I dreaded the prospect of Thursday night football before it eventually arrived at the Grove. The level of the Europa League is substantially below the Champions League and the game with Dundalk illustrated this graphically. But the chance to refresh our line up and to play with less pressure meant that this was a game we could enjoy with a slightly more relaxed perspective.
Arsenal lined up for the match with a back five which included the captain Xhaka, taking the armband almost exactly a year after his surly departure from the field of play against Crystal Palace. My respect for Arteta is huge but I found the formation overly cautious for opponents like this.
Dundalk lined up with something like a back seven but still forced the first goal chance when Mohammed’s Gaelic cousin, Mceleny forced a decent save from the debutant Runarsson who then proceeded to catch a corner that Leno may well have punched (he later caught a second).
Arsenal were far from fluid in the early stages which begs the question when we did last start dynamically? Nketiah had a decent shout for a penalty when his legs were removed from under him. The referee realising that it wasn’t Old Trafford declined to give the home team a penalty. In fact the referee who I thought was awful failed to give us three penalties – later when Nelson was brought down in the second half and Joe Willock was clearly pulled near the end as he made exciting progress into the box. He also failed to spot a single Dundalk foul in ninety minutes. That is an extraordinary statistic and not one he should be proud of. If UEFA use him again they must be desperate.
After ten rather tedious minutes Cedric blazed wildly over. I’m afraid Cedric may be a blaze wildly over sort of full back and he wasn’t alone tonight as I put regularly ….. blazed over …..citing, Elneny, Willock and Nketiah as well. But at least we were shooting.
Early amusement came from Dundalk who forced a throw in to Arsenal from their own goal kick by trying to play out from the back. Emperor’s New Clothes football has spread across the Irish Sea. Utter madness by them in a game where they weren’t going to be able to get out of their area without supreme difficulty. Two yard passes in the six yard box were not a good idea.
After 12 minutes Pepe blazed over (!) trying to emulate Cedric and then hit one of the worst corners I have seen for a long time.
Willock looked lively and like Nelson injected a quicker tempo into our game. He put a tempting ball over on 16 minutes for Nketiah, presumably, but he was nowhere to be found. Frustration would have been building in the crowd had there been one and the inability to test the Bank of Ireland bank manager in goal for Dundalk (it’s so gratifying and rare to find a player who looks older than me and possibly has less talent), was particularly galling.
Kolasinac did test him with a header from a Willock cross on 33 minutes and after 38 minutes Nketiah almost converted after a fierce Pepe shot was blocked. But concern was building.
The deadlock was eventually broken on 41 minutes when the bank manager flailed at a cross and Nketiah darted in to convert the loose ball.
Arsenal 1 Dundalk 0
Two minutes later Willock finished smartly after Pepe’s drive was blocked
Arsenal 2 Dundalk 0
Suddenly as the break neared Arsenal had crept into a comfortable lead without giving a coherent or fluent first-half performance.
Half-time Arsenal 2 Dundalk 0
The game had effectively ceased to be a contest in those last four minutes of the first half. Arsenal began the second by making it three goals in five minutes when we saw a collector’s item- a Pepe goal with his right foot. It was a beautiful piece of control embellished by a fine curling shot. There is a huge player reaction when Pepe scores and he seems a popular character in the dressing room.
Arsenal 3 Dundalk 0
If it had seemed rather negative to start with a back five against a team like Dundalk, after Mustafi was taken off we still persisted with the shape using Elneny in the defence. Xhaka was later replaced by Tierney to retain the shape.
Nelson and Willock continued to impress. Nelson lacked an end product despite some dazzling footwork but Arsenal had a smarter tempo and Maitland-Niles who like Cedric played in a very advanced position as a wing-back forced a full length save from Rogers after 69 minutes. Willock turned superbly on 72 minutes but Nketiah ….yes ..blazed over after his pull-back. Nelson was wide after an enterprising run and the game wound down with Arsenal comfortably in control.
Final score Arsenal 3 Dundalk 0
So Arsenal currently top the group and face Molde next week in a clash which could secure qualification after only three matches. There will inevitably be criticism including some on this board that we perhaps did not record a more comprehensive victory. I thought the second half was encouraging as we increased the tempo and injected pace and effective combination play against a team who played most of the second half camped in their own penalty area.
