Maybe I’m slightly delirious – it was “just” a point away to Bournemouth who are one of the worst home teams this season – but despite the result it felt good to watch Arsenal for the first time in over a year.
Maybe I am delirious. Delirious in that way that people who study meditation say they feel tremendous joy when they have been holding an uncomfortable position for a long time and switch to something a little more relaxed. The sudden rush of relief hits like a junkie’s fix.
That first hit for me was when Ozil started popping up in space between the two Bournemouth back lines. This is a feature of de Bruyne’s play and one of the most underrated things that a creative midfielder can do in a game. Just receiving between the lines requires spacial awareness, fantastic touch, and an awareness of where your teammates are.
The second hit was when Ozil played in a throughball to Lacazette. Ok, the Frenchman tried to cut it back rather than take the shot but we just spent the last 18 months watching midfielders forced to play throughballs to fullbacks and it’s exactly this kind of direct, attacking football which accounted for the reasons why Arsenal managed to get so many shots in this game.
Instead of laboring over the ball in the back, Arsenal were opting for direct long passes straight up the pitch. Bypassing the midfield of Bournemouth and springing the attackers. And more important than just attempting those passes – because we were trying them before – Arsenal were pulling the opponents out of shape in order to create spaces to play those passes into.
It’s Bournemouth and their defense is notoriously lazy and reactive but like I said, little steps.
Another not-too-subtle change was Arteta barking out pressing instructions to his players! I could hear him yelling NOW, HELP HIM, when they had created the moments (triggers) where he wants his defenders to close the man with the ball and help each other to win the ball back.
In general, Arsenal played higher up the pitch. Arsenal dictated the game in the Bournemouth final third. Arsenal won the ball in their area. Arsenal created lots of chances. And even Torreira and Xhaka were much more active in terms of on the ball possession, compared to just a few games ago when the center backs were the ones with the ball more, indicative of how the team were playing more on the front foot.
It wasn’t perfect. Saka had a bad moment in the first half* which led to their goal, and they created two big chances against us. But we’ve now seen a match where the team played with effort and passion and now a team played with effort, passion, and a little bit of organization. After the match, Arteta said “I’m very pleased with some of the things I’ve seen, in terms of attitude, character, the passion we showed, and the fight and spirit the team showed. It was spot on. Probably better than I expected over 90 minutes.”
Perfect.
Or it would be perfect if I hadn’t just seen reports that Xhaka’s agent is burning down the bridges at Arsenal and demanding a trade.
Let’s just be objective here for a minute: Xhaka is not shit, nor is he great. He’s obviously got some talents and just as obviously some flaws. He’s not going to benefit from a different system and you could see that today, he’s the only player who took four touches per pass and slowed Arsenal’s attack. But he was also making some fantastic long passes and his normal pass accuracy is important. But he also turned the ball over a few times and still really can’t play defense – that lying-down tackle was pretty funny.
Going further back, I understand why he wants to leave: he was mistreated by a lot of folks on social media and the things his family dealt with are awful. And also at the same time, his reaction to the fans, his refusal to apologize, and now burning bridges with the fans, the coaches, and the new managers right when the new manager is offering him redemption, is.. well it’s kind of perfectly Xhaka, isn’t it? It’s just a rash, two-footed tackle which leaves everyone – friends and foes – screaming “WHAT ARE YOU DOING??”
If he wants to leave we have to let him go. In a way, this is reminiscent of the end of the Wenger era: at some point we need to rip this band-aid off and get in a replacement. Might as well do it now, when there’s almost no chance of a top 4 finish.
*He’s 18, playing out of position, in a new system, with a new coach, and credit as well to Bournemouth who trapped him and Auba smartly to force the turnover. My only complaint is that he didn’t hustle back to close down the runner.
Much improved performance no doubt. More direct play and attack, was exciting to watch at times. But i really do feel we would have all 3 points in the bag had he started Pepe instead of Nelson he had a stinker in my opinion. No way, he should be starting ahead of Pepe who looked lively in the few minutes he was on. Imagine we had him to run at that defence right from the start.
I completely understand Xhaka wanting out. Why would he want to stay when it seems like most of the fanbase want him gone. (And I agree with people who say his game might be better suited to a different league.)
I’m still disappointed about what happened to him. Everyone has their own take but mine is that either the fans in the stadium knew he was going through a hard time with abuse but decided to pile on him anyway (and then played all shocked and offended when THEY were accused of being abusive), or they didn’t know he was going through a hard time with abuse and once they presumably found out afterwards they didn’t care and continued to play the victim and act like a bunch of trolls/snowflakes.
