The last time Facebook was inundated with a single status update was when Michael Jackson died. For a few days now, people have been having digs at Arsenal with the aforementioned headline as status updates, tweets and the rest. Needless to say, such comments hurt. It’s been a tough few months for us and as it’s unlikely to get any easier in the run up to Christmas, brace yourselves, Gooners - the abuse is going to get worse!
Having said all this, there’s no smoke without fire. If we sorted ourselves out during the summer and had we not defended like retards at Old Trafford, or at Ewood Park yesterday, there’d be nothing to be unhappy about. The recent criticism aimed towards the manager and players is totally deserved and they have a lot to answer for.
Truth be told, I’m not sure what to think anymore. I have consistently delivered a staunch defence of the manager, the club and even some of our players in recent times but now I’m so confused. So many fans have seen this coming for so long that I wonder.. how have I been blind all this time, did I fall asleep on my Arsenal-tinted glasses, has my love for Arsene Wenger faded? I don’t know.
Our last sixteen Premier League games have returned just sixteen points. Only three wins and a severely depleted goal difference. In fact, a measly five points from our opening league games this season has equalled our worst start to a domestic campaign since 1953. Worrying times? You bet.
Our performance at Ewood Park yesterday was just so typical. Mesmerising going forward, opening up Blackburn with ease at times. We had twenty efforts on goal as the away team and managed to score three goals. Our midfield trio of Arteta, Song and Ramsey were top draw and they looked so comfortable on the ball. Unfortunately, the second half highlighted our defensive frailties and we were beaten with ease again. Admittedly, we scored two own goals and Yakubu’s second was marginally off-side, but this is no excuse. We’re simply not ruthless enough going forward and we’ve forgotten how to defend.
I wrote in my first post that we are tactically inept off the ball and that we would need to work hard on our defensive inadequacies during the summer. As good as Per Mertesacker may be in Football Manager, we showed yesterday that we have severe inability when it comes to defending as a team. These are training ground issues and should have been addressed pre-season. The fact that nothing has changed or improved is down to Arsene and his coaching staff. When you consider the fact that Sir Alex Ferguson has had 4 different assistant managers during his tenure, you can’t help but wonder why we have stuck with the same deadwood since 1997/98. Pat Rice has been a loyal servant but surely now, it’s time for change.
Attention turns to Shrewsbury this week in the Carling Cup, more painful memories to banish so lets hope we can progress to the next round.
I've made my feelings known to a few of my close friends and I received the following text message this morning;
‘OMG!, it’s you who keeps us all going when we are down :( xx’
My response? ''I have been to Manchester and to the other side of North London, to Liverpool and to Milan, to Madrid and countless other bastions of footballing excellence and stood on their terraces beating my chest as we destroyed great teams week after week. Arsenal Football Club has given me those memories and ultimately, any amount of bad results or half-arsed performances will never take that away. I support my club because that’s what I was born to do and the shitter we get, the louder I will sing''.