We had two debutants, Runarsson, who looks good with his feet but was largely unemployed and Folarin Balogun who replaced Nketiah but struggled (understandably) to adjust to the pace of the game. Hopefully this is a sign to him that he may be in Arteta’s first- team plans.
Our standout players were Nelson who not only justified his inclusion but staked a strong claim for a regular starting berth and Willock whose mobility in midfield made such a refreshing change. Paired with Partey we may see an Arsenal side sustaining a high tempo and moving the ball much more effectively between the lines.
Sunday’s game is daunting because with Mike Dean in charge at Old Trafford we are at least one nil down before the game starts. But many of our main players were able to be rested and let us hope this not only lifts morale in the dressing room but impresses on Arteta the need for a quicker, slicker passing game.
Lovely job TTG. I especially enjoyed the line about the Bank of Ireland goalkeeper.
Nice stuff TTG, captured the good
and bad of the game very neatly.
I don’t mind about the score being
only 3-0 as it was basically a game
we had to play and that was it.
I do think Eddie missed a chance to
put pressure on Laca for a starting
place but others did ok. We could
do with a CB or two being available!
A good summation of the match TTG. There was a lot more forward movement than usual by the team but that was probably down to Dundalk maintaining so many players in their own penalty area thereby creating a little more space in the midfield area.
Pepe’s goal was a moment of real class in an overall low level game. Joe & Reiss enhanced their reputations, the others not so much. It was a good run out for those lacking match fitness of course.
The Bank of Ireland goalkeeper should perhaps spend more time looking after the reserves.
Thanks for a measured report. Onwards.
Wouldn’t it be great if Mike Dean could emulate this referee and not find a single foul against us at the weekend.
I think I need to lie down now.
UTA
Hi De Hi, Campers. Good morning, TTG.
The primary benefit of Europa games s the ability to give young players a less pressurised opportunity to showcase their talents and it was good to see Runarsson join five academy graduates in doing so. That was my first brief sight of Balogun and I like what I saw. And yes, Nelson and Willock both impressed.
We may have started with five defenders but three of them played as attackers and even with two of the three Marx brothers on the field, this was never going to be a Duck soup evening (and I’m sure there wasn’t a sanity clause in that ref’s contract – boom boom).
As we’ve discovered in our last two League games a 1-0 result secures three points and I thought the game was over as soon as Eddie (finally) scored. But it was pleasing to see the Arsenal promise another two quality strikes. Even the great Leno himself would have struggled to stop either. Both were really well taken.
Onward.
Adrian Clarke’s Breakdown of the Leicester game is worth a watch. I agree with every sentiment, particularly his assessment of the disallowed goal.
A very fine review of a banana skin match against a team sponsored by Fyffes. A deserved 3-0 win without any scares at the back. What a relief.
I thought Joe Willock was outstanding and added a midfield attacking element that we have not seen from the first team since Rambo departed. If he can maintain this form, Joe Willock would be ahead of Ceballos, Xhaka and Elneny on my midfield three.
On to the toilet, as one might say.
Thanks for the comments chaps and good morning or whatever time of day it is to you. I had a lot of online chatter with a couple of Irish mates last night. One who watches Dundalk a lot explained the financial implications if reaching this stage of the Europa . They will net £3m which will be transformational for them . It will no doubt be carefully invested by the goalkeeper in his bank.
Am I alone in being fllabbergasted that a referee can give twenty fouls against Arsenal and none against Dundalk. Does it not suggest he went into the game with a preset approach!
Good job, TTG,
and laced with humour to enjoy too.
Their goalkeeper did indeed look a strange choice but you would at least expect a Bank of Ireland manager to be able to save something.
Reiss Nelson and Joe Willock tried hard to inject some pace and movement into an odd game against an Irish defence that kept nine men in the box a lot of the time. They should be able to replace at least Xhaka from our existing midfield. The latter has now exhaust my patience with his slowness, inability to track and defend, and constant backwards and sideways passing. Even my phone is fed up with Xhaka and the spoilchucker throws up “backwards and sideways “ every time I type his name in.
A shame cba couldn’t be here to share this one with us. As bt8 noted in his preview, he and the Guvnor are badly missed.
Aye TTG, the ref was terrible – but that almost goes without saying any more.
