Arsenal Thread | 2025/26

I think that to some degree, you have to doff your cap to Arsenal. The dippers are feted with all sort of compliments for pushing us over the last seven years (and sharing the PL with us lmao), but Arsenal have been in our shadow the longest.

They have slowly built an impressive squad that is now bearing fruit. The downside to this, is that they are discovering that playing at this level for everything, all the time, comes at a cost, and that is paid in injuries and mentality.

We haven't been injury free for any season. I remember Laporte dragging us through the last part of the season when not fully fit and no other CH's fit. KDB has for the last few seasons not been able to fully contribute as he or us would have liked, and we all know the others. But we (Pep and the boys) have found a way.

So congratulations Gunners, you have made it this far, and I will say congrats if you win the league.

But the business end of the season is nearly upon us - and there is still some way to go. Keep your eyes on the prize and don't look over your shoulder!
 
GunnerGer said:
Listen, i'm not fundamentally disagreeing, we need to start winning stuff, but i think it's more the point that by having a team that actually good, competing near the top of the table and in latter stages of Champions League, is more sustainable to competing for trophies, & the big trophies especially, long term, than say the Arsenal of 5-10 years ago, or Utd just now, of winning the occasional FA Cup in otherwise fairly miserable seasons.
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I see what you are trying to get across but how long does that sustainability last?

How long before Saliba or Rice or Gabriel decide it may not happen at Arsenal?

'Long term' is just an ambiguous phrase with no definable target to try and justify something as a 'plan'.
 
Salford_Blue said:
I see what you are trying to get across but how long does that sustainability last?

How long before Saliba or Rice or Gabriel decide it may not happen at Arsenal?

'Long term' is just an ambiguous phrase with no definable target to try and justify something as a 'plan'.
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Spot on. To win trophies you have to grab the opportunity when it comes. Arteta is just too cautious to get them over the line. You have to do more than play for set pieces and pretend to be injured. Waving at the crowd gets you nowhere either. They lack composure and ruthlessness.
 
Salford_Blue said:
I see what you are trying to get across but how long does that sustainability last?

How long before Saliba or Rice or Gabriel decide it may not happen at Arsenal?

'Long term' is just an ambiguous phrase with no definable target to try and justify something as a 'plan'.
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Saliba and Gabriel are the biggest risks - it appeared at the start of last season Gabriel was off to Saudi and Arteta actually dropped him and played Partey at CB for a few games.

Saliba has been linked with Madrid - he said at the start of this season something along the lines of he 'owes it' to Arsenal to win something before he leaves so ironically the sooner we win something the sooner he'd be off.

Rice won't leave unless it's for a London team as he is settled in London, friends and family, young son etc. Realistically only City and Liverpool could afford him anyway in the PL and neither side is in London. Don't forget, he's already won a trophy (with West Ham) and left btw.

Saka is like Foden - both playing for the clubs they supported as a kid and therefore incredibly unlikely to want to leave unless the club tries to get rid of them.
 
Merlin's Magic said:
Let's not go into Rodri, Viera and Keane comparisons here. All three are some of the greatest MFs to ever played the game. For me as a City supporter, I will always rate Rodri higher than the other two.

Let's discuss Ferna for a change. It's not long ago we were wondering how do we replace him. We believed that no one can replicate what he has done for us (in comes Rodders and prove all the fears were misplaced). He came to City from Shaktar and let go his bonuses so that the deal went through smoothly. Pundits here in England were speculating and dismissing him citing his age (he was 30 when he joined) and his positional clash with Yaya (both box to box no. 8s). He came here and proved them wrong in his very first season. His adaptation from a box crashing no.8 to a one man defensive shield has not been replicated since. He was so good in the defensive midfield that for the first time Yaya got the license to go forward without a worry and we all know what he did in that 15-16 season in terms of goal contributions. After Pellegrini left and Pep came, Pep continued to trust him as his defensive midfield lynchpin at a ripe old age of 32. He was a crucial member of the centurions 17-18 season but his best was yet to come. In the 18-19 season, when KDB was injured for practically the whole season and David Silva distracted due to his commitments with his newborn son, he and Bernardo took up the midfield mettle and guided City to the best ever domestic season played by an English team. He was the 2nd best City player that season behind Bernardo. The guy was a machine, never injured, always committed to the cause with a brilliant technical ability and brain. His trophies haul and the part he played in those triumphs easily elevate him above Rice, Petit and Essien. But he was much more than the trophies he won with us. He is criminally underrated by our rivals but we have seen Ferna dominate the midfield battle day in day out for a long long time.
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Excellent analysis sir
 
TonyColemansbagofapples said:
You are a typical gooner. A bullshitter and deluded.

Are you bottlers? Is Arteta a winner?
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I'm not bullshitting and i'm not deluded, i'm not coming out with claims anyone is better than anyone else, ill let bridge die on that hill, i'm just trying to point out a few things.