My take on his ‘apology’ was that it was fine. He apologized for letting down the club and the supportive fans, but because he didn’t go crawling on his hands and knees and apologize to the fans that abused him (both sets) people decided he’d shown no awareness of the mistake he’d made in the heat of the moment. In my mind he apologized to the people who mattered to the club for his outburst and that’s fine by me.
Honestly, if I was him I’d want out too. Why stay around and play for a bunch of fans that don’t want you there? I would have been more surprised if he WASN’T looking for a new club where he’s not one of the main targets(rightly or wrongly)of fan dissatisfaction.
Didn’t see the match today but glad to hear there’s signs of progress. I think Arteta will prove to be a good appointment and I’m excited to see what he does with the team now.
…In my mind he apologized to the people who mattered and to the club itself for his outburst and that’s fine by me…
I think for many fans the ‘incident’ was the final straw. In the time he’s been with us he doesn’t appear to have addressed any of the shortcomings in his game. He comes across as arrogant, shirks responsibility, makes plenty of terrible errors and is pretty much guaranteed to accumulate yellow cards at a rate which is unacceptable. He also joined us on big bucks (not his fault I acknowledge) and was bigged up as quite the player; hence the accumulation of fan frustration. I don’t feel like he’s been driven out of the club. He was a high profile addition and it just hasn’t worked out. Time to move him on.
Still on this?
Sigh.
More aggressive performance of the ball is what I liked the most. Once Arteta was seen encouraging Sokratis not to back off but press higher the opponent, not allowing him to turn around. Let’s hope the training ground stuff will step by step transform our game, flashes of good play were visible today.
On the other hand, Liverpool puts an unbelievable performance at Leicester. Klopp sets a benchmark for every team in the world with the way players are pressing and moving off- and with the ball. Robertson’s and TAA’a work to secure spaces behind center halves is incredible, great awarness.
Are we the only club to never get a new manager bounce? That’s three in a row now.
I missed the first 30 minutes which may colour my judgement but saw little to be encouraged by. Yes we dominated possession and territory but so what? Their goal was a direct consequence of our poorly playing out from the back. If I was Arteta I’d ban it for the remainder of the season. After which Bournemouth played defend and counter, actually quite well. The onus was on us to score and Laca was dreadful. If he hadn’t had such a shocker we’d have run out easy winners. He really needs to hit the training pitch 24*7 and get that form and confidence back. We’re also paying the price for so many youngsters presently; sometimes they deliver but today was not one of those days.
Today was the easy swing to get a bit of much needed confidence before facing Chelski and ManUre. Hoping to see a bit more in those two games.
You missed the first 30 minutes? There’s the problem. That was Arsenal’s best period! They actually looked something like a proper football team. Arteta clearly wants them to play 1 touch and 2 touch football, which they mostly took to immediately. Ozil making diagonal runs and diagonal passes was just how you want him to be. He managed to find so much space. May Allah be praised! If Laca was in anything like good form, we’d have been ahead at half time, but he wasn’t and we weren’t.
Arsenal then went off the boil for some reason and reverted back to Emeryball. You could watch it unfold. Too many touches on the ball. Far too static. Sideways passing. Needless to say, Bournemouth scored. Saka out of position. No covering players. Here we go again.
Xhaka wears bright orange boots, which makes him easy to spot in the penalty area. When the opposition scores, I always look out for him. If you ever watch reruns, then do the same. It’s incredible. He just stands there like a semi interested spectator, who has somehow managed to find some kit and got on to the pitch. It’s like he’s mesmerised by the opposition. Having watched the goal go in from close up, he then throws his arms in the air in disgust and turns away. You couldn’t make it up.
Arteta has been bigging him up in the press. Complete and utter PR. He said those things because he had to. I would be amazed if he is still at club in 2020. He’s the antithesis of what I think Mikel wants from the team. Hollywood passes where he stands back and admires his handiwork? He’d be far better off somewhere else and he knows it.
Torreira had a much better game. I think someone has whispered in his ear that he needs to stay on his feet.
Early days, but I think Arteta was the right choice. He seems to know exactly what he wants, communicates it directly to the players and doesn’t seem to suffer fools gladly. A bit like a latino George Graham. All we need now is a Tony Adams.
I think I joined at minute 32 and the co-commentary were being very complimentary towards Arsenal but what I mostly saw was unfortunately deja vu.
About Torreira I find him infuriating. He’s happy to put his body on the line and made some notable turnovers to win back possession. But he also is so easily man-handled when in possession and that touch when we were attacking near their penalty area which they then ran the length of the pitch and nearly scored. I don’t think he’s the DM answer and neither do I think Arteta does.
