Match Reaction Bournemouth 0-2 Arsenal

[Xhaka Can’t]

Glad we won - but it was an incredibly dull, lifeless performance.

I'm worried that the win will somehow provide validation to Wenger that he has the central MF pairing right.

He hasn't. And if he sticks with it, Leicester will stick it to us next week.

[dostoy]

I think he is easing Coquelin back in slowly as he realises how important he is.

One thing that has now became certain is that Mertesacker has got to go in the summer and be replaced with a 25 year old 6'4 beast of a centre half.

Debuchy, Arteta, Rosicky, Ospina and Flamini all out in the summer as well.

[Letters]

I am glad we won but I am completely sure we will not win the league and have been since before the start of this season.

We have this tendency to buckle under pressure and only when the pressure is reduced do we start winning again.

We need a manager who can give confidence, belief and even a bit of arrogance, Wenger is not that man.

I hope we beat Leicester and those Spuds but if we are top in March we will fold tamely, we always do now every year.

I don't think we'll win the league but how was today a less pressured game than the previous one?

[GP]

Glad we won - but it was an incredibly dull, lifeless performance.

I'm worried that the win will somehow provide validation to Wenger that he has the central MF pairing right.

He hasn't. And if he sticks with it, Leicester will stick it to us next week.

You think he actually prefers Flamini to Coquelin?

[alexander]

You think he actually prefers Flamini to Coquelin?

I think it was NQ in the match thread that said wenger was destroying Alexis confidence by taking him off at 70 mins. Like Coq, he has had a long injury lay-off and Wenger knows these two players are crucial to the rest of our season and title challenge. yes, we are still in with a shot, whatever NQ and others still bang on about, we are joint 2nd, and a win next week makes it wide open again.
He cannot risk these players more than he has too. I fully expect Coq to be starting next weekend. If he does them in before we play Vardy and his high flying rabble and spurs, there will be a massive uproar.

[Niall_Quinn]

I think it was NQ in the match thread that said wenger was destroying Alexis confidence by taking him off at 70 mins. Like Coq, he has had a long injury lay-off and Wenger knows these two players are crucial to the rest of our season and title challenge. yes, we are still in with a shot, whatever NQ and others still bang on about, we are joint 2nd, and a win next week makes it wide open again.
He cannot risk these players more than he has too. I fully expect Coq to be starting next weekend. If he does them in before we play Vardy and his high flying rabble and spurs, there will be a massive uproar.

He can't risk Coquelin so has to play Flamini? Never a clearer indication of why he should be sacked on the spot. Imagine having to rely on a bloke that nobody else wanted and only turned up to keep fit (the irony of doing that at Arsenal probably escaped him). It all goes back to the summer transfer window, and transfer windows before it. Until this season and the chavs performance it's hard to imagine a club more poorly run in terms of what that club could achieve with a bit of competency and ambition at the helm. After 10 years of this shit what else can you do except "bang on" about it? Wouldn't surprise me if it turns into 15 years, I guess we'll all be screaming by then.

[Power n Glory]

I love Bif, but when Walcott plays up front, Alexis, Ozil and Ramsey look like different players. We are far more dynamic, aggressive and unpredictable. All our best performances have occurred when Walcott was up front. FA Cup final, Leicester away, United at home.

Giroud is a great option against lesser teams at home and coming off the bench. But it's so easy to nullify a one-paced attack and it constantly invites pressure onto us with no outlet available. It obviously doesn't help that Coquelin and Cazorla have been out, but having a better-functioning attack could have made up for the midfield somewhat in recent games.

Was saying the same just before kick off. Giroud only managed one shot all game and it was a header easily saved by their keeper. For the style we're trying to play, he just doesn't suit it. The first goal we scored could have been taken out of the old Sam Allardyce playbook. Ball over the top and he nods it back to Ozil. We either have to play more to his strengths or bring in Walcott. It was a predictable performance.

[Niall_Quinn]

Was saying the same just before kick off. Giroud only managed one shot all game and it was a header easily saved by their keeper. For the style we're trying to play, he just doesn't suit it. The first goal we scored could have been taken out of the old Sam Allardyce playbook. Ball over the top and he nods it back to Ozil. We either have to play more to his strengths or bring in Walcott. It was a predictable performance.

At least he got the header back and made Sam proud. Theo wouldn't have even been in the vicinity. However, if there was any match to give Theo another shot up top it was today, up against an opponent with literally nothing. Wenger is probably saving Walcott for a game to which he is entirely unsuited. You know Wenger by now.

[alexander]

He can't risk Coquelin so has to play Flamini? Never a clearer indication of why he should be sacked on the spot. Imagine having to rely on a bloke that nobody else wanted and only turned up to keep fit (the irony of doing that at Arsenal probably escaped him). It all goes back to the summer transfer window, and transfer windows before it. Until this season and the chavs performance it's hard to imagine a club more poorly run in terms of what that club could achieve with a bit of competency and ambition at the helm. After 10 years of this shit what else can you do except "bang on" about it? Wouldn't surprise me if it turns into 15 years, I guess we'll all be screaming by then.

Sacked on the spot for playing one player and not another (who has come back recently from months of no football) get a grip.
he didnt expect to have to rely on Flam. He had Wilshere, Arteta, that could play there, but unluckily they have both suffered injury. Nearly all teams would expect to rely on a certain 11-14 players, then backups if something goes wrong. You cant have 2 world class players in every position, one will always get pissed off.

[Power n Glory]

I think it was NQ in the match thread that said wenger was destroying Alexis confidence by taking him off at 70 mins. Like Coq, he has had a long injury lay-off and Wenger knows these two players are crucial to the rest of our season and title challenge. yes, we are still in with a shot, whatever NQ and others still bang on about, we are joint 2nd, and a win next week makes it wide open again.
He cannot risk these players more than he has too. I fully expect Coq to be starting next weekend. If he does them in before we play Vardy and his high flying rabble and spurs, there will be a massive uproar.

If Coquelin isn't fit enough to start should he even be on the bench? We've seen players come off the bench and still pick up an injury. Whilst we're in the title race, we should be playing our strongest 11 every game. It's not a long stretch from here until the end of the season. Also, Sanchez had a long lay off and since making that first sub appearance against Chelsea, he's started every game now that he is fit.