Can Arsenal save their season by beating Manchester United?
Here we find ourselves, just over a quarter of the way through the season and the usual four-horse race seems to have already become a three-horse race. For the last few years, if a team had dropped behind this early it was usually Liverpool, but this time its Arsene’s Arsenal. Now, at a hugely pivotal point in their season, Arsenal find themselves pitted against Man Utd on Saturday, in a hugely important tie for the London side.
But is it really that bad?
The fact that people are already writing off the Gunners is much more a reflection of the way they’ve played in the last week (coupled with mishaps incurred against Stoke), than their actual league position. The two Premier League games this last week have seen them firstly throw away a 4-2 lead over bottom-at-the-time Spurs, with only a minute to go, and secondly lose to Stoke, who everyone expected to be whipping boys for the Big Four teams.
Furthermore, they have also lost to Hull and Fulham, two more teams against whom Gooner’s expect to gain not just three points but a valuable goal difference boost too. For the majority of Arsenal fans, in the build up to all three of their losses, the win was supposed to be a forgone conclusion, the question being more; ‘How many can we win by?’. Their inabilities against smaller or struggling clubs are also evident in their two draws, firstly to Sunderland (who Chelsea thrashed 5-0 and Liverpool beat 1-0) and then, notoriously, to bottom of the pile Spurs.
In the days following the Stoke game, Arsene Wenger has done an about-turn in his comments in the press. On the day of the match, Wenger praised Tony Pulis’ men and said they deserved the victory, but he has since come back and made harsh comments about the intentions of Stoke players, claiming they purposefully attacked Arsenal players, with no intention of playing the ball. A little two-faced considering Van Persie’s unnecessary collision with Sorensen. Stoke’s manager and chairman have both voice disgust at the comments.
Woes
Further pressure came piling down on Wenger in the form of injuries and suspensions, sustained in the Stoke loss (btw check this for an amusing stab at Arsenal and the Premiership’s inability to deal with Stoke’s long throw-ins) when Walcott (shoulder), Adebayor (achilles) and Sagna (thigh) picked up injuries and Van Persie got himself suspended for a pointless attack on Sorensen.
The Frenchman’s recent comments have concentrated on the tackles in the Stoke game that lead to injuries to Adebayor, Sagna and Walcott, in his typical moan-and-pass-the-blame style. But what he hasn’t really pointed out (though Nasri has) is that Arsenal are just six points off the top (far from catastrophic with 27 games to go) and they still haven’t played a single one of the other title contenders. So the key is to get some good results in those big games and the top of the table will change drastically.
Thrown a bone
The team who seem most likely to be knocking on the Top Four Door, if Arsenal did fall out, is Aston Villa, but they have thrown Arsenal a life-line from the media-bashing by losing to bottom of the league Newcastle United. Had Villa drawn or won they would’ve gone above the Londoners, but with their loss it buys Wenger a little relief from the pressure thats weighing down on him.
In Europe
Arsenal have now added a disappointing draw at home to Fenerbahce to their critic’s ammo pile, in a game that they had plenty of chances to put to bed, but lacked sharpness in front of goal. Had Arsenal won the game they would’ve damn-near sealed their passage through the group phase, but now Group G has been blown wide open, with just 3 points between them and non-progressing third place.
It’s not over, not over, not over yet
Arsenal’s season is far from over though and the ‘Sack Wenger’ talk is (as usual) premature, they are fourth in the Premiership, just 2 wins off top and they also top their Champions League group. The main worry for them will be; as they’re struggling against the smaller teams, how will they beat the big ones?
The game this coming weekend against Man Utd has become a must-win, though they go into the game with no Adebayor or Van Persie and Walcott, Sagna, Gallas and Eboue are doubts too. But this current Arsenal certainly won’t be the first team to need a big game to make them come alive, so it’s still ‘Game-on for the Gunners’ for now.
Can they begin to turn it around with a victory in this game?
Martin Banks writes at the Aston Villa Blog.