Agreed. Much improved performance.There was clearly som effort and energy in our play. Xaxa to me played more on the left side of the midfield when ever we had possession. Saka played up the pitch when we had the ball while Maitland Niles came to the central midfield more often. Unfortunately,the final passes from Saka and Nelson were not good. Both Aubu and Laca needs to bury the chances when they come Ozil seems to have threaded good through balls that the forwards didn’t convert. I also felt Arteta should have made substitutions a bit earlier say around the 60 mark considering the heavy downpour in the course of the game. That said, I hope it won’t be long before we start winning again…….It has being a long long painful wait
On a positive note 😉 we lead the league in points recovered from losing positions (11). Which considering how few points we have accrued is very impressive and speaks to strong resolve in the team. Just need to find a way of not going behind now 😆
On balance, Granit Xhaka’s pluses cancel out his faults and visa versa so his presence at Arsenal is overall a negative because he ultimately brings no value. Begone and save me from having to override the spell checker every time I have to correct “Granite Chaka”.
We celebrate our first point with our third manager in three years today. Is that a good thing? Better than losing of course but we have slipped way down in our expectations.
Arteta has the temporary benefit of tremendous goodwill from supporters as he’s seen as a true Gunner. I like him too and I want him to succeed. But I’d want anyone in his job to succeed, even Mourinho had the unthinkable happened.
It was not unencouraging today and hope springs eternal in sport but I’m tired. My love of Arsenal is tiring. More than anything, I want Arteta to make it all less tiresome and a bit more fun again.
Lots of people have commented online but I’d be remiss not give a big shout out to the late great Goonerholic.
Like many of the commenters on his passing, our interactions were only online but were so enjoyable. We messaged mostly on music and only a bit on Arsenal. Our last exchange was on what was Smokey Robinson and the Miracles greatest contribution to Western civilization. He was all “Second That Emotion” and I was “Tears of a Clown”. I’m so sorry I’ll never get to meet him in person. A true gentleman, for sure.
You shouldn’t try to keep a player who wants to leave. Let Xhaka go in January, with our thanks and gratitude.
He isn’t a victim, nor was he unfairly and badly treated. He was a professional athlete who got some stick in a sporting arena. He wasn’t the first; he won’t be the last. The fans booing him (which they shouldn’t have done), were not channeling the vile internet abuse that he later referenced. It’s deplorable, but here’s the thing… he’s going to get that from morons wherever he goes.
I’d be surprised if Arteta hadn’t planned for this eventuality. There’s a report that MA privately told him that he could leave, while publicly bigging him up.
The game? Didn’t see it. But you want to be beating a Bournemouth away if you are The Arsenal. But hugely encouraged by reports of how well we played (with some exceptions), and how much better we looked. Pleased for Mesut, from the accounts of the match.
Obviously we disagree on this Claude but in my opinion the real people playing the victim here were the people who were happy to abuse him (both online and in the stadium) who then proceeded to clutch their pearls at his lack of decorum and call for his punishment as soon as he got so upset that he hit back.
You could see what proper coaching could do to a team and some players.emery killed this team and messed up so many players.the lack of confidence is glaring.we don’t really know what goes on in the minds of these guys.laca always creates goals for himself but was a shadow against bournemouth.even auba fluffed some shots.give them time.lets just hope artetas vision doesn’t fail them cos we got some talent in there
Had to work during the match today– and caught maybe half of it all told. Felt that we’d managed to do what’s necessary to win– except net the second. Even there– 17/2 shots. An Arsenal with 17 shots usually gets more than one. Crap conditions. Skied, floaty and just plain too-long crosses.
Did ‘fine’. Shoulda’ won.
Been awhile since I’ve even felt that. Much less expressed it publicly.
Had the same view of Saka’s moment as Tim did– but thought also– of a youngster caught between two diametrically opposed philosophies: ‘Fullbacks bomb forward/old’ and ‘Stay home, defend first/new’. And for those damning couple of seconds he reverted. Grain of salt– and all that. Saka will get it.
Put one foot in front of the other again Sunday. Then do it again.
I did definitely feel encouraged by the play today. Moreso than perhaps any PL match this season. Away, in the rain, and with yet another different lineup(have we played the same lineup in any two consecutive matches this season)?
And we did pretty well. Should have won if the crossing and finishing was better.
