Arsenal Thread | 2025/26

AFCAndy said:
Gabriel coming back will make us better. We were very shaky with Saliba and Gabriel out. Jesus is adding allot of rolls royce quality when he comes off the bench. How long that can last with his knee problems is anyones guess. Havertz is set to come back and has been an important player tactically. Gyokeres has been out and should be getting fitter game by game. Odegaard was out for a good while and isn't really back up to speed yet.

The other issues are, remaining fixture. You haven't played Chelsea yet, we haven't played Bournemouth yet

Your Away Games are (11): Forrest, Sunderland, Newcastle, Spurs, Liverpool, Leeds, West Ham, Chelsea, Burnley, Everton, Bournemouth

Our Away games are (10): Bournemouth, Forrest, Leeds, Brentford, Spurs, Brighton, Wolves, City, Wet Spam, Palace

I think yours look a tad tougher overall.
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Forest.
 
AFCAndy said:
Gabriel coming back will make us better. We were very shaky with Saliba and Gabriel out. Jesus is adding allot of rolls royce quality when he comes off the bench. How long that can last with his knee problems is anyones guess. Havertz is set to come back and has been an important player tactically. Gyokeres has been out and should be getting fitter game by game. Odegaard was out for a good while and isn't really back up to speed yet.

The other issues are, remaining fixture. You haven't played Chelsea yet, we haven't played Bournemouth yet

Your Away Games are (11): Forrest, Sunderland, Newcastle, Spurs, Liverpool, Leeds, West Ham, Chelsea, Burnley, Everton, Bournemouth

Our Away games are (10): Bournemouth, Forrest, Leeds, Brentford, Spurs, Brighton, Wolves, City, Wet Spam, Palace

I think yours look a tad tougher overall.
Click to expand...
What if you don’t win the league this season, what happens as regards Arteta ?
 
AFCAndy said:
Gabriel coming back will make us better. We were very shaky with Saliba and Gabriel out. Jesus is adding allot of rolls royce quality when he comes off the bench. How long that can last with his knee problems is anyones guess. Havertz is set to come back and has been an important player tactically. Gyokeres has been out and should be getting fitter game by game. Odegaard was out for a good while and isn't really back up to speed yet.

The other issues are, remaining fixture. You haven't played Chelsea yet, we haven't played Bournemouth yet

Your Away Games are (11): Forrest, Sunderland, Newcastle, Spurs, Liverpool, Leeds, West Ham, Chelsea, Burnley, Everton, Bournemouth

Our Away games are (10): Bournemouth, Forrest, Leeds, Brentford, Spurs, Brighton, Wolves, City, Wet Spam, Palace

I think yours look a tad tougher overall.
Click to expand...

The fact that you know our games & we don’t give a fuck shows you’ve already dipped for the line. You should be enjoying this part of the season, we aren’t even half way. At the business end it’s not just home or away but how many days rest or where you’ve travelled from or how many competitions you are playing in. As far as City is concerned it’s not who or where we are playing it’s how we are playing & we can see the signs.
 
AFCAndy said:
Gabriel coming back will make us better. We were very shaky with Saliba and Gabriel out. Jesus is adding allot of rolls royce quality when he comes off the bench. How long that can last with his knee problems is anyones guess. Havertz is set to come back and has been an important player tactically. Gyokeres has been out and should be getting fitter game by game. Odegaard was out for a good while and isn't really back up to speed yet.

The other issues are, remaining fixture. You haven't played Chelsea yet, we haven't played Bournemouth yet

Your Away Games are (11): Forrest, Sunderland, Newcastle, Spurs, Liverpool, Leeds, West Ham, Chelsea, Burnley, Everton, Bournemouth

Our Away games are (10): Bournemouth, Forrest, Leeds, Brentford, Spurs, Brighton, Wolves, City, Wet Spam, Palace

I think yours look a tad tougher overall.
Click to expand...

Generally, I'd agree that our away games look tougher. Although Liverpool are so weirdly shit this season, even at Anfield, and Spurs are (not so weirdly) shit, even at their gaff, that those two games don't look as predictably hard as usual. (They will be, they'll both raise their games for us by several degrees). Both you and we should be beating both Wolves and West Ham. Leeds has become a funny old game — for both of us.
My general feeling is that the run-in is close.

Gabriel is a serious absence for you, granted. Big player. But your problems have not been at the back much, anyway. He'll be the usual threat on set pieces, although I can't believe teams aren't going to suss that out eventuallly.
I can't really understand why gooners on here seem to regard Havertz as a major player for you. He isn't. He just isn't. And he's had ample time to prove that.

One thing that everybody, including City fans, seems to have forgotten: theoretically, we have a Ballon d'Or winner, and one of the very finest holding midfielders in the world, to come back. If he does, and if it's at anything like his pre-injury level. Well… look out.
 
bridgeno1 said:
Probably not due to system but if you used City's system and replaced Doku with Trossard, Silva with Saka and Gonzalez with Rice then Haaland would score more goals just based on quality of delivery.

You could argue also that sticking Odegaard in there would lead to a lot more goals given they play for Norway together but I wouldn't replace Foden with Odegaard so it might not be a good fit.
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You’d concede more as well.
 
balotellishaircut said:
What if you don’t win the league this season, what happens as regards Arteta ?
Click to expand...

I don't think anything happens to him unless he loses the dressing room. Technically he's in his last 18 months of his contract and they're trying to renew him. So they wouldn't renew and then sack him, which would cost a load of money.
 
balotellishaircut said:
What if you don’t win the league this season, what happens as regards Arteta ?
Click to expand...
IMHO with Dippers off the boil and City losing the best creative midfielder in PL history I think it would be time for a new coach. We literally aren't going to get a better opportunity than this season.
 
bridgeno1 said:
Probably not due to system but if you used City's system and replaced Doku with Trossard, Silva with Saka and Gonzalez with Rice then Haaland would score more goals just based on quality of delivery.