Topics: Arsenal, Arsene Wenger, English Premier League
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To be honest i’m preparing for more pain this weekend. But this ‘sack wenger’ rubbish has just got to stop.to those fans i say pls pls just cross over to supprting one of the plenty ‘sugar daddied-up teams;another manager pls’ teams and leave the real fans to supporting the gaffer and team.given time this team will deliver and with style by a mile.and to the idiot ‘pundits’ and pulis and other idiot ‘managers’;stoke and the other teams who defend employing the physical ‘sytle’.there is nothing ‘stylish’ to roughing up opponent players;Its not in the spirit of the game.last we all checked football wasnt abt the biggest brutes who can kick a ball and opponent players off the pitch for throws?unless arsene and i got it mixed?apologies then, arsenal are definately playing the game the wrong and certainly dont deserve the aclaim.stoke do.bolton do.but then when was the last time anyone praised the stoke et al ‘sytle’?exactly.ironic at the least that.but if someones picks a fight u gotta stick it back so arsenals boys should definately let em have once in a way.and l’m not talking girlie pushes on the goalie either.i’m talking ‘try these studs on delap;bring it if u got it; veira-ish, studs in ur calfs; dont u forget that one next time u got the ball’ tackles.that geezer may have thought twice before COWARDLY sticking it to walcott and ade then.its not the way,but if they wana then we gotta.my thats been a right rant.good luck to the boys with united,i know they just believe an inch more,they can achieve everything…come on you gunners
November 6th, 2008 @ 22:52Wenger’s constant crying about the physical nature of the game is getting increasingly tiresome. But lets have a reality check, Arsenal are 4th and just six points off the top of the table with 27 games remaining. Hardly a crisis.
November 7th, 2008 @ 04:521 loss in six games and every one is all ova the place arsene must go and arsenal are finished. give us all a break, form will always come and go but class and skill will always remains. it is the same 4 players as well as teams. as a team arsenal’s form may have dropped in recent weeks but their class is still there waiting 4 this form to bounce back and when it does they will pick up again. even chelsea have found themselves in a kind of inconsistency in terms of form, of late. the same can be said of man united and even liverpool who lost to spurs and struggled to draw with atletico madrid no thanks to a dubious penalty decision. so i just don’t know what these platic arsenal fans and others are saying. as far as I am concern there is no team, not even in the top 4 that is playing with a full dose of consistency at the moment, chelsea lost 2 roma 3-1, after scoring 5 against sunderland, and 3 against hull the week before. they lost to liverpool be 4 this 2 games winning streak came to an end @ Roma. I saw a man u side that just mANAGED to beat hull city, with due respect i say managed cos they were 4-1 up at a stage and hull fought back. perharps if there was more time to play after hull’s 3rd goal it will have been a different story all together. i say this without trying to undermine man u’s win, a win is a win it does nt matter how u get it. it is the points that matters and that is what arsene must teach his lads. and then of course there is the draw at celtic on wednesday. so where does this leaves us with all this ranting that arsenal’s season is over and arsene should be sacked by some plastic fans and fans of other clubs? we were well and truely beaten by stoke i accept that, but i am yet to see any team that has put in a decent run of wins in both league and cup lately and its the same 4 arsenal. so come saturday @ the emirates, the team that is determined and plays well and take their chances will carry the day. if not, if it is yet another 1 of those games among the “so called top 4″, where they cancel each other out, they share the spoils. finally like any other arsenal fan i am also frustrated but i refuse to be pessimitic @ a time when people are giving up, i remain positive. though like so many have said b 4, arsenal needs strenghthening with experience especially in the midfield and the defence. we have to keep drumming up this sentiment and hope arsene does something when the window reopens in january. 4 now with the injuries, suspensions and the media witch-hunting about what wenger said/did not say, we just have to keep going. Let’s get out there and play the game the way we know how to and we see how far that gets us.that’s all we can do 4 now and 4 pete’s sake lets support our lads & our coach.
November 7th, 2008 @ 05:04Make no mistake, this IS a must win game for Arsenal if they want to remain in the title race and here’s why:
1.If Arsenal lose on Saturday they will have dropped 16 points in 12 games. If we assume that 86 points is needed to win the title that means they can only afford to drop a further 12 points in 26 games. That’s a huge ask (20 wins & 6 draws) and it just won’t happen.
2.If they lose on Saturday they will be between 7 and 9 points adrift of the Top 3 (assuming Utd win their game in hand). Chasing 1 team with a gap of 9 points is possible but expecting all 3 to falter is unrealistic.
3.Arsenal will have lost 4 games in 12 and that will say everything about their form and vunerability, especially in midfield (defensively) and at the back. A turnaround capable of bridging the gap based on what has been seen to date is highly unlikely.