As far as Xhaka goes, he was never as bad as what he was made out to be, but nor is he what we need at CDM now, unless he undergoes an Arteta-like conversion. I won’t be too sad to see him go, but I’m a little concerned, as I don’t think Torriera is the answer either. Maybe Luiz or Chambers if they weren’t needed in central defense.
An equally big worry for me is scoring outside of Auba. We go from him at 12, to Laca at 5, then to Pepe and Luiz at 2. If Lacazette isn’t producing…we have a serious issue. Pepe needs to step up, or one of the youngsters is really going to need to take a big step.
But even though we lost ground to Spurs and Utd today, I feel a little more hopeful. We’ll see what happens with Chelsea on the weekend. That will be a better benchmark.
As far as Liverpool goes…they are the first team I’ve actually started to worry about possibly matching the Invincibles record. They are looking that good.
Watched the Pool-LC match DVR’d last night– and thought the same.
First time I didn’t think ‘pretenders’– in the possibility they may be the next ones.
Grew up through my mid-teens in Miami. Privileged to watch the Dolphins go undefeated in 1972. Every year it’s the same for ‘both my football teams’. Hoping to retain that memory. That glory.
Every ten years or so an NFL team looks ‘great’ enough to match the Fins (’85 Bears, ’98 Vikings, ’07 Patriots)– but they never find the Holy Grail.
Though Klopp will prioritize the PL over CL, and others? It’s a long season yet.
Three seasons back when City ran off 10 wins to start the season (and by large margins mostly)– there were rumblings they ‘were the New Invincibles’.
It’s hard to be perfect. Almost as hard to come close.
If Xhaka wants to leave then fine. But the fee needs to be 40m plus. He has a long term contract so if he wants out he needs to find a club that will pay the fee now. We need to stop giving our assets away.
Anyone saw how AMN was pushing infield as a pseudo MF with Nelson posted on the line to stretch B’mouth!
It was good to watch, quite risky if we turned over the ball they had the left wing to attack but at the same time allowed Ozil to push up the pitch..
i’m not opposed to xhaka leaving but i am opposed to him leaving in january. the only way he goes is if someone comes in and pays big money for him…enough money for arsenal buy doucoure. the watford man is not as talented as xhaka but he’s more dynamic, capable of playing in both the 6 and 8 spot. likewise, he seems to want to be a great player. i think he’d be a huge success at arsenal. with xhaka, arsenal simply don’t have any one to replace him internally. they have a bunch of kids that he should be a mentor to. the only way to sell him is if it benefits arsenal.
as for the performance, arsenal were attacking. when emery initially dropped ozil, i declared that it was because he didn’t know what to do with ozil; it was like an old carpenter who didn’t know how to use a sophisticated new tool. arteta knows how to utilize mesut. likewise, he looks to be playing to arsenal’s strengths, the attack.
arteta pushing sokratis up to pressure the ball is in contrast to what emery did. it was my biggest complaint about arsenal and particularly david luiz; these players would always drop off for no reason. it goes to the point jack and i were making about “no get, no turn”. i love it but it will take some time to undo the fuckery that was emeryball.
that same “drop off” approach is really what led to the goal arsenal conceded. everyone is blaming saka for losing the ball, which he did. however, xhaka, as the first defender, failed to put pressure on the ball or even channel the attacker. instead of forcing the issue, he simply continued to drop off and allowed bournemouth to develop the situation behind him. there’s a time and place to do what xhaka was attempting to do, which is called a delay. however, that was the wrong time and place to do a delay; there needed to be pressure on the ball and it was his duty to do that. if he does, will bournemouth score? maybe, but do the work.
i’m not opposed to xhaka leaving but i am opposed to him leaving in january. the only way he goes is if someone comes in and pays big money for him…enough money for arsenal buy doucoure. the watford man is not as talented as xhaka but he’s more dynamic, capable of playing in both the 6 and 8 spot. likewise, he seems to want to be a great player. i think he’d be a huge success at arsenal. with xhaka, arsenal simply don’t have any one to replace him internally. they have a bunch of kids that he should be a mentor to. the only way to sell him is if it benefits arsenal.
as for the performance, arsenal were attacking. when emery initially dropped ozil, i declared that it was because he didn’t know what to do with ozil; it was like an old carpenter who didn’t know how to use a sophisticated new tool. arteta knows how to utilize mesut. likewise, he looks to be playing to arsenal’s strengths, the attack.
arteta pushing sokratis up to pressure the ball is in contrast to what emery did. it was my biggest complaint about arsenal and particularly david luiz; these players would always drop off for no reason. it goes to the point jack and i were making about “no get, no turn”. i love it but it will take some time to undo the f*ckery that was emeryball.
that same “drop off” approach is really what led to the goal arsenal conceded. everyone is blaming saka for losing the ball, which he did. however, xhaka, as the first defender, failed to put pressure on the ball or even channel the attacker. instead of forcing the issue, he simply continued to drop off and allowed bournemouth to develop the situation behind him. there’s a time and place to do what xhaka was attempting to do, which is called a delay. however, that was the wrong time and place to do a delay; there needed to be pressure on the ball and it was his duty to do that. if he does, will bournemouth score? maybe, but do the work.