You could argue also that sticking Odegaard in there would lead to a lot more goals given they play for Norway together but I wouldn't replace Foden with Odegaard so it might not be a good fit.
Click to expand...

cheekybids said:
You’d concede more as well.
Click to expand...
Imagine Saka trying to cover the ground of Bernardo
 
AFCAndy said:
Gabriel coming back will make us better. We were very shaky with Saliba and Gabriel out. Jesus is adding allot of rolls royce quality when he comes off the bench. How long that can last with his knee problems is anyones guess. Havertz is set to come back and has been an important player tactically. Gyokeres has been out and should be getting fitter game by game. Odegaard was out for a good while and isn't really back up to speed yet.

The other issues are, remaining fixture. You haven't played Chelsea yet, we haven't played Bournemouth yet

Your Away Games are (10): Forrest, Sunderland, Spurs, Liverpool, Leeds, West Ham, Chelsea, Burnley, Everton, Bournemouth

Our Away games are (10): Bournemouth, Forrest, Leeds, Brentford, Spurs, Brighton, Wolves, City, Wet Spam, Palace

I think yours look a tad tougher overall.
Click to expand...
It's the ones you least expect that cause the problems, unexpectedly ;) that plus at the end of the season when the relegation battle kicks in places like WestHam, Leeds etc. aren't as easy as they once looked on paper.

VERY long way to go yet, I'm quietly hopefully about my team's chance of winning the league, but I expect you are too :)
 
bobbyowenquiff said:
Diving and playing for free kicks, wrestling at corners, long throws, time-wasting. Total anti-football with a free pass from the London media. I would rather Chelsea, Villa, even Liverpool win the title if we can’t do it.
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I don't understand why a lot of their fans are so entitled.
 
dickie davies said:
Imagine Saka trying to cover the ground of Bernardo
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He literally does every game. Just faster and more effectively. Come on man, you seriously can't be comparing Bernardo Silva with Saka! Today's Silva wouldn't get into our Carabao cup side!
 
Lovebitesandeveryfing said:
Generally, I'd agree that our away games look tougher. Although Liverpool are so weirdly shit this season, even at Anfield, and Spurs are (not so weirdly) shit, even at their gaff, that those two games don't look as predictably hard as usual. (They will be, they'll both raise their games for us by several degrees). Both you and we should be beating both Wolves and West Ham. Leeds has become a funny old game — for both of us.
My general feeling is that the run-in is close.

Gabriel is a serious absence for you, granted. Big player. But your problems have not been at the back much, anyway. He'll be the usual threat on set pieces, although I can't believe teams aren't going to suss that out eventuallly.
I can't really understand why gooners on here seem to regard Havertz as a major player for you. He isn't. He just isn't. And he's had ample time to prove that.

One thing that everybody, including City fans, seems to have forgotten: theoretically, we have a Ballon d'Or winner, and one of the very finest holding midfielders in the world, to come back. If he does, and if it's at anything like his pre-injury level. Well… look out.
Click to expand...

Yes he's 1 of the best players in the world BUT will he get back to that level he was at 18 months ago in the next 4 months? He wasn't performing aswell earlier in the season and after so long out that's understandable. Getting the riquired peak fitness level takes a good period of time back IMO And it might happen this season and if he gets to that level the league is likely yours.

Regarding Havertz, it's the things you don't necessarily see on TV. He's an off the ball monster the way he gets box to box, he can be in midfield 1 moment then pop up in the 6 yard box the next. He tends to always pop up in space in the box. You can knock it long for him to win the ball in the air and/or hold it up to get other players into play. That doesn't sound like much, but when a team are trying to equalise it relieves the pressure. He's great in duels too. And his G/A rate has been 1 of our highest. Again it could take time for him to regain his peak form.

The other question is if City are back to the level they were 2-3 years ago when I believe you had better players that have now left. In the last 4 league games you've scored 10 and conceeded 0 and that looks fantastic. Although I did think you looked shaky in the early going against Palace, they could of scored a goal or 2 and took the lead on another day. The 2 games before that you conceeded 6 in 2 games against Leeds and Fulham, which could of been dropped points on another day. Obviously the games we won by 1 goal, it's the same thing, a dodgy deflection in the box are a set piece and points are dropped.
 
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AFCAndy said:
Yes he's 1 of the best players in the world BUT will he get back to that level he was at 18 months ago in the next 4 months? He wasn't performing aswell earlier in the season and after so long out that's understandable. Getting the riquired peak fitness level takes a good period of time back IMO And it might happen this season and if he gets to that level the league is likely yours.

Regarding Havertz, it's the things you don't necessarily see on TV. He's an off the ball monster the way he gets box to box, he can be in midfield 1 moment then pop up in the 6 yard box the next. He tends to always pop up in space in the box. You can knock it long for him to win the ball in the air and/or hold it up to get other players into play. That doesn't sound like much, but when a team are trying to equalise it relieves the pressure. He's great in duels too. And his G/A rate has been 1 of our highest. Again it could take time for him to regain his peak form.

The other question is if City are back to the level they were 2-3 years ago when I believe you had better players that have now left. In the last 4 league games you've scored 10 and conceeded 0 and that looks fantastic. Although I did think you looked shaky in the early going against Palace, they could of scored a goal or 2 and took the lead on another day. The 2 games before that you conceeded 6 in 2 games against Leeds and Fulham, which could of been dropped points on another day. Obviously the games we won by 1 goal, it's the same thing, a dodgy deflection in the box are a set piece and points are dropped.
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Nobody will ever reach the level we were two to three years ago. We were THAT GOOD!
 
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