In the aftermath of our admittedly disappointing draw to Newcastle, some have wondered whether our apparently fragile and temporary table position has started to slip. Having missed a chance at going ten points clear, we now sit just eight above City pending their match at Stamford Bridge after which our lead may have shrunk to as little as five. Clearly, we should consider looking to the heavens to see if the sky is falling or, alternately, if pigs are flying.
It’s easier to suspect the former idiom after we’ve dropped points for the first time since 23 October and just third time all season. Is this then the first wobble that portends a deeper fall? From our point of view, it’s easy to let those old feelings of doubt creep in. After all, for as high as we’re flying, we’ve spent the last decade or dreading what felt like inevitable collapse, be it an unfortunate early goal conceded, a horror tackle, or an epic, disastrous defeat. We’d watch as players on the pitch let their shoulders slump and chins drop. We’ve only had a few precious months to exorcise years of existential dread; it’s normal to feel murmurs of that same dread.
How to dispel them? Let’s drag out that latter idiom. Ever since we rose to the top of the table, various pundits (especially of the Mancunian variety) have held that Arsenal will win the Prem when pigs fly. However, they’re trying to have their cake and eat it while talking out of two orifices at once. On one hand, they’re touting Newcastle as a serious contender for a top-three finish at a mininum. On the other, they’re crowing about how this draw strikes a fatal wound to our own campaign. It can’t really be both. Sharing a point with a top-three rival is…normal if not preferable. If it had been, say, relegation fodder like Everton that came in and snatched a draw, that would be a different story—but that’s such a laughably unimaginable scenario that one wonders why I’d even mention it.
The reality then is that this result does offer some legitimacy to Newcastle’s status but does not much away from ours. Only one club have beaten Newcastle, and that was away to Liverpool. This draw marks the sixth straight clean sheet Newcastle have kept, and they barely did so on Tuesday. Had we been just a bit sharper, especially in those first 15 minutes, or if Madley had remembered that he liked punishing shirt tugs (which he booked Nketiah and Ødegaard for in the first half), we might have come away with a comfy win.
Newcastle played like they were Pulis-era Stoke with a bigger budget. Those are the kinds of tactics that used to intimidate and unsettle us. This squad, however, is made of sterner stuff, greater conviction, and deeper desire. For as young as they are, these players rise to challenges. Conceding a goal seems to anger them. I suspect that dropping points at home with inspire them that much more. It’s almost a pity that we have to wait almost ten days to properly show how we react to setback.
The fact the third best team in the Premier Lesgue this season turned up to our gaff, put XI behind the ball, defended their 18 yard box and played for a draw shows how far we have come under Mikel Arteta
It was not too long ago that the likes of Wolves, Brighton and Swansea would turn up to Islington and think “we can get a win here”. Those days are over. And with that comes another problem.
“Low block” is one of them newish buzzwords in football to describe a team that sets up 451 and defends deep. The better you are, the less interested teams are in attacking you.
As the second half of the season roles on, less teams will become interested in attacking us, and more will defend deep. And it is up to Mikel Arteta and his players to work out how to unlock a stubborn lock.
The Newcastle result was by no means a disaster. Some (as they always do) have gone OTT with their negative analysis.
I have seen some pundits say “the top teams work out how to win these games”; insinuating that Arsenal are not a top team.
This season, Man City have drawn with Newcastle, Aston Villa and Everton, lost to Brentford.
Last season, City got 93 points, they drew 0-0 at home to Southampton. They also drew away to them. They lost 2-0 at home to Crystal Palace., and drew 0-0 at Selhurst Park. They also drew 2-2 away to West Ham. You can not expect a team to win every game.
Newcastle are the 3rd best team in the league this season. They are a strong, well built, highly organised outfit. They set up to firstly not lose games, and the try to take their chances to win. You can see why they have lost just once this season. And the drew against us was their 8th in 18 games this season.
They have taken points against Manchester City, Man U, Spurs and Chelsea. Liverpool are the only team to have taken 3 points against them – and they needed a 98th minute winner.