…and i prefer aubameyang at striker instead of center forward. laca had a bad day at the office but we all know he hasn’t played much since coming back from injury. likewise, we all know that he’s much better than yesterday. lacazette simply disrupts defenses in ways aubameyang can’t. this also allows crazy amounts of space for mesut. we’ll continue to monitor that situation.
the service from the wide areas was pretty poor but i’m not throwing young saka under the bus. we know kolasinac and tierney are better suited so we’ll be fine. however, we need for niles to step his game up. even torreira was pretty good on the day.
bottom line, arsenal has a coach who knows how to utilize the resources he has available, not misuse/abuse them. that’s the definition of management. as a result, arsenal look better already. emery was a mis-manager.
in fact, big ups to torreira. i love the way he used his quickness to rotate over from an attacker’s blind side and put himself between the ball and the attacker, assuming possession of the ball. that’s something that i used to do all the time as a player but can’t seem to get my players to do, although i talk about it all the time. i have to come up with a training exercise that emphasize this skill. it’s beautiful to see it done. if done correctly, you’ll either win possession of the ball or win a free kick as you’ll get fouled and the fouler wouldn’t have even seen you until you were in his armpit.
Josh, fellow.. all due respect, i see yourself constantly comparing your “playing days” to current Arsenal PROS….. well i will raise the question…..
who in bloody hell are ya!!?
where did you play? link with some highlights???
it is incredibly annoying when we are talkng anout the greatest, and most competitive league in the world… and u come up with ur pillock stories mate
“well, how i would have done it..”
come on mate…. show some class,
Pep Wenger poch and some others all played the game to varying degrees.it gives you ideas of how the game should be played.klopp Jose tuchel Allardyce n co played the game in their backyard.it gave them ideas of how it should be played same as Josh Tim Claude n many others.one didn’t play professionally doesn’t mean no ideas
let’s see…i praise an arsenal player’s application of a rare tactical skill and you’ve derived from that, me comparing myself to a professional player?
look, i don’t know if it’s the boos or the drugs you kids are using today (maybe you were drinking when you posted this) but reading comprehension skill is imperative in written communication, particularly in a forum where all expression is in writing like 7amkickoff. find your nearest 10-year old and they will tell you the “main idea” behind my post; the praise of a young midfielder and how i’d like to see that skill applied more frequently in football.
as for who i am, i’m a proper football nerd who’s had the good fortune to have travelled all over the world, training and playing this game with incredible people on 5 different continents and learning what motivates them. while i can no longer play, i began coaching about 18 years ago. i’m licensed to coach up to a professional (but not international) level in the states. i coach, mostly high school and college-aged players as that’s my niche. i still love to watch, talk about and listen to others talk about this beautiful game of ours, hence my quite regular participation on this forum. my question is who the bloody hell are you and what do you contribute to our community?
I think he’s ideally suited to this kind of skill. He’s nimble-footed, has that darting half yard burst and most importantly has the awareness to read the passer’s intention. And actually his smallness might even help, allowing him to slip literally beneath that unguarded armpit. Under Emery he was kind of a mixed bag. The hope is that a quick passing, 1 and 2 touch style will suit him better, and he’s clever enough to contribute offensively.
Regarding his midfield partner, I would have liked to have seen him reprise his partnership in the Uruguayan midfield with Bentacur. Sadly he is a player we needed to have spotted early, there’ll be no way we shift him from Juve now unless he falls off a cliff somehow. With Xhexit looming we need a workable solution, Luiz in midfield fills me with dread.
i agree totally with your assessment of torreira’s qualities. he doesn’t fit a typical mold and i never fancied him for the league. however, to see him find a way to use the qualities he does have to be effective is laudable.
i seem to remember arsenal being linked with bentancur a few years ago but who knew ramsey was leaving then, ironically, to juventus. personally, i preferred the likes of paredes, ndidi, and doucoure but that’s just me.
Hey JW1 can we keep the conversation to Arsenal and real football . Some of us don’t care about NFL and don’t see any correlation..
