BIG CLUB HOLD-BACKS
The hangover didn’t last that long for me. I was more upset after the Wolves game. When you boil it down, we were beaten by a really good team who were better than us on the day… and that amount of better against a depleted Arsenal was 2 shots on target over the course of 90 minutes.
The Kepa thing was interesting to me. He was more of a problem than just the huge error. City saw him as a fundamental weakness in our starting 11 that could be used to highlight other weaknesses.
They let him sit with the ball, gambling that he’d be too rusty to go over the top of that 4-man block. City were right. No amount of baiting would bring City players in to pressure him. That gave him two options, chip over the fullbacks, or launch to a striker who is incapable of winning duels or holding the ball up.
That led to a mess of hoofing that undid us.
Run that game again in a month and you have players like Odegaard who can drop deep and help build play. You’ll have a keeper that will happily play chips to fullbacks. You’ll have a more technically secure right back in Timber to ghost into midfield. You’ll have Kai Havertz as the target man.
Staying on Kepa, I did the rounds with my Premier League insiders to get the take on why the hell we rolled with Kepa in this game. How can the only position on the pitch that is not impacted by merit be the goalkeeper spot, arguably the role that is most sensitive to a lack of game time.
Well, it’s the unwritten rules of elite level football. You have two choices with your back-up keeper. You gamble on someone very average and hope to god they never have to play (Neto)… or you go for someone who could be a first team keeper in the Premier League, but you can only have them if you guarantee them minutes in the Cup.
We tried Neto last season and it was horrible.
Kepa, with minutes under his belt, is probably the best back-up keeper in the league.
Arteta had no real choice. It wasn’t just the culture he was protecting, he was actually protecting his future ability to attract back-up keepers who will show up as professionals every day and push through the ego-savaging that comes with sitting on the bench.
I’m told Kepa has lived every moment as a top pro this season, he’s animated and involved with the squad, and really enjoying his time.
Arteta likely didn’t imagine that we’d make the final of the League Cup or progress in an FA Cup that hasn’t been kind to us.
This is, unfortunately, the cost of doing business at the highest level.
Do I agree with it? As a fan, no. But as an imaginary professional football manager, it’s hard to argue the thought process here. Give me Kepa over Neto every day of the week.
Injury news is perking up really nicely. Arsenal are finally moving like a big club. Eze, Big Gabi, Saliba, Odegaard, and Timber have all stayed back from international duty to get fixed up.
I think one thing we all need to understand is that just because a player is on the pitch, it doesn’t mean they aren’t playing with problems that are teetering on the edge of serious issues. Most of our players are warriors. Keeping some of them back is massive and will hopefully contribute to a good run and allow them to be fresher for the World Cup.
Eze is out for 4 weeks, according to James from The Athletic, but they are awaiting a scan this week. The hope is that it’s 4 weeks from when it happened, which would put him in contention for the Bournemouth game.
Martin Odegaard should be starting against Southampton — again, absolutely massive, he will be of consequence to the run-in and we’ve missed his technical security. Timber should be back for the Premier League run-in. The only player we’re unlikely to see is Merino, though I have no doubt the club will be doing all they can to get him fit for Spain this summer.
The game I’m most focused on right now is the Bournemouth one that comes after the first Champions League game against Sporting away.
If we can ride the fatigue and walk away with three points, we have the pleasure of watching Chelsea fight for their lives against a City side who will have to close the 12-point gap. That’s a big, high pressure game, against a manager and a set of players who need to get Champions League qualification to ensure their money stays the same next season.
Looking at Spurs, because that bag of mess is amusing to write about… and, wooooah boy. West Ham could beat Wolves and put them in the relegation places. Do you fancy a squad of gutless underperformers to do something against Sunderland away? No chance. Do you really think Brighton are going to let them off the hook? No way. I don’t even fancy Spurs against Wolves away. Then it’s a Leeds 6-pointer, Chelsea, and Villa. Teams who all have something to play for…
This would be some season if we won the league and they were relegated. Just a magnificent dream to carry me through the dark and lonely nights.
What about all the stupid narratives doing the rounds post-League Cup? The worst one, fans picking on our young supporters having a good time before the FA Cup. Mostly Spurs fans complaining after their pre-relegation-scrap fan parade blew up in their faces after the 3-0 loss to Forest.
I can’t say this enough times… young people, crafting their own path, by banging drums, doing a supporter march, and raising tifos is, without doubt, really good for the game. If you don’t like it, you’re probably older than 40. There are enough ‘older than 40’ types in the ground. We need fresh blood, we need people to take atmosphere far too seriously; there has to be an ageing down of the Premier League ticketholder because the future lifeblood of the league depends on oxygenated blood. We’ve had our time being the main event, now see what the next generation brings to the table… and if you’re whining about it, go and shout at some clouds, write a strongly worded letter to the council about dog mess, or just give it a rest online. Honestly, I cannot with the negativity around young people making the game more fun to watch.
Ok, is that me done? Yes. Check out the latest Dugout with the EXCELLENT Luke Kempner (check out his new podcast The Thing About Arsenal).