People pointed out that we've spent a fortune. Yeah, we have, but so has everyone else. Now, Net Spend is different, and yeah we have a big net spend, basically because we didn't have good players to sell. Now if you want to talk about interest fee loans to enable the spend, then that's cool, and i actually agree with City's argument that they rightly won that they should be included in PSR calculations or that.

All i was trying to point out is why a lot of Arsenal fans like myself don't see the point is sacking Arteta because of where the club is now compared to where it was when he took over. I totally agree you want to see trophies at the end of it, but i & the club think we are well placed at least to actually compete for them.

Now, are we bottlers? I suppose until we win something, you might say so. It depends on what you class as bottlers.

Can i ask you a couple of questions?

Are Arsenal better than City do you think?

Do we have better players?

Is Arteta a better manager than Pep?

Salford_Blue said:
I see what you are trying to get across but how long does that sustainability last?

How long before Saliba or Rice or Gabriel decide it may not happen at Arsenal?

'Long term' is just an ambiguous phrase with no definable target to try and justify something as a 'plan'.
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Honest answer, i don't know. The good thing is, most of the players have just recently tied themselves into more long term contracts, Gabriel until 2029, Saliba until 2030, Saka verbally agreed new long term deal, so they obviously believe in what's happening just now.

A couple more years of near misses with nothing to show for it, then yeah the players might ask questions, the fans will defo ask questions as well, & Arteta might decide himself it needs another person to take that final step. I'm not saying he or anyone else is indispensable indefinitely, in fact, there will be a decent size section that want him out if he ends up empty handed this season again.
 
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Asa's left peg said:
I think that to some degree, you have to doff your cap to Arsenal. The dippers are feted with all sort of compliments for pushing us over the last seven years (and sharing the PL with us lmao), but Arsenal have been in our shadow the longest.

They have slowly built an impressive squad that is now bearing fruit. The downside to this, is that they are discovering that playing at this level for everything, all the time, comes at a cost, and that is paid in injuries and mentality.

We haven't been injury free for any season. I remember Laporte dragging us through the last part of the season when not fully fit and no other CH's fit. KDB has for the last few seasons not been able to fully contribute as he or us would have liked, and we all know the others. But we (Pep and the boys) have found a way.

So congratulations Gunners, you have made it this far, and I will say congrats if you win the league.

But the business end of the season is nearly upon us - and there is still some way to go. Keep your eyes on the prize and don't look over your shoulder!
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I never make bold claims or predictions mate. I never assumed when we were 7 points clear of City that we'd win the league, or City were out of it, it was way too early,.I knew we had a run of difficult fixtures to come that would likely lessen that gap.

You only can count City out if there's been some sort of collapse like in the x2 times Liverpool won the league. Any other time, with Pep as manager, with the experience you have, and with Haaland a machine, yeah you know you are in a fight.
 
GunnerGer said:
I'm not bullshitting and i'm not deluded, i'm not coming out with claims anyone is better than anyone else, ill let bridge die on that hill, i'm just trying to point out a few things.

People pointed out that we've spent a fortune. Yeah, we have, but so has everyone else. Now, Net Spend is different, and yeah we have a big net spend, basically because we didn't have good players to sell. Now if you want to talk about interest fee loans to enable the spend, then that's cool, and i actually agree with City's argument that they rightly won that they should be included in PSR calculations or that.

All i was trying to point out is why a lot of Arsenal fans like myself don't see the point is sacking Arteta because of where the club is now compared to where it was when he took over. I totally agree you want to see trophies at the end of it, but i & the club think we are well placed at least to actually compete for them.

Now, are we bottlers? I suppose until we win something, you might say so. It depends on what you class as bottlers.

Can i ask you a couple of questions?

Are Arsenal better than City do you think?

Do we have better players?

Is Arteta a better manager than Pep?



Honest answer, i don't know. The good thing is, most of the players have just recently tied themselves into more long term contracts, Gabriel until 2029, Saliba until 2030, Saka verbally agreed new long term deal, so they obviously believe in what's happening just now.

A couple more years of near misses with nothing to show for it, then yeah the players might ask questions, the fans will defo ask questions as well, & Arteta might decide himself it needs another person to take that final step. I'm not saying he or anyone else is indispensable indefinitely, in fact, there will be a decent size section that want him out if he ends up empty handed this season again.
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Is a broken leg better than winning the euromillions? Now i know thats a stupid question but you started it.
 
GunnerGer said:
What about the questions before it?
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The questions before require context, right now yes and yes because you are ahead of us in the table and if you measure it by that metric and only that metric then its quite simple, if you give the questions context and breadth and take into account all the other factors then it is a much broader question. Another way to measure it in a small snapshot is that we have played you this season at your place and it was a draw so based on that the answer would be no.
 
mancboy said:
The questions before require context, right now yes and yes because you are ahead of us in the table and if you measure it by that metric and only that metric then its quite simple, if you give the questions context and breadth and take into account all the other factors then it is a much broader question. Another way to measure it in a small snapshot is that we have played you this season at your place and it was a draw so based on that the answer would be no.
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Fair answer. The reason I ask is I'm trying to break down this bottling narrative Arsenal have, what defines bottling, and where it's come from. Is it a bottle now just coming 2nd in a 2 horse race for instance?
 
