Not exact matches
I get annoyed with his
lack of tactics and our teams
performances but can't deny that UTD dropped lower than we are currently in our worst
season under Wenger.
Then a whole
seasons experience with 30 + year old pros and a manager with over 40 years experience and off the back
of a cup
performance in which he dueled with the toughest striker around and didn't come off second best, he comes off all that yet he
lacks confidence, plus he's second guessing his choices and doesn't look as fit as when we first signed him.
The thing that really stood out in our
performance today was a
lack of understanding between our players, very disorganised, poor communication and misplaced passes — that's something that will improve as the
season goes on.
Nervous start — usual criticism at the beginning
of the
season, with the
lack of spending Ramsey's first blood — Arsenal shocked the league, we played brilliant football, scoring beautiful goals, all seemed like a decent
season for us Coq red card — injury crisis struck, the
lack of bench depth put pressure on the team, the downfall
of performance caused crucial points Alexis» goal when down to ten men - it all seemed like arsenal would lose out in the title race again but arsenal somehow surprised the league again, saying aye we got the quality but we just ai nt gonna show in week in week out Draw in NLD with 10 men — can't really complain about it but you ain't happy.
Mertz should never have been our captain in the first place... who has ever heard
of a team that makes 11th hour transfer buys (Arteta & Mertz) then seemingly places those same individuals into prominent leadership positions from the get - go... indicative
of the problems that have permeated our clubhouse for the better part
of 7 years under the Kroenke & Wenger... what is wrong with the players chosen and / or the management style
of Wenger that doesn't develop and / or encourage strong leadership from within... Mertz was the fine collecting lackey from year one... this is what happens when you don't get world - class players because many times they want to have a voice on and off the pitch and this can't happen when you play for a fragile manager who has developed a coddling wage structure where everyone is rewarded for simply wearing the shirt and participating in the process... not enough balance between
performance and pay, combined with the obvious favoritism shown to some players regardless
of their glaring
lack of production... remember that Ramsey has played in positions that make no sense considering his skill - set (out wide) and has forced other players off the field or into equally unfamiliar positions with little or no justification (let's remember when you read articles about how Ramsey's goals this upcoming
season being the potential X-factor for our success that this is the same individual who didn't score a goal until the final week last
season)... this
of course is just one example
of many... before I hear another word from Mertz I want this club to address the fact that no former player
of any real consequence has any important role in the management structure
of this club, yet several former Gunners have expressed serious interest in just such an endeavor (Henry, Viera, Adams, Bergkamp... just to name a few legends)... there is only one answer: an extremely insecure manager!!!
Considering Manor's
performance tailed off towards the end
of the year, probably due to a
lack of updates compared to the rest
of the grid, it was an impressive
performance and a strong end to the
season.
Let's get real here.It is very unlikely that ANY professional player will ever say anything derogatory about a teammate that has just left the club.If Jack had said about Coq - «Grew up playing with him in the Youth Team and have fond memories
of a player they though he had very limited ability he always gave his all.Very surprised and disappointed the club never invested in a World Class defensive midfielder that we have quite obviously been
lacking for a number
of seasons and would no doubt have improved the defensive weakness we have shown over a number
of seasons» we would have echoed his thoughts entirely.If he had said about Theo - «A player who should have been so much better than he ended up being.He had everything needed to be a prolific player for our club but I can understand the fans frustrations with his continued
lack - lustre
performances and total
lack of a football brain.I think this is best explained by the managers preference to play a player
of such limited ability as Alex Iwobi in front
of Theo pretty much says it all» we again would have all nodded our agreement.Although Jack never mentioned Alexis Sanchez I would imagine something along the lines
of «If the Manager had not persisted with players with such limited ability such as Francis and Theo and instead bought the world class players needed into the club then Sanchez would still most likely be here.The fans must wonder what the hell goes on at the club as they pay fortunes for the privalage
of following our club but it seems the millions generated ends up purchasing a new Texas Ranch for the Owner or in a yearly renumeration
of # 9million pounds to our manager».
Manchester United's attacking options (or
lack thereof) have come under intense scrutiny this
season following the Red Devils» underwhelming showings this
season, and the
performances of United old boy Chicharito have only served to expose Louis van Gaal's failings further.
When you combine his poor on field
performance, poor dressing room etiquette,
lack of trust in young players and abysmal financial model it is quite possible LVG will have to be removed from his post at the end
of the
season with anything short
of the PL title because
of how costly he is becoming to the club.