The press are not conducting any witch hunt they are merely commenting on what they see. Wenger’s reaction was that of a man under pressure. When he saw the press coverage he went into siege mode and his comments are unjustified. Arsenal may not be in crisis just yet but it is only around the corner. They have gone backwards since last year and Wenger (assuming he has had the reported money to spend) must look at himself.
Arsenal are capable of winning on Saturday and will definitely be up for the game. But should they lose then any hope of a title this season is gone. And yes, you can be out of the race in November, maybe not mathematically but in terms of the gap to the top and the quality available to take on the challenge.
November 7th, 2008 @ 09:44To Nm: Of course Wenger shouldn’t be sacked. He has achieved far too much for that but he does need to listen to balanced opinion, not least from his own fans.
Unfortunately you are adopting a siege mentality yourself. There is a lot of neutral, balanced opinion out there on the subject and few support the ‘over-physical’ claims of Wenger. He (and you) display all the characteristics of someone under fire trying to deflect the real issue elsewhere.
As for: “i know they just believe an inch more,they can achieve everything”
November 7th, 2008 @ 09:56If you believe that you really need to remove the rose tinted glasses. Talk to your fellow gunners for a start…few of them share your view.
To Kihi: Another case of rose tinted glasses I’m afraid. The top 3 have all only lost 1 game. Despite injuries themselves, Chelsea and Utd have moved up the gears and been totally convincing in many of their wins. Their squad depth speaks for itself and is far superior to Arsenals.
Of course you should hang in there and support the team and the manager at all costs but the way in which you ‘dress-up’ the relative form of the the Top 3 versus Arsenal so far…well you’re just kidding yourself.
There IS a problem that needs to be addressed and, so far, Wenger has failed to take the bull by the horns.
November 7th, 2008 @ 10:02this blog sums up there problems very well and correctly singles out that there are plenty of games left to rectify what has gone on
November 7th, 2008 @ 10:55it would be typical of the premier league if arsenal came away with a win on Saturday, something i think they will do remember Manchester united aren’t in the best of form either
the fans asking for wenger’s head (for what its worth i don’t think actually exist, its all media talk) should b banned from the emirates for life, never has a manager in premier league history turned a side round to quickly and so successfully and created one of the best sides we’ve ever seen in english league football, if there skeptics out there then give up supporting arsenal its not for you
Arsenal SOLE error this season has been over-confidence( as shown by lfc vs totenham- spurs didnt deserve 2 win the game, but we deserved 2 lose it simply because we have not shown spurs the respect).
Vs utd, arsenal will be far from complacent.. i predict a 2-2 draw.
November 7th, 2008 @ 14:20I think this whole situation with Arsenal has been blown out of proportion. The media as a whole can smell blood and are going for the jugular! If Arsenal beat Man United and go on a bit of a run, they will switch their attention to something else. All Arsenal fans know that everything in the garden isn’t rosy, but it certainly isn’t the crisis that the media would want you to believe. As an Arsenal fan I didn’t think at the start of the season that We would win the Premier league. We do need a new leader and a someone in midfield who isn’t going to take any of the shit that teams like Stoke dished out last saturday. I’ll be at the Emirates tomorrow and sincerely hope that We get stuck into United, don’t give them an inch and hope that We get a win that might just shut up all the “pundits”!
November 7th, 2008 @ 15:37I think Manchester United have the chance to beat Arsenal. Ronaldo and Rooney are yet to score their 100 goals and they are really keen on it. So, you can feel the determination. Manchester United also have many quality player to beat Arsenal. But, Arsenal now in injury crisis and their players are very tired.
November 7th, 2008 @ 17:50Arsenal should be shooting for a 4th place finish. Anything above 3rd is completely unrealistic. Did you actually expect to compete with Chelsea/Man Utd for the title? Did you even look at the squad you are rolling out? You should worry about Aston Villa breathing down your backs for 4th place.
If you finish 4th and make the CL Quarterfinals or better then Wenger will have done admirably.
November 7th, 2008 @ 23:33Last week’s Arsenal performance and injury to talented players is not an indicator of Arsenal’s Standing at the end of the season. We may also see the team performing better in some of the weeks a head of us. But if we analyze the performance of the past five years, the club seems not working to be champions but to focus on competence in Finance with other big clubs. That seems okay, now we need change and let the club refines its player purchase pol
November 8th, 2008 @ 07:25