The players, not the manager, are not the problem.
Yes, Mikel Arteta picks those players, and has perhaps been to loyal to too many of then, but his hands are tied.
Arsenal have a huge amount of money tied up in players who simply are not good enough. And then many of those who would be good enough have had a huge drop off in form.
We have amassed a squad of players who do not have the talent to back up their egos; who are more interested in their own PR, social media, etc than putting in performances on the pitch. They have over inflated opinions of their own ability.
The same set of players let down Arsene Wenger in his first season. They downed tools for Unai Emery at the back end of 2018/19 leading to his sacking towards the end of the year. And are now doing similar to Mikel Arteta.
Graeme Souness summed it up during the post game punditry. How many players in this Arsenal squad are actually good enough? And not just in terms of ability but also in character.
The upcoming summer Edu needs to work miracles.
We have some players naturally leaving as their contract expires. He also needs to get as much money as possible selling senior pros, as well as cash in on some of the Hale End youngsters who are not really that young anymore.
So who should stay and who should go?
Bernd Leno is a decent number one keeper, but Runar Alex Runarsson has proved to be a bit shaky in the Europa League. Runarsson will do a job as a 3rd choice keeper, but we need to try and find a quality, home grown back up to Leno in the Premier League.
In defence, time has run out for Hector Bellerin, whilst the contracts of Shkodran Mustafi, Sokratis and David Luiz will mean the back of them. Sead Kolasinac needs to be sold and one of Rob Holding or Calum Chambers should be sold.
That would leave Arsenal with Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Cedric Soares at right back, and Gabriel, Pablo Mari, William Saliba and one of Rob Holding or Calum Chambers ate centre back.
We would then have to add another right sided central defender next to Gabriel whilst Saliba continues to grow.
At left back we would need to buy cover for Kieran Tierney.
Moving into midfield, Thomas Partey is the foundation we need to build it round, whilst Mohamed Elneny is a decent, hard working squad player.
We need more players like Elneny – he might not be the best but he is humble, quiet and just gets on with things.
Time is up for Granit Xhaka whilst bringing back Dani Ceballos for a 2nd season on loan now looks like a bad decision. Miguel Azeez is a talent, but we should not expect too much from him.
That means we need to go out into the market and buy another 2 midfielders to provide cover and competition for Partey.
We also have Lucas Torreira and Matteo Guendouzi out on loan. One (or even both?) of these could return. Would midfield options of Partey, Guendouzi, Torreira, Elneny and Azeez be that bad?
But then Guendouzi is one of those who is a poisonous personality and Torreira has never really settled. Cashing in on both and buying replacements feels the best option.
Time is probably running out for Joe Willock.
He turns 22 at the end of the season and has been found wanting in the Premier League. Alongside a couple of other young Englishman, it might be time to cash on him and start developing the next in line (IE Azeez).
Nicholas Pepe gets the rest of the season to show what he can do, whether he can come back from his show of petulance against Leeds United. He has performed well in the Europa League and could be a breath of fresh air on his return.
Bukayo Saka is also going no where, whilst Emile Smith Rowe should be given the chance sooner rather than later.
Realistically, Willian is going nowhere so we have to include him.
Reiss Nelson is injured once again. Whilst he has shown glimpses, he has struggled to get in ahead of Pepe or Willian, and Saka is now levels ahead of him. Like Willock, it is perhaps time to cash in, and use that money to fund someone who is a level ahead.
We need to add creativity in the middle of the park. Someone to replace Mesut Ozil.
Up front, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang should be kept.He will return to form. His captaincy is a discussion for another blog.
Aubameyang should be backed up by Gabriel Martinelli and Folarin Balogun. That would see Arsenal cash in on Alexandre Lacazette and Eddie Nketiah. The later in the same boat as Willock and Nelson.
Take the money for Nketiah, invest it elsewhere and promote Balogun as 3rd choice striker. If we can get him to agree to stay.
That will be at least 14 players leave:
6 Contracts Expiring:
Matt Macey
Sokratis
Shkodran Mustafi
David Luiz
Dani Ceballos
Mesut Ozil
5 Senior Pros:
Hector Bellerin
Rob Holding or Calum Chambers
Sead Kolasinac
Granit Xhaka
Alexandre Lacazette
3 “Youngsters”
Joe Willock
Reiss Nelson
Eddie Nketiah
It would then see 7 players come in (GK, CB, LB CM, CM, RW, AM). Although some of these places could be taken by those out on loan (Mavropanos, Guendouzi, Torreira).
It would leave us with a squad of:
Keenos
My goodness me, did i hear you right? Bakayo Saka is going nowhere? You must be a Tottenham fan i guesss. Shame on you.
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I agree 100%,this is an excellant article !
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This is the only time I’ve ever commented on an article I’ve read. Absolutely brilliant! 100% spot on!. You wrapped up my entire feelings into one article. Well done!
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