Time for some brutal honesty... this team, as it stands, is in no better position to compete next
season than they were 12 months ago, minus the fact that some fans have been easily snowed by the acquisition
of Lacazette, the free transfer LB and the release
of Sanogo... if you look at the facts carefully you will see a team that still has far more questions than answers... to better show what I mean by this statement I will briefly discuss the current state
of affairs on a position - by - position basis... in goal we have 4 potential candidates, but in reality we have only 1 option with any real future and somehow he's the only one we have actively tried to get rid
of for years because he and his father were a little too involved on social media and he got caught smoking (funny how people still defend Wiltshire under the same and far worse circumstances)... you would think we would want to keep any goaltender that Juventus had interest in, as they seem to have a pretty good history when it comes to that position... as far as the defenders on our current roster there are only a few individuals whom have the skill and / or youth worthy
of our time and / or investment, as such we should get rid
of anyone who doesn't meet those simple requirements, which means we should get rid
of DeBouchy, Gibbs, Gabriel, Mertz and loan out Chambers to see if last
seasons foray with Middlesborough was an anomaly or a prediction
of things to come... some fans have lamented wildly about the return
of Mertz to the starting lineup due to his FA Cup
performance but these sort
of pie in the sky meanderings are indicative
of what's wrong with this club and it's wishy - washy fan - base... in addition to these moves the club should aggressively pursue the acquisition
of dominant and mobile CB to stabilize an all too fragile defensive group that has self - destructed on numerous occasions over the past 5
seasons... moving forward and building on our need to re-establish our once dominant presence throughout the middle
of the park we need to target a CDM then do whatever it takes to get that player into the fold without any
of the usual nickel and diming we have become famous for (this kind
of ruthless haggling has cost us numerous special players and certainly can't help make the player in question feel good about the way their future potential employer feels about them)... in order for us to become dominant again we need to be strong up the middle again from Goalkeeper to CB to DM to ACM to striker, like we did in our most glorious years before and during Wenger's reign... with this in mind, if we want Ozil to be that dominant attacking midfielder we can't keep leaving him exposed to constant ridicule about his
lack of defensive prowess and provide him with the proper players in the final third... he was never a good defensive player in Real or with the German National squad and they certainly didn't suffer as a result
of his presence on the pitch... as for the rest
of the midfield the blame falls squarely in the hands
of Wenger and Gazidis, the fact that Ramsey, Ox, Sanchez and even Ozil were allowed to regularly start when none
of the aforementioned had more than a year left under contract is criminal for a club
of this size and financial might... the fact that we could find money for Walcott and Xhaka, who weren't even guaranteed starters, means that our whole business model needs a complete overhaul... for me it's time to get rid
of some serious deadweight, even if it means selling them below what you believe their market value is just to simply right this ship and change the stagnant culture that currently exists... this means saying goodbye to Wiltshire, Elneny, Carzola, Walcott and Ramsey... everyone, minus Elneny, have spent just as much time on the training table as on the field
of play, which would be manageable if they weren't so inconsistent from a
performance standpoint (excluding Carzola, who is like the recent version
of Rosicky — too bad, both will be deeply missed)... in their places we need to bring in some proven performers with no history
of injuries... up front, although I do like the possibilities that a player like Lacazette presents, the fact that we had to wait so many years to acquire some true quality at the striker position falls once again squarely at the feet
of Wenger... this issue highlights the ultimate scam being perpetrated by this club since the arrival
of Kroenke: pretend your a small market club when it comes to making purchases but milk your fans like a big market club when it comes to ticket prices and merchandising... I believe the reason why Wenger hasn't pursued someone
of Henry's quality, minus a fairly inexpensive RVP, was that he knew that they would demand players
of a similar ilk to be brought on board and that wasn't possible when the business model was that
of a «selling» club... does it really make sense that we could only make a cheeky bid for Suarez, or that we couldn't get Higuain over the line when he was being offered up for half the price he eventually went to Juve for, or that we've only paid any interest to strikers who were clearly not going to press their current teams to let them go to Arsenal like Benzema or Cavani... just part
of the facade that finally came crashing down when Sanchez finally called their bluff... the fact remains that no one wants to win more than Sanchez, including Wenger, and although I don't agree with everything that he has done off the field, I would much rather have Alexis front and center than a manager who has clearly bought into the Kroenke model in large part due to the fact that his enormous ego suggests that only he could accomplish great things without breaking the bank... unfortunately that isn't possible anymore as the game has changed quite dramatically in the last 15 years, which has left a largely complacent and complicit Wenger on the outside looking in... so don't blame those players who demanded more and were left wanting... don't blame those fans who have tried desperately to raise awareness for several years when cracks began to appear... place the blame at the feet
of those who were well aware all along
of the potential pitfalls
of just such a plan but continued to follow it even when it was no longer a financial necessity, like it ever really was...
A lot
of pundits after the first game vs West Ham mentioned atributed that
lack luster
performance as early
season «nerves» and that we would shake the monkey off our back, well wake up and smell the roses..
The 23 - year - old has been much maligned over the last few
seasons for his supposed
lack of a positive contribution to the team's
performances, but has experienced...
However, despite his
performances of late not quite matching up to his early
season form, he still has the talent and ability to secure three points single - handedly, and his understanding with Eden Hazard — as demonstrated in the 1 - 0 victory over QPR — gives the Blues a threat that the Gunners currently
lack.
The 23 - year - old has been much maligned over the last few
seasons for his supposed
lack of a positive contribution to the team's
performances, but has experienced a turnaround that now has him in the position where he is undoubtedly one
of the first names on the team sheet and the decision not to play him in Liverpool's FA Cup game against Arsenal as an uncalculated risk.
However, if I am Spalletti, my biggest concern is the
lack of meaningful first half
performances in a majority
of games this
season.
Granit Xhaka has faced criticism for his
performances this
season, due to his
lack of defensive awareness.
With the fans feeling sceptical with the
lack of summer signings, the departure
of our captain and the pessimism from a bland
performance in our
season opener to Newcastle, the team had a second chance against a team wearing black and white.
The second
season wasn't as strong as the first, most likely due to the
lack of nuance, but with these great
performances, strange story lines and unusual characters, I can't wait to see where they bring us in
season three.
The better - than - expected
performance is a positive sign for the spring home - buying
season, especially as home shoppers deal with fast - rising prices and a serious
lack of inventory.