Funny thing is, the ’85 Bears lost 1 game that season, away vs the Dolphins.
A ‘correlation’ would actually be pretty sweet.
I may be in the minority here, but I feel as if most analysis of Xhaka is fouled by emotion and not logic.
There has been so much complaining about Xhaka’s weaknesses and how he doesn’t seem to improve on those weaknesses, but in taking a closer look, there really isn’t any way for Xhaka to ever win in how he is judged. I say this because the weaknesses that people point out about Xhaka are almost impossible for any human being ,or player of that level, to change or improve upon.
I have always believed that a player should only be criticized if they are not performing what they are good at, well enough or consistently. If you were signed because you are a good d ribbler, I will be disappointed if you are either failing to beat players or not trying to dribble past opponents. If you were signed as a ball winning midfielder, I will be disappointed if you are failing to read dangerous situations and position yourself in the right positions to win the ball back.
So why was Xhaka signed by Arsenal? What did he show that made us want that type of player? What attributes did he show which we wanted to see in our team regularly? Did we take his weaknesses into account? Did he show any signs of turning around his weaknesses into strengths?
The weaknesses profiled regularly are his turning circle, slowness in movement and in possesion, lack of defensive positional nous and his bad tackle technique (and choice). He was like that when we signed him and has been like that throughout his time at Arsenal. These for me aren’t things that a player at 23/24/25, who was an attacking midfielder, can realistically change and perform to a Premier League level.
Xhaka is a central midfielder who specializes in taking responsibility for the team’s style of play, direction of play, how the team transitions through the different departments and recycling the ball when an attack fails. He does this through his ball dominance, not an easy or teachable characteristic for players to have, and his security in making himself available for passes, recieving the ball and passing accurately. This is more difficult with the quantity of possesion he is responsible for in a game. He was that when we signed him and he is still that.
Getting to this level in the way that he has, with such obvious and glaring weaknesses and still being put into the team by every coach that has ever coached him should tell people something, which is that he is very good at what he does. Coaches do not look at what you never had and leave you out, they look at what you bring and how it helps the team, and then make decisions on whether you are an asset or a liability to the side.
Xhaka has never really been a crowd favourite because whehat he does well isnt an appreciated part of the game today. People used to speak of defending as the most underappreciated part of football, but that no longer rings true. The metronome in midfield, the player who doesn’t score or assist but lays the foundation and direction for chances to be made and goals to be scored, the player who give the best players the ball in the areas where they can cause the most damage, the player who isn’t a ball winner but always puts in a shift, the player who is always an outlet for isolated teammates and most importantly, the tactical leader on the pitch, is who the football world is underappreciating right now.
Players like Pogba, Ramsey, Modric and etc, have shown that there are more exciting versions of central midfielders in possession and in the final third. Players like Ndidi, Fabinho, Casemiro and etc, have shown that there are better ball winners. But what about the Players like Xhaka, Kroos, Verrati and etc? Such players will only be recognised for a bit when the team does well, but a lack of understanding of what they are good at and also the fact that they just aren’t as exciting as other midfielders makes them an easy target for disgruntled fans when things are going bad.
We did sign him at the age of 23 where he was captain and a highly rated player in world football since he was 18. He always had the personality he has now, comes from a culture that puts pride on a pedestal and we knew that when we signed him. If his personality puts you off, it’s too bad because we have to watch football to not only enjoy but to be more open to different personalities and characteristics of people from around the world.
The most dissapointing thing is that he has been one of, if not the most consistent player for Arsenal over the whole time he has been here. He has done well at what he is good at throughout his time at Arsenal and is somehow criticized as our worst performer. It’s no surprise and I think makes more sense on his part to leave. Replacing him is gonna be far tougher than I think most would care to admit. The best way is to just find an alternative that works for us because a better version of Xhaka, who we are shunning, is Kroos and Verrati, and we know that we aren’t good enough for them.
Some good points, Devlin.
