The Title Race 2022/23

[marco]

We need 3 points to win the League! Thread title is wrong.

Goal difference should be ignored (even though it looks unassailable. We'll win the league when we hit 88 points (assuming Arsenal don't drop points again in their next match).

wrong,why would you dismiss goal average esp as were in double figures, isnt that the idea of having it in the first place to seperate close placed teams by a fine margin,after that we then have head to head results,its all a way of seperating the better team

 

[TinFoilHat]

I hope Forest do us a favour to save me shaking like a shitting dog during our game.

 

[MCFC1993]

I hope Forest do us a favour to save me shaking like a shitting dog during our game.

I think a draw would be nice.

Obviously wouldn't complain with a Forest win but a draw secures it (our goal difference is too much) and then we get to play for the title on Sunday.

Either way, if we get to lift the title at home on Sunday I'll be buzzing.

 

[kun]

wrong,why would you dismiss goal average esp as were in double figures, isnt that the idea of having it in the first place to seperate close placed teams by a fine margin,after that we then have head to head results,its all a way of seperating the better team

We won't be crowned champions until it is mathematically certain.
If we lose a game 6-0 and Arsenal win 9-0 and 6-0 we'd lose it on GD, even with 2 draws.
Ridiculous I know - but possible - I imagine academic anyway as I think Arsenal may hand us the title by dropping more points.

 

[SebastianBlue]

We won't be crowned champions until it is mathematically certain.
If we lose a game 6-0 and Arsenal win 9-0 and 6-0 we'd lose it on GD, even with 2 draws.
Ridiculous I know - but possible - I imagine academic anyway as I think Arsenal may hand us the title by dropping more points.

If that were to come to pass there would be an investigation that would most certainly discover match fixing, particularly given Arsenal have only scored more than 4 goals in a match once all season (30 October 2022 v Forest), and have not scored more than 5, full stop. They’ve averaged 2.4 goals per match over the last 10 games.

 

[AndyP68]

City should have gone above Leicester that Xmas, the 0-0 with a few sitters missed would put us top and changed that season.

We imploded in Feb with 3 losses in a row, and then we were done, especially as the first was at home to Leicester.

Didn't KDB get injured early in the New Year though and was out for ages? If he'd stayed fit we'd have been there or thereabouts.

 

[Charlesfarsbar]

I can’t believe that people still think there is a doubt going into these last three games

we have THREE chances to get a win and we’re playing a couple of mid table teams with nothing to play for. The other team could be tricky but look at who we have beaten in this current run

I can’t remember the last time this team let us down in the league in a game we HAD to win

can see us sticking 4 past Chelsea on Sunday to win it in style

this isn’t typical city anymore, we are legitimately the best football team on the planet

 

[theres only one carlito]

I can’t believe that people still think there is a doubt going into these last three games

we have THREE chances to get a win and we’re playing a couple of mid table teams with nothing to play for. The other team could be tricky but look at who we have beaten in this current run

I can’t remember the last time this team let us down in the league in a game we HAD to win

can see us sticking 4 past Chelsea on Sunday to win it in style

this isn’t typical city anymore, we are legitimately the best football team on the planet

mate, your talking about city fans here, we breath a sigh of relief when we hit 40 points!

we have doubt in our DNA. :-)

I personally see us beating Chelsea, but I feel nervous saying it!

 

[SebastianBlue]

I think that’s a valid point about Arteta.

For a while it was in the back of my mind that he was being groomed to eventually replace Pep. However having had the chance to observe him during the run home, his nervous energy has not been helpful to their team. He comes across as lacking the resilience to cope with the ebbs and flows of top flight football, and Arsenal’s form has reflected that brittleness.

On that basis I wouldn’t want him as a City manager down the track.

What is most interesting, is that the difference between Arteta’s and Pep’s touchline behaviour is small but very important. It is what differentiates Pep’s assured presence and Arteta’s nervous energy.

They both gesticulate and scream at players in almost the exact same way. They both bombastically praise players in nearly the same fashion. They both have trouble staying in their technical areas and get warnings from referees due to overzealous criticism or protests over decisions (or lack there of).

But what sets them apart, is that Pep only occasionally praises players, and really only when we are struggling to execute what he wants in matches (which is very rare). The vast majority of the time—and especially when we are playing well—he is constantly barking orders, telling players what they need to do better, making tactical tweaks, or just generally telling the team they need to be more focused or stick more closely to his game plan. His presence is almost always one of “you can do better and you will”, even when we are up 0-3 away from home.

Arteta, in contrast, swings widely between praising and admonishing his players. He’ll praise when they are playing well and when they are playing poorly. He’ll criticise or bark orders to improve in both scenarios, as well. His application of the same approach—when he chooses to praise or admonish—along with his now infamous ‘Arteta Tactic Timeouts’ creates a schizophrenic presence on the touchline. The players feel it directly on the pitch, unsure of what sort of shout they are going to get from Arteta. And, once more, it creates a sense of nervousness and unintentionality. It gives an impression he doesn’t know what he is going to do from moment to moment, situation to situation.

That leads to a pervasive feeling of unease and baseline anxiety, which manifests in their play, especially when things start to not go as they want.

That does not usually happen with us. Pep gives off a sense of supreme authority and control, whilst also empowering the players. If we lose, we lost because of him. If we win, we won because of the players. The players are there to execute and he is there to take the blame of his tactics fail.

Pep instills a sense of confidence, even when things aren’t going exactly to plan.

Arteta tends to create an air of uncertainty, especially when Arsenal are not on top—“are we really doing what is right for this match?”

This is something Arteta needs to correct, otherwise he’ll always have scenarios like the three draws and the loss to Brighton, when the team collapses mentally.

 

[Impeccable One]

Not the first, or the last, but perhaps a top ten classic from ArseTv