I saw them described as “Burnley Arabia” which made me chuckle. Maybe a little too much. They are better than that. But Howe certainly has them playing in an efficient manner, doing what they need to do to compete. Probably closer to Atletico Madrid than Burnley.
So 0-0 at home is not a disaster. But it also does not mean that we couldn’t (or can’t) improve.
The game highlighted our lack of attacking options.
With Gabriel Jesus and Emile Smith Rowe out injured, Eddie Nketiah, Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka played the full 90.
In games like this, it is often a substitution that changes things. A pair of fresh, fast legs in the last 20 minutes that finds that gap. It is clear why we are chasing Mykhailo Mudryk.
You also have to ask whether Arteta could have been braver with his substitutions.
He made just one change – Ben White for Takehiro Tomiyasu. Fabio Vieira was an unused sub on the bench.
Could Arteta have thrown the Portuguese on for Granit Xhaka with 20 to go? See if he can create something?
I do think Arteta missed a trick. And he showed last season that he does not always trust those on the bench to come on and make a difference. I would say game changing subs when we need a goal is something he can improve on.
Of course, football is easy in hindsight and had we been given that penalty, or Eddie scored when one on one, we’d be celebrating a hard fought win – “the type of games champions win”.
It ended up 0-0. There will be some over analysis. But we are still top of the league. Won 14 out of 17. And that Newcastle game was the only one we didn’t score in.
Our 100% home record is now over, but we move on.
Oxford United in the FA Cup next (I expect a hugely changed team) before Spurs in a week.
Man City are still favourites and the result on Tuesday is just a little reminder of how tough this league is.
(4-3-3) Aaron Ramsdale; Ben White, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhães, Oleksandr Zinchenko; Martin Ødegaard (c), Thomas Partey, Granit Xhaka; Bukayo Saka, Eddie Nketiah, Gabriel Martinelli.
Substitutes: Kieran Tierney, Rob Holding, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Fabio Vieira, Albert Sambi Lokonga, Mohamed Elneny, (Marcus Vinicius Oliveira Alencar) Marquinhos, Matt Turner, Nathan Butler-Oyedeji.
Yellow Cards: Eddie Nketiah, Granit Xhaka, Martin Ødegaard, Oleksandr Zinchenko
Arsenal Possession Percentage: 67%
Referee: Andy Madley
Assistant Referees: Lee Betts, Ian Hussin
Fourth Official: Jarred Gillett
VAR Team at Stockley Park: VAR Stuart Attwell; AVAR Wade Smith
Attendance: 60,319
Another important match, this time between first and third in the Premiership and another night on which we need to get the full three points available. We are on a run of ten straight league victories at the Emirates, dating back to last season and we have now won fourteen of our opening sixteen top-flight matches; it is to be noted that the five other teams to have started a season at least as well as us all went on to win the title. Emile Smith-Rowe is still not available due to a groin injury, and on a darker note, Bukayo Saka and William Saliba are both one booking awayo from triggering a ban, which is something that any of us neither need nor want.