You’re right, he’s not a “bad” player as such, it was just bad recruitment on Arsenal’s part. In English football his weaknesses are shown up and exploited every week. I can think of a few other players in that squad who fall into the same category. For a good many years our recruitment has been erratic. An odd mix of players seemingly bought on a whim. Square pegs. Round holes. That, almost on its own, explains why we are now a pretty average mid table team.
i appreciate your defense of xhaka. i can tell you that my analysis on him is not emotional.
i have a theory on why xhaka preferred to come to arsenal as opposed to going to fc bayern. he believed the red cards he’d receive in germany were unfair and that the physical reputation of english football would suit his game better. what he has come to see is that a red card in germany is also a red card in england.
when you sign a player as young and talented as xhaka was, you’d expect him to become a much better player, not stay the same. has xhaka improved? yes, but his improvements have been minimal. i believe it’s because when things go wrong, he fails to own his role in it. when arsenal don’t score, he blames the strikers. when arsenal concede, he blames the defenders. when he concedes a penalty, he says “we need to do better”, not “i”. his conclusion about those red cards in germany is that it was the bundesliga referees being unfair and not his fault. even his non-apology to the arsenal fans for telling them to f-off was about him blaming others for that and never owning that his behavior was unacceptable. he seems to have this donald trump-type ego that says he can do no wrong.
the one thing arteta talked about in his first press conference is holding the players accountable for what they do. arteta is exactly the type of manager xhaka needs. by virtue of that fact, and that his departure would leave arsenal too light in midfield, i would keep xhaka until summer. xhaka should be a much better player than he is and with arteta telling him that and holding him accountable for his play, xhaka will either want to leave or want to stay. we’ll see how that works itself out.
The problem with this analysis is that Xhaka isnt physical. At all. Slyly tugging the shirt of the one-paced midfielder that you are making look like Usain Bolt and who is leaving you for dead isnt being physical. Sokratis is physical. Xhaka is not. He’s fairly big. But he’s slow, physically and mentally. He is not a great user of his physique.
Like I said Joshuad and you are proving my point. Most of what you say is based on what you think his thought process is like, that’s a speculative way to judge someone because I could also say he joined us instead of Bayern because he wanted more of a challenge than just romping to league titles even in bad seasons. Am I right? Maybe, and that’s why those types of opinions have painted him in a negative light. It’s easy to do and not based on anything.
This is a player who has captained every team he has played for under numerous world renowned coaches/managers. There is so much he possesses in his strength of character that when that is questioned, it Usually makes me laugh. He is captain material and holds those around him accountable, that would not be helpful if he didn’t hold himself accountable in the first place.
I wonder what it is that people want to see that proves that someone holds themselves accountable. A press conference? A media statement? No, self accountability is done in isolation by the player themself. All he can do after games is give media trained statements to keep the squad harmony and paint the club in a good light.
On the improvement side, I doubt a slow player can be made into a faster player or a short player be improved in height. The same can be said about turning an attacking player and improving his defensive attributes into those of competitive top of the table players at Premier League/Arsenal level. Improvements are more focused on what you are, not what others wish you had. Xhaka has taken his defensive duties far more seriously than Kroos who just flat out refused to be used how Xhaka has been used during his entire time at Arsenal. Verrati gets yellow cards for fun and he has very good defensive partners. Xhaka plays in a bad team, and does well relative to the performances of this Arsenal side. His improvements are there to see, if you know what kind of player he is. He should never have been able to play as a defensive midfielder in the Premier League, but we have beaten City, Chelsea, Spurs, Napoli, Valencia and others with him playing there. But all we see is the losses, we shouldn’t even be competitive at all with such a player holding.
Xhaka has been a scapegoat for a while now. If you don’t believe me, watch this video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsij4XsIbDk) and tell me that he isn’t whithin his rights to just leave for the sake of his peace of mind.
It’s normal for people to just not like an individual, and I think in such a bad team, Xhaka has performed far better than most, and yet he is the most hated/criticized.
There is a saying that one academy manager in Nigeria told me which has always stuck with me. He said “If you criticize Messi for his lack of aerial prowess, then the rest of the team is too short to compete.”
The same applies to Mesut. If you concede because of Mesut, then your team is just weak defensively. If you can’t score because of Sokratis, then your team is bad at attacking.
So basically, if Xhaka is your problem defensively or physicality-wise, then your team is bad at defending or not good in physical battles. Xhaka was never good at those or even bought to bring those to the club.
when you say most of what i say is speculative, you’re absolutely right. one could argue that it’s the nature of this forum. however, that doesn’t make my response emotional.
as for xhaka’s personality, he seems extremely likable; the guy that you would like to have a beer with or who would give you the shirt off his back. that doesn’t speak to his fitness to lead a team under duress. this is where his character get’s challenged.
why did he join arsenal instead of bayern? i recall him talking about the red cards and that he didn’t believe they would happen in the bpl, which is why i mention that but it’s speculative; i don’t know why he came to arsenal.
the biggest problem i have is how little he’s developed in his time at arsenal. i’m not talking about his height or speed as those are physical traits. i’m talking about his tactical maturity and judgement. what person gives an honest assessment of themselves while continually making the same mistakes, game after game, season after season, with no change? i would speculate that it’s someone who sees nothing wrong with what they do, hence, there is no mistake. when you do something wrong that often, it’s no longer legit to call it a mistake. it’s simply who he is.
with that, i saw “green shoots” in the bournemouth game. i saw him checking his back for runners and taking up smart positions more than ever the other day. it’s why i don’t want him to leave right now. i believe arteta can make him better by holding him accountable for what he does in video sessions in front of the entire team. if he really wants to be better and believes arteta can make him better, he’ll stay and continue to grow. if he just wants to go to a team where he’s likely the best player, he’ll go to hertha. we’ll see.
