Match Day Thread Arsenal v liverpool

Although I agree we will not remain top of the league over the course of the season, I'm afraid the league table doesn't lie. Right now, as it stands, we have been the best team in the league. It won't stay that way, sure - but we've played the best football and got the most consistent results in the opening 8 games.

I also take slight issue with the line of thinking that 'we haven't really played anyone yet'. Any game in this league is tough. Liverpool themselves have dropped points to some of these lower/middle division teams. As have Chelsea, City and Man Utd. We also comfortably beat a team who finished in the top-4 last week.

Generally, our recent results against Chelsea, Spurs and Man Utd are reasonable enough - it's usually Liverpool/City that we come unstuck against a lot.

 

Up for debate. Sure in terms of points and possibly consistency you are at the top. But I don’t think many fans will agree with you about being the best team in the league. In fact with their Norwegian monster pulverising every defence and breaking all records City are completely in a league of their own !
And no disrespect I’m not sure you are even the second best team.

 

Realistically, no Arsenal fan thinks we are going to win the league or finish second. But we're just enjoying our time at the moment because we're riding on the crest of a wave. If we finished 3rd/4th, I would still be pretty happy with that considering we've not qualified for the CL since 2016.

I think the expectation of Arsenal is to have a good cup run + break into the top-4. I don't think that's unreasonable.

 

I think that's very reasonable. Over reasonable given tour spend over 3 seasons and your start. 2nd ironed on.

 

And so you should. Enjoy the ride

 

Drop, gain, we won't do either

 

Well we clearly gained 1 pount v everton and 1 point v Brighton in the last two games.

 

Yeah and that wasn't good enough

 

Well that's fair enough, I'm just saying we gained points

 

Given how much arteta has spent in the last 3 years anything other than a title challenge should be seen as a failure. I’m not sure how he’s managed to fool everyone that it’s little plucky arsenal and big underdog and building over the last few years when you’ve been the biggest spenders in Europe since he joined the club.

 

Well.... over past 5 years arsenal are in the hole to a tune of 480 odd million so they ought to be doing exactly what you say.

Only man utd have spend more in terms of net spend, even chelsea are less (but were banned for a season amd had a 100mil sale)

So arsenal have quite frankly no excuse not to be competing

 

Part of the reason why we have such a high spend is because we’ve had a high turnover of players. We’ve also not been able to recoup a lot of money for players sold and ended up cancelling a lot of contracts as other teams just wouldn’t pay their wages.

I think some people also underestimate just how bad a state our squad was in and how much it needed revamping - in terms of personnel, culture and attitude.

We’ve spent quite a lot yes, but we needed to because the gap between us and you/City was becoming impossible to close. And even then, City look to be in a league of their own.

You and City have got squads that are vastly superior to ours and have seasoned winners over the years. I don’t think it’s realistic to expect Arsenal to be in a title challenge when your personnel are better and when you have the two best managers in the Premier League.

This is also Arteta’s first ever job in management, so he’s still a relative novice.

And this is coming from someone who hasn’t been particularly keen on Arteta (and still sit on the fence until I know we’ve achieved what I expect).

 

Incompetence is mo excuse. Its not an excuse for man utd managers or fans either.

5 years of massive spend.... your best players imo are your own youths, and they are bloody good

 

You chose Arteta as you thought he was a mini Pep. You didn’t have to choose him so the performance and the expenditure cannot be blamed on anyone else but the club. Given the amount of money you’ve spent on players and managers you should be well ahead of us.

 

It’s relative - we’ve bought in a lot of players, it’s not like we’ve spent £100m on one player. It’s been fairly evenly distributed and majority are younger players.

Forest were the 3rd highest spenders this window, I’m guessing you’re not expecting them to finish extremely high?

 

I don’t agree with your conclusion. We shouldn’t be ‘well ahead’ of you at all. Our club’s trajectories have been very different. You’re entitled to your opinion, but I don’t see it this way.

 

As you said, it's relative. Forest have spent a lot so will be expected to survive with ease, doesn't look like they will atm

 

Look, arsenal have improved since the lunacy when winger left. The same.lunacy is being seen at Chelsea right now.

Once a clubs owners get people with half a grain of sense in power to make good decisions and not waste money then they do improve.

Arsenal still have plenty of issues to resolve.

Have they less or more than us? It's debatable. We've let it grow stale and players age.

Likely arsenal.line up tomorrow.

Ramsdale
White saliba Gabriel zinchenko
Partey xhaka
Saka odengaard martinelli
Jesus

Now I defy anyone who's watched lfc to say that our two cms are.better even than xhaka who is as slow as slow can be

Love saka, Love martinelli. Great players.

Jesus is Jesus. Still think he's not a top no 9 but he's in ff team.

Odengaard I don't rate cos I think he goes missing.

Defensively there's still work to be done by arsenal. White at rb hurts. Saliba seems good but Gabriel is mixed.

Ramsdale is ****, fancies himself hugely but can't kick and palms.everything into the middle.

Compare that to our lot....

 

Alisson best keeper in world. Left exposed constantly.
Trent. Told to run on then not covered. An average defender at best but there to run forward
Matip. Bit sloppy at the minute, badly exposed.
Vvd. Age is showing itself imo. We need to recognise this to get another 4 years out of him
Tsimikas. Bit sloppy at times. Decent reserve
Fabinho. Can't run any.more.very worrying
Henderson. As above but refuses to accept it and leaves matip and trent exposed.
Thaigo. As above. 3 cms who can't get about.
Diaz. Hard worker who.we need to get into the game more.
Salah. Slowing down, far less danger.
Jota/ firmino/ nunez. Who knows which starts

Personally I am fascinated to see if klopp reverts to type and goes with 3 cms who can't run as this is away game or sticks with what he tried at home v very poor opposition in rangers.

They only thing we saw v rangers due to their abject level was that we didn't have huge gaps.

If we leave martinelli and Jesus to have at matip on his own we will be beaten by 6.

 

No cos we all know forest have trhwon cash randomly about just like Chelsea.

I actually predicted chelsea would struggle having seen very early preseason as the buys were just random and not focused on improving the side. Sterling in when they had two lws already for example, cucurella when they had two lwbs etc etc.

Forest bout awoniyi who we had and could never get a work.permit for. We knew full well he could barely play in Germany so the amount of.random buys there indicated they were always a struggle.


Let's just say this.

You bought zinchenko, jesus from the champions so they were always going to help
Yoo added a few too many attackers this season imo when.other gaps could have been attacked. Vieira and marquinhos seems odd to me.

Last season you bought white, finalised odengaard and tomisasu plus ramsdale.

And before that partey

You are at least seeing the signings adding to your first ta.unlike before with willian and that ****e.

Saliba is back off loans and looking good.
Saka.is now what? 21?
Martinelli is 21 as well.

This is imo the core for arsenal now. Players maturing and the signing made actually playing and working.

Liverpool 3 or 4 years ago were the same. We have now let senior players age and kept extending and increasing wages so now we are reputation and not much to back it in midfield

It's all about attitude amd imo the only thing that arsenal fans should worry about is how the players gave up after going behind v utd as you were the better side on the day