After the kick-off in the driving rain in North London, the visitors won an early free-kick after a foul by Granit Xhaka that went nowhere, and a minute or so later, our captain Martin Ødegaard had a great chance to score, but sadly his effort went flying over the bar. We started to take command of the match, pressurising the visitors relentlessly, and both Bukayo Saka and Granit Xhaka were unlucky in not scoring with some quick thinking chances within the first ten minutes. The game started to settle down, although there were some heavy tackles flying around, with the conditions not making things any better in that department. Callum Wilson spun around and took a snap shot at our goal, but Aaron Ramsdale easily saved the ball with little effort on his part. Martin Ødegaard was desperately unlucky not to score after Bukayo Saka put the ball through to him, but the Newcastle defenders blocked him in on the byline and the chance went as quick as it came, sadly. It was becoming fairly obvious to all that Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka were already threatening the Novocastrian defence on both flanks, and it seemed to be a matter of time before their hard work will see a reward. Ben White and Joelinton collided and the match was stopped for a few minutes whilst the Newcastle medical team came on the pitch to treat and assess him, and the game continued with the player being cleared to carry on. Gabriel Martinelli tried to pick out Eddie Nketiah but Fabian Schär intercepted him. He then beat Oleksandr Zinchenko but with only Callum Wilson in support, he was quickly pounced on by three of our players and lost the ball, which went aimlessly across the pitch. Bruno Guimarães and Callum Wilson were booked for fouls on Eddie Nketiah and William Saliba, and suddenly it started to look like the only way for the visitors to stop our players advancing down the pitch was to foul them. In frustration, Eddie Nketiah was booked for pulling back Fabian Schär and with eleven minutes before half-time, a spiralling Martin Ødegaard free-kick found the head of Gabriel, but his superb effort went wide of Nick Pope’s left-hand post. Martin Ødegaard tugged the shirt of Miguel Almiron but the Newcastle man wriggled away before eventually losing the ball; it was called back for the free-kick and another yellow card, which was the fifth today so far. This game has become a scrappy one, it seems just a matter of time before the referee produces a red card on someone, somewhere. Anyway, after two minutes injury time, no goals were scored, and both teams went into the break with honours even.
We kicked the second half into life, and almost immediately there seemed to be a change of attitude with Arsenal pressurising Newcastle United for the first few minutes of the half. A free-kick for the visitors saw them come close to scoring, and then a mistake by Aaron Ramsdale almost allowed the visitors in but Sean Longstaff and Joe Willock could not find space to shoot, thankfully. But Newcastle kept possession though and the ball zipped across our six-yard box, inches past Callum Wilson, thankfully, which was a real let-off. Martin Ødegaard tried to spread the ball across to the right-hand side but Joelinton got back and closed him down. Bukayo Saka was brought down on the edge of the penalty area by Joelinton, who was duly booked for his trouble, and although the subsequent free-kick went nowhere, it strengthened our resolve to put pressure on the visitors to try and open the scoring. Gabriel Martinelli received a fantastic ball from Ben White out on the left wing, and his shot on goal after cutting inside was easily picked up by Nick Pope, and former Gunner Joe Willock received the ball and ran down the left wing to bring it over the halfway line but our defenders easily halted his progress. A disappointing Gabriel Martinelli corner was easily cleared by the visitors’ defenders, and with sixteen minutes of the game remaining, Ben White was replaced by Takehiro Tomiyasu, and the substitution started to wake us up a bit, with Gabriel Martineli coming very close when his header narrowly went by the far post. Granit Xhaka played Gabriel Martinelli in on the left for Martin Ødegaard to make the run and slipped the ball to him. He moved it on first time for Granit Xhaka but he could not connect with it in the penalty area. The chances are coming, with a superb goalscoring chance by Eddie Nketiah which was kicked away with an outstretched leg by Nick Pope, and a minute or so later, Granit Xhaka crossed the ball for Eddie Nketiah to head the ball straight into the arms of Nick Pope. In the five minutes’ injury time, we had a surefire penalty appeal turned down by referee Andy Madley, which was confirmed by VAR and after that, the match just petered away to its natural conclusion.
All in all, a very frustrating evening for us. Although we had sixty-seven per cent possession, we just could not convert our domination into goals, despite some superb efforts over the course of ninety minutes. It did descend into a bit of a scrappy match (with eight yellow cards being handed out across the teams by referee Andy Madley), we still did enough to win the match, but we just could not break the Newcastle defence down. Still these things happen, at least we came away with the same point that we started the match with, which overall, is okay. Disappointing, but okay.
Remember everyone, keep the faith, get behind the team and the manager, as this season is going to be crucial for our future success in all competitions. Stick with the winners. Our next match: Oxford United at The Kassam Stadium on Monday, 9th January at 8.00pm(FA Cup). Be there, if you can. Victoria Concordia Crescit.
Steve
Too Dearly Loved To Be Forgotten: Arsenal v Racing Club de Paris 1930-1962 by Steve Ingless (Rangemore Publications, ISBN 978-1-5272-0135-4) is now available on Amazon
She Wore A Yellow Ribbon 