JOSHUAD, I have also seen his mistakes being the same ones. He has repeated them so many times that it has probably cost us more than we might think. But as a coach, I know you understand that players have limits. His mistakes have been in last ditch tackling or not tracking runners from his deep position. He also has a tendency to pick up yellow cards regularly.
But all of that is assuming that he has played in his natural position, role and around players that make our midfield more complete. Instead, you have Xhaka putting in last ditch challenges in midfield and in our box, have you seen Kroos or Verrati having to do that?
You see him as having not improved on his defensive side of the game, from what he was like before, he is at his limit in terms of defensive improvement for me. Have you seen him in Germany? Because improvement is based on the difference in where you were, to what you are now.
Most see him as stagnant, I see a player who was never a holding midfielder at the limit of what he is capable of in that role. Anything more is asking him to be something he just isn’t. Blame for those last ditch tackles and shirt tugging should be laid at the hands of those who play him in a role that isn’t his, with players that just don’t offset his weaknesses.
How we won the FA Cup with him and Ramsey in midfield still baffles me. Xhaka might not have been eye catching, but for someone playing out of position, he did very well. I have waited to see him alongside Torreira, in a partnership like the one Xabi Alonso and Mascherano had. We on the other hand have been using a Xabi and Gerrard for the past few years and wonder how we can’t defend well? Then lay the blame at the feet of Xabi for not being Mascherano.
Tim said it years ago that we need to sign a genuine, natural defensive midfielder. Instead we signed Xhaka and then laid our DM role dreams on his shoulders and he has taken that on. He failed at that, but what is expected of a player who has such glaring weaknesses for that role?
Personality wise, he isn’t a push over. To fans, teammates or anybody. I remember putting up a post about why players like him are regarded as captains everywhere I have went a while ago.
I am just saying, he will never be a good/better defensive midfielder. This is him at his limit, and I dont think its a shame how he has performed a role that just isnt his. Where kost expect more, I see a player who has worked to that level and just cant get beyond that. He regularly tops all the charts in training for effort, he literally works harder than every other player at the club.
He is what he is, no more no less. Switzerland have shown how to best use him, unfortunately we don’t care to analyse good Xhaka performances.
The first 30 minutes were very encouraging. The spacing in both phases was better, players pursued their marks and opponents weren’t allowed space to turn and play passes out. The passing was crisp, usually one touch football and players worked hard to make themselves available. Bournemouth were pinned in, Ozil was finding space between the lines and laid on a series of outstanding passes into the channels that deserved far better than the series of miscontrols or inaccurate final balls that resulted from them. We got behind them with regularity and controlled the match, two things that we could rarely say in recent months. That is already a massive improvement.
I actually credit Eddie Howe for their goal. Seeing that his team were pinned in and Arsenal were in control, he instructed his team to push higher and intensify their press. Arsenal attempted to play out nonetheless and were burned on a loss of possession almost immediately. I don’t blame Saka so much for this, rather it was poor awareness by the team that Bournemouth had upped the ante and the previous passing patterns would not work. Saka had a poor game crossing the ball as well, but was put in a terrible spot by that pass up to him from our own byline and fell prey to the trap Bournemouth had set for him. The goal was a direct result of the transition in our own half that followed. We desperately miss Tierney and Bellerin and will remain a limited side as long as we are forced to field auxillaries at wingback.
Torreira played another wonderful game and he and Xhaka were visibly much more comfortable with the controlled amount of space that they were asked to mind. Gone for the most part were the chasms between our lines that constantly forced them to attempt last ditch tackles. The same was true in an attacking sense. Ozil looked a player reborn and every bit the feted playmaker of yesteryear in the way he constantly connected defense and attack. His passes should’ve resulted in more goals but it was no surprise that he was heavily involved in our equalizer. Aubameyang also worked hard and made several terrific sprints that were not rewarded with passes from his teammates. Lacazette will have better days with the ball at his feet. Overall, the news is good. Arsenal lives.