GunnerGer said:
Fair answer. The reason I ask is I'm trying to break down this bottling narrative Arsenal have, what defines bottling, and where it's come from. Is it a bottle now just coming 2nd in a 2 horse race for instance?
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The bottling narrative comes from being in the best position to win in the last 3 leagues and not winning any, its just that simple, the two times against us you were well ahead and threw it away and then you spent the big money, got the squad sorted and big bad city had a year off and you still didnt get it done, thats where the narrative comes from but it is a narrative that is evidence backed.

Take this year , you guys were flying, romping it easy work no one was getting near you, that was four games ago and things change very quick, the prob for you lot is your most vocal fans are complete arseholes and the nonsense and rhetoric they should, plus the nonsense regularly spouted by your manager and then your players saying this year should be the year taints you all.
 
mancboy said:
and then you spent the big money, got the squad sorted and big bad city had a year off and you still didnt get it done, thats where the narrative comes from but it is a narrative that is evidence backed.

Take this year , you guys were flying, romping it easy work no one was getting near you, that was four games ago and things change very quick, the prob for you lot is your most vocal fans are complete arseholes and the nonsense and rhetoric they should, plus the nonsense regularly spouted by your manager and then your players saying this year should be the year taints you all.
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But were we?

In 22/23 I can understand it, I believe we were 8 points ahead, you had a game in hand and a game at The Etihad I believe.

In 23/24, we won 16 out the last 18 games, drawing 1 and losing 1. Is that seen as a bottle nowadays? It's actually a better end of season record than Liverpool had when they were chasing you and finished on 97 points.

In 24/25, we didn't spend much money at all. We were never top of the league, we were always well off it as well. So is that a different type of bottling?

This season, most people including you guys rightly pointed out that leads after 12 or 13 games mean very little as it could be from something simple such as a quirk in the fixture list, or short term form or whatever.
 
GunnerGer said:
But were we?

In 22/23 I can understand it, I believe we were 8 points ahead, you had a game in hand and a game at The Etihad I believe.

In 23/24, we won 16 out the last 18 games, drawing 1 and losing 1. Is that seen as a bottle nowadays? It's actually a better end of season record than Liverpool had when they were chasing you and finished on 97 points.

In 24/25, we didn't spend much money at all. We were never top of the league, we were always well off it as well. So is that a different type of bottling?

This season, most people including you guys rightly pointed out that leads after 12 or 13 games mean very little as it could be from something simple such as a quirk in the fixture list, or short term form or whatever.
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Like i said your fans, your manager and a couple of your players taint the opinion with their ramblings. Your lot big yourselves up and talk alot and then when it doesnt happen you then get called bottlers
 
mancboy said:
Like i said your fans, your manager and a couple of your players taint the opinion with their ramblings. Your lot big yourselves up and talk alot and then when it doesnt happen you then get called bottlers
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Fair do's if that's what your opinion is. In terms of fans, I'm very selective of what I read and listen to and take in, as too many of them are just interested in click / rage baiting for likes like most of X, AFTV, The Big 6 etc, and I'm not really interested in that, or take it for what it is at least & don't let that inform my views.

I thought Arteta always speaks highly of Pep and City in general but maybe I've missed something in that?
 
GunnerGer said:
But were we?

In 22/23 I can understand it, I believe we were 8 points ahead, you had a game in hand and a game at The Etihad I believe.

In 23/24, we won 16 out the last 18 games, drawing 1 and losing 1. Is that seen as a bottle nowadays? It's actually a better end of season record than Liverpool had when they were chasing you and finished on 97 points.

In 24/25, we didn't spend much money at all. We were never top of the league, we were always well off it as well. So is that a different type of bottling?

This season, most people including you guys rightly pointed out that leads after 12 or 13 games mean very little as it could be from something simple such as a quirk in the fixture list, or short term form or whatever.
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Top of my head........... You forgot the gold shirts being made, the Christmas celebrations, that Odegaard photographer thingy, the ball being too round, that ball going over the line against Newcastle meltdown, probably many many more - Arteta has made a twat of himself numerous times too

Its endless with you lot.

Thats why the bottling is comedy to every other football fan, even the dippers weren't as bad as you lot
 
Lowtower said:
Top of my head........... You forgot the gold shirts being made, the Christmas celebrations, that Odegaard photographer thingy, the ball being too round, that ball going over the line against Newcastle meltdown, probably many many more - Arteta has made a twat of himself numerous times too

Its endless with you lot.

Thats why the bottling is comedy to every other football fan, even the dippers weren't as bad as you lot
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Eh, the gold shirts?!! You actually think they were signed off on the basis of Arsenal winning the league?! :-)
 
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