I saw the
Arsenal match this past weekend, and just now got out of the trauma. Football
is my escape from reality(and boy did I need an escape this weekend) and
Arsenal present us this. I can't even call that a performance, maybe a no-show?
I am at a glaring loss to find any sort of explanation for this debacle.
As soon
as I saw the team sheet, I knew we were in for a hiding. Who plays a dreadfully
out of form Welbeck over Alexandre Lacazette, who scored 90 seconds into his
debut? Or even over Giroud, who offers a threat a defence like Liverpool's
always hates? And why play a slow Monreal over a pacy Kolasinac against
Liverpool's turbocharged front three? So many questions over team selection.
One of the biggest ones, why play Ramsey at all? He has been woeful in
midfield, and lacks the discipline to play in a double pivote. Quite how he
managed it in the 2013-14 season is a question every Arsenal fan has.
The match
starts and Liverpool are all over Arsenal, attacking in numbers. Liverpool's
strength is counter attack, and Arsene Wenger decides to play a high line
against them, without a midfield to protect our fragile defence. At times, our
formation looked like 3-1-6. Ramsey constantly left Xhaka alone in midfield,
and without a partner to pass the ball to, he suffered. I am not absolving
Xhaka of any criticism as well. When you can clear the ball, why take
unnecessary risks? Xhaka was clearly going through the motions.
Why do
Arsenal's wingbacks or fullbacks press so high? They press high, and are caught
out of position, as soon as we lose possession. To put this into context,
Arsenal don’t concede many shots on their goal. But when they do, they are of a
very high quality, say a one on one situation, or even a two on one, or a free
header. No other team plays this kind of suicidal football. Being a center back
in an Arsenal team means you are hung out to dry every time the opposition
charges on the counter. Arseblog measures a stat called "Big chances
conceded", and Arsenal topped the mini-league of the top 6 in this
category.
Liverpool
knew this, and started pressing Arsenal's non-existent midfield. With no
passing options available, Xhaka and the defence turned over possession a lot,
and that lead to Liverpool's million counter attacks in the game. The first
goal Arsenal conceded was from a free header inside the box from a false nine,
who isn't even among the tallest in Liverpool's team. It became evident that
Arsenal weren’t interested in the game. Soon, Arsenal conceded a classic
counter attack goal. From an Arsenal attack to a Liverpool goal, those 20 odd
seconds were hilarious to watch. I am not even going to bother about the two
other goals. I had an intuition that we might concede three more. It was down
to Petr Cech that score was 4-0. So many questions, about the team, the
players, the board, the owner, the manager, the fans.
After
watching that game, I asked myself, What am I doing supporting a team like
Arsenal? Why do I do this to myself every season? I have stood with Arsenal
during their painful lows and some glorious highs. Defeats like 6-0 against
Chelsea, 6-3 against City, 8-2 against Manchester United, 5-1 against Liverpool
did not make me cringe so much as the 4-0 on Sunday did.
And you
know what the best part is? That there is no incentive or urgency to change, or
to improve. Arsenal are content with what they have, and are playing. I am not.
Nor are the other fans. When your escape from reality puts you back into the
same feelings you tried to escape from, don't you think you need a new escape?
This has to be the first ever time I am seriously considering breaking up with
Arsenal. I do not associate with the team any more, and honestly I want a
change. And so do Arsenal.
<End
of rant>
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