Arsenal Thread - 2022/23

[Crooked_rain]

A lot of people in the media are saying that they haven’t bottled it, banging on about how they are a young team blah blah blah
Yes, they are a young team and haven’t been in a title race for ages, and yes they have played some fabulous football.
But, when you get 50 points at halfway, and were 8 points clear 7 games ago, and City end up winning with 3 games left, sorry but that is a monumental bottle job however you dress it up.

Absolutely

Winning 2 games in your last 8 is bottling it

No doubt a big part of that is having us breathing down their necks, but they started dropping points to teams they shouldn't.

Even our fans don't like saying Arsenal bottled it, like it means we only won because of it. But its not like that. them bottling it shows the difference between our mentality and theirs. We're a better team than them and that's not just technically on the pitch, it's handling the pressure too. Them bottling games they needed to win just highlights what winners we are when it comes down to getting over the line.

I always liken us to an elite boxer. Many of them lose early rounds, doesn't matter because the opponent is working flat to be a front runner in the fight early on, but the elite boxer is relaxed and the opponent is becoming mentally drained, which makes them physically drained too. Then they usually start coming apart and the elite fighter takes over.

 

[HumbledGooner]

Absolutely

Winning 2 games in your last 8 is bottling it

No doubt a big part of that is having us breathing down their necks, but they started dropping points to teams they shouldn't.

Even our fans don't like saying Arsenal bottled it, like it means we only won because of it. But its not like that. them bottling it shows the difference between our mentality and theirs. We're a better team than them and that's not just technically on the pitch, it's handling the pressure too. Them bottling games they needed to win just highlights what winners we are when it comes down to getting over the line.

I always liken us to an elite boxer. Many of them lose early rounds, doesn't matter because the opponent is working flat to be a front runner in the fight early on, but the elite boxer is relaxed and the opponent is becoming mentally drained, which makes them physically drained too. Then they usually start coming apart and the elite fighter takes over.

I would rather bottle the league than never have been in a position to win it in the first place. If it were anyone else than a Pep team 7 years into a cycle, we would have won it. If this were Mancini's of Pellegrini's Man City I think we wouldn't have felt the pressure and would have ended up winning by 5-8 points.

I just think the whole team needs a break. Lucky there are no tournaments this summer as I think our players can do without football for a while. We wont regress, we finished 2nd this season because of the effort and time into Odegaard, Saka, Martinelli, Saliba, Gabriel and built the team around them. These are quality players who if anyone wanted to buy would need to offer up a shit load.

We do need to spend though. Rice is in the pipeline and given his preference to stay in London, there is a clear pathway to his signature. Xhaka is going, Holding, Lokonga, and Tavares will join him. Nketiah, Tierney, Smith-Rowe, Balogun could all be sold to clear the deck and raise cash for new incomings.

No need to reinvent the wheel or throw the baby out with the bathwater. We have clear quality in our squad with player slike Saka, Martinelli, Slaiba and Odegaard all in a development stage, we just need to supplement them with additional quality.

 

[Crouchinho]

After years of hearing we finished third in a two horse race, when we were never top of the league playing catch up.

I think I may have to say Arsenal finished second in a one horse race!!

 

[blue b4 the moon]

Arsenal fans are finally coming to the realisation that Jesus isn't an out and out goalscorer.

Still the same player he was at ours, has a 2/3 game run where he looks world class usually after an injury, then 10 games+ where he's to low side of bang average.

Pep didn't manage to improve him and that says an awful lot.

 

[cucumberman]

I have respect for Zinchenko he did elevate his new team. But their team overall…

 

[Stiff Little Wingers]

Still the same player he was at ours, has a 2/3 game run where he looks world class usually after an injury, then 10 games+ where he's to low side of bang average.

Pep didn't manage to improve him and that says an awful lot.

Let’s not be harsh on people. Gabriel did a great job for us, didn’t Pep call him the best presser in the world”? (And I don’t mean press conference - I mean he worked his bollocks off.
Pep also changed his game a bit from the free flowing dribbler he was when he was younger and made him a better player.
I can’t help but wish him and Zinchenko all the best and am really glad they’ve both played well this season - Gabriel was on fire in the first half of the season. Of course I’m delighted to see the Arse fade but I still look back fondly at players who did do much for us

 

[dhruvblue]

Apparently Man City's millions ffp breaches and 2 full squad of world class players is responsible for Arsenal bottling their recent games

 

[Gone for a Burton]

Arse didn't bottle it, an elite City team won it !!

In the two head to head games City were superior winning 7-2 on aggregate.

In the second game City were so much better and made Arse look very,very ordinary...we outplayed them for 95 minutes.

That win and performance crushed Arse and they never recovered.

We also beat them in the cup...8-2 in three games is conclusive,that's why we're CHAMPIONS !!

 

[Gingers Dad]

Played really good football at times this season. Not good enough to win the league by a long long way. City have won the league by a huge margin in the end.
Watching Arsenal fail at Forest yesterday you could see so many failings in their team. They've been making excuses since Saliba got injured. Never thought he was that good when he played but you can't base a title challenge on one centre half. Gabriel is truly bobbins.
Jesus is a very talented player but proved he is a nearly man at a different club. Oodegard is the new Christian Erikson. Good player but not good enough for an elite club.
Saka is a great talent but seem to tale off. Probably got over played.
Xhaka and Ben White good enough? don't make me laugh. I liked Zinchenko but he's turned into a bit of a dick.
Ramsdale is straight from the Jordan Pickford style of goalkeeping. Bit of a overhyped time wasting prick.
The time wasting, water breaks to listen to the manager and the group huddles have been really irritating all season. Had to laugh when Forest scored on 19 minutes just a couple of minutes before Ramsdales first time out injury yesterday.
Can't see them challenging next season without another huge investment in the transfer market and Arteta sneaking back into Pep's office to steal another playbook. Back to 5th for the Tarquins next season.

 

[Boo or Boo-urns]

The media were using Zinchenko and Jesus as sticks to poke/goad Pep into admitting selling them was a mistake (See Jaded Sanchez as another example at Dortmund), and constant commentary reminders that Arsenal now have "title winners" in their first eleven.

When it came to the "crunch" time, it was the both of them that were found well short, one of them spaffed too soon, following it up with pitch histrionics and tears, so many tears, and the other sucked all the goals out of the team.

Title winners according to the UK journo's, and also thanks to captain Ødegaard for another "assist" to the opposition for Forest's goal that confirmed our title without having to kick another ball.