With one kick of the game to go and Mikel Arteta stepping up to take a decisive penalty past Mark Schwarzer, Arsenal’s wretched footballing month looked like it might be about to end. Yet as he offered a tame shot down to the keeper’s left which Schwarzer smartly saved, the game began to encapsulate all that was seemingly going wrong at the Emirates.
As the players dejectedly trooped off the field consoling Arteta and awaiting the wrath of their manager, only one man, Olivier Giroud, went over to the fans in the North Bank to clap their support. One of the few players that could leave the game with their head held high, Giroud scored twice and generally looked like a goal threat for most of an open and entertaining game.
Yet when it came to taking a last minute decisive penalty, with the chance to score a match-winning goal and grab your first hat-trick for his new club, Giroud was nowhere to be seen. Having missed a penalty against Coventry recently, perhaps he didn’t feel confident to take one. So, is it just a blip in confidence that is affecting Arsenal or is there something beyond that, and are they going to struggle to finish in the top four this season?
The first question is, are they struggling? At the end of November in 2011, Arsenal had 23 points from 13 games and had started the campaign relatively slowly. In 2012 they have 16 points from 11 games, with a home game against bitter rivals Tottenham, and an away game against the improving Aston Villa to come. If they can win both of those, then they can rightly point to being in a very similar position to the season before, but are they papering over cracks that are beginning to widen at the club?
After a stormy AGM, Arsene Wenger appeared to concede that he wasn’t overly concerned with trophies and instead just retaining the right to play in the Champions League. Ivan Gazidis also projected a more long term vision of Arsenal being to compete in the transfer window, and subsequently the league. So, many Arsenal fans were left with the distinct impression that their club is no longer considering itself a genuine contender for the title. And if your board and management team no longer believe that, then can you blame the players for thinking the same thing?
Robin van Persie didn’t believe that being an Arsenal player was going to bring him the success that he craved, nor Samir Nasri, Cesc Fabregas or Alex Song before him. All four left for clubs that have won major trophies in recent years and will undoubtedly be challenging for their league title this season.
It’s hard for any club to lose their best players and continue to compete. Wenger has done an excellent job in keeping the ship afloat in the past, but 2012/13 might just prove a season too far. The three areas that probably most needed addressing were the left back position, a solid ball winning midfielder and a world class goalscorer to replace the departing van Persie.
The Fulham game became a microcosm for highlighting those deficiencies. They’re still short of a left back, with Thomas Vermaelan filling in, and not covering himself in glory. A marking mix-up between him and Podolski allowed Berbatov (who gave a masterclass all day) to deliver the decisive cross for the second Fulham goal. They still lack bite and urgency in the midfield, with Coquelin an improving if not yet world class force. Mikel Arteta plays beautifully as a deep lying playmaker, but he doesn’t have the defensive urgency required to pressurise the opposition.
Up front, only Olivier Giroud was beyond criticism. He took his chances well and was a handful for the defence. Yet at the other end Berbatov was providing them with a Bullseye, ‘Here’s what you could have won’ performance, coolly slotting a penalty, a task that Giroud was to pass up at the end of the game.
I expect that the Arsenal fans are not going to be happy with Gazidis’ pleas that they should be patient and see the results of careful financial management in a couple of years time. That could mean 10 years without a trophy. If there is money available, then it looks as though Wenger is going to have to address the gaps in his side as soon as possible in January, or risk missing out on the Champions League spots, and potentially holding onto the players that he already has.
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This could the season when the gunners fail to get the 4th spot. You look at Everton/Spurs and NU. All will be fired up.
If Wenger carries as though business is as usual,he could be in for a nasty surprise. Of course in football,you can never say never. If the fm embarks on a major spending spree on experienced repeat experienced players,then perhaps all is not lost.The onus is on him to deliver.
Wenger is to blame 4 d ups and downs arsenal is facing presently.wenger is so stubborn dat he refuses to play tactics and formation dat suits d players.why do u think manu united players are very happy giving there 100percent to d club becos fergie plays formation and tactics dat suits d players,fergie doesnt play d players out of position,if he does just 1 due to condition bt wenger will prefer to play a formation and tactics dat those nt suit d players,even playin most of them out of position.for instance,podoski,arshavin,chamak,arteta,cazorla,santos,ramsey,giroud,gervinho has all been played out of position.when we have players like gervinho,ox,walcot wit pace,wat stops wenger from playing 4-4-2 formation or 4-1-3-2 formation in matches than d defensive formation wenger is using dat is nt working 4 us.wenger needs to build d team on 4-4-2 formation.wenger should stop zonal marking when cornerkicks are been played into d box.it is d most rubbish and stupid tactics i have ever seen.dont wenger and bould see how we concede goals thru zonal marking in d box,when we are to do man marking