine as us collapsing. The two head to heads have shown the gap between the sides.
They have some of the best players in the league and they can bring players off the bench who would walk into our team.

I am disappointed because there were a couple of moments in the season where I thought the title was possible. But, overall, there's no disgrace in losing the title to City. They're just at a different level to us. And we all know how they got there. Fuck them.

There’s also the fact that in none of our five league titles did we go four games without winning

Two (three at most) tends to be the maximum you can afford and this is even without City

Liverpool I think have the excuse of putting their hands up and saying “what can you do?”. It’s an excuse I don’t think we have going by results this month.

[KSE Comedy Club]

. And we all know how they got there. Fuck them.

Well yes, that goes without saying tbh!

[IBK]

Ramsdale 8 - You wonder what it could have been if he hadn’t made so many saves


White 5 - Decent goal line clearance at 1-0 otherwise ineffective


Holding 4. Not his fault but when you play him in a system like ours against Man City he will be badly exposed. Given him a 4 because he scored


Gabriel 5 - Couldn’t do much but has suffered without a decent centre back partner


Zinchenko 3 - Embarassing



Partey 5 - Badly shown up last night, dispossessed constantly and isolated



Xhaka 4 - His usual dawdling



Odegaard 3 - For all the good performances he’s put in, doesn’t turn up in important away games


Martinelli 4 - Isolated as per usual


Jesus 4- Did he play because don’t remember seeing him


Saka 4 - As much penetration as a marshmallow phallus



Jorginho 6
Trossard 6
Nelson 6

Nketiah 4
Smith Rowe 4


Well this was largely what we expected wasn’t it?. We know we were up against it because of how Rampant city were, but what rankles is how easy it was for them. Arteta like last season blames the players saying they have to look at themselves in the mirror when he has set them up to fail. This was a team that never believed it wasn’t going to get a pasting.
The parallels between last season and now are astonishing, when adversity hits we hit the wall because the coach trusts certain players too much and certain players not enough.
If we recruit well in central midfield in the summer I believe we will have a very good squad, but it’s one that the coach needs to utilise more.
Saka has played too many games this season, at times he has been brilliant but recently not so good and I don’t believe it would harm him to sit out a few games, he’s a decent lad with strong self belief but without being arrogant with it
We shouldn’t need to sweat on the fitness of William Saliba or Thomas Partey the way we have. We don’t need to play an inverted left back, it made no difference for us in midfield last night.

Arteta for me is a slow learner because of his total self belief, he’s built a team that has excelled this season but if it crumbles when the obstacles emerge it will have been for nothing.

As I said last night, he has earned the right to another season but it does not erase the doubts I have about him especially as the same mistakes have been present and seemingly not addressed.

Next season will be even harder than this one, city are going no where and on top of that United and Newcastle will be much stronger. That plus champions league….if Arteta cannot adapt and continue our progress then it will be time to part ways

I agree with almost every word of this post.

[fakeyank]

I blame Arteta for the manner of yesterday's loss. The fact we were gonna lose was a foregone conclusion but the manner of it makes me angry. Quite why we werent utilizing a different system against City away from home makes no sense? You know that Holding will be bitch slapped by Haaland all over the place, yet we played a high line. Play on the counter, move Partey in CB and play Jorginho in the middle, play 3 at the back etc etc... Arteta went with exactly the system that didnt work the last 3 games before yesterday. Makes no sense!!

Having said that, we have made tremendous strides this season, especially in the quality of our attacking game, so I am going to cut him slack and acknowledge what a great job he has done. He does need to learn though... horses for courses, having a plan B and C is going to be extremely important if we are to even consider that we will be in the title race in the coming seasons.

[IBK]

I blame Arteta for the manner of yesterday's loss. The fact we were gonna lose was a foregone conclusion but the manner of it makes me angry. Quite why we werent utilizing a different system against City away from home makes no sense? You know that Holding will be bitch slapped by Haaland all over the place, yet we played a high line. Play on the counter, move Partey in CB and play Jorginho in the middle, play 3 at the back etc etc... Arteta went with exactly the system that didnt work the last 3 games before yesterday. Makes no sense!!

Having said that, we have made tremendous strides this season, especially in the quality of our attacking game, so I am going to cut him slack and acknowledge what a great job he has done. He does need to learn though... horses for courses, having a plan B and C is going to be extremely important if we are to even consider that we will be in the title race in the coming seasons.

Been wondering about the lack of plan B and C. Arteta is not stupid, and he will be able to read the game infinitely better than we can. He saw the potential for Ben White at RB. He played a masterstroke with Tomi at LB in the Liverpool game at home. While the inverted LB role with Zinchenko has let us down recently, for most of the season it was key to our ability to overload the opposition. We thought that he hated Martinelli at one point in time, but under Arteta he has become one of the most lethal wide attackers in the league - and found his scoring boots. I'm kind of thinking that we are seeing something similar to 2 seasons ago when we were rigid as hell and too predictable, but this laid the foundation for a mobile attacking unit once we upgraded our players. He seems stubbornly wedded to a system now, but maybe this is the basis for a further evolution once we upgrade again over the Summer?

[fakeyank]

Been wondering about the lack of plan B and C. Arteta is not stupid, and he will be able to read the game infinitely better than we can. He saw the potential for Ben White at RB. He played a masterstroke with Tomi at LB in the Liverpool game at home. While the inverted LB role with Zinchenko has let us down recently, for most of the season it was key to our ability to overload the opposition. We thought that he hated Martinelli at one point in time, but under Arteta he has become one of the most lethal wide attackers in the league - and found his scoring boots. I'm kind of thinking that we are seeing something similar to 2 seasons ago when we were rigid as hell and too predictable, but this laid the foundation for a mobile attacking unit once we upgraded our players. He seems stubbornly wedded to a system now, but maybe this is the basis for a further evolution once we upgrade again over the Summer?

Thats what I'd like to think, but what are the chances we will be in a real position to challenge for the title again soon? My "glass half empty" view is that we missed a tremendous opportunity. We shouldve evolved or done whatever evolution was needed this season. I think next season is too late...