Long and spirited discussion with my son last night on Willock vs Ceballos. I think the time has come for Willock to start in the league. He does that most important thing of running at the defence. Dani has not been doing that this season. Willock’s runs into the box are Ramseyesque. With Partey there now to anchor, I would start Joe at Old Trafford. Whether you have Elneny/Xhaka beside Partey, or play Dani there as an 8, with Joe as a 10, is an intriguing prospect. I would favour the latter.
Excellent report TTG. I couldn’t decide whether their right back, who committed one of the three missed penalties you mentioned, had missed his calling as either a bouncer or a hurler. By the way, Amy Lawrence has a great article today in The Athletic, “Ryan Garry, guiding Arsenal’s next generation”
Cheers!
Good going, TTG. We saw the same match. Willock’s willingness to run through and behind defences is Ramsient, and something we have lacked.
I did wonder if starting with five at the back was a training exercise with an eye to Sunday as injuries may force a back three of Mustafi, Xhaka and Gabriel then, flanked by Bellerin and Tierney.
Thanks for ruining my morning, Ned !
Just when I was relishing the idea of Willock and his Ranseyesque runs, you hit me with the idea of a back three including Mustafi and Xhaka (gulp !).
Even centre backs need a bit of pace these days which for Xhaka is bad enough, but the idea of him tackling in our penalty area fills me with dread. The idea of him tackling in our penalty area at Old Trafford with Mike Dean refereeing leaves me reaching for the thesaurus !
For the record, Mart Poom’s full list of Arsenal appearances is:
Nov 8, 2006 v Everton (A) League Cup 4th Round (replaced Almunia at half-time)
May 13, 2007 v Portsmouth (A) Premier League
He kept a clean sheet in all three halves he played.
In his pomp, he was regarded as a top keeper, and he played nearly 200 games in the old First Division and Premiership. He joined us late in his career as cover for Mad Jens and Almunia.
Cheers TTG!
Just to completely ruin your day, Trev, think of Rashford running at Xhaka.
Something tells me he won’t start at the Old Toilet, Ned.
Ned @15,
Shouldn’t that be “in his poomp “ ?
Trev, I don’t think you should admit using a thesaurus. It’s not the right month for sauruses. 😉
Noosa, Nice to see you in, and I hope your lie down is refreshingly unbothered by any visions of MD, medical doctors or otherwise. How are things down under?
Huss Fahmy has left the club. You may remember this was suggested as likely on the day Sanllehi resigned . Tim Lewis was at the ground yesterday for the match . The feeling apparently is that between Edu and the team of in-house lawyers they have his job covered. Gazidis has seen his ‘ dream team ‘ disintegrate.
Gazidis’ dream team was a nightmare.
Sure was Trev, For me the sooner anyone associated with it is history, the better.
Look at this as an example of just how skewed ( screwed?) football can be .
It’s the number of touches in the penalty area before a team is awarded a penalty .
I don’t know the exact period it covers but I believe it is fairly current
https://mobile.twitter.com/StatsSwearwords/status/1287449665106071553Guy
Read it and weep!
TTG, I clicked on that link and got this message: “Sorry, that page doesn’t exist!” Is there another way to get to it?
TTG – this seems to confirm that our abnormal lack of penalties awarded is not paranoia. I wonder about the reverse of where we are in the number of penalties awarded against us.
Mike Riley & his protege Mike Dean unequivocally are wankers of the highest order.
Mike Dean has ref’d 75 of our games, in which he has awarded us six penalties and nine against us.
Mike Dean has re’d 74 Man Utd games, in which he has awarded them 18 penalties and their opponents 10.
Mike Riley is a saint in comparison: nine penalties for us and five against us in 41 games.
His Man Utd numbers look less saintly: 14 penalties for them and four for their opponents in 44 games.
bt8, I have a screenshot of that table of touches per penalty. I’ll try and attach it here but my success record in these things is not good – always seems to be something wrong with my files – here goes 🤞🏻
Well, there you go ! It wasn’t sideways in my photo library but ho hum ….
Image rotated…. 🙂
Thanks Trev
Hope you got it Bt8. The number of penalties United get is particularly concerning because they usually score them . It really can’t be coincidence it has gone on for some time . But it is more pronounced under Solskjaer
Resolution is terrible but I had to resize the image to get it in at all.
Cheers Artur 👍🏻
I know refs will never be the part of giving us favours we all know that, it’s up to us to create more chances to be in those position to even claim we doing the right things for exactly those decisions to go our way.
We really need to start playing some fancy attacking football I have really missed that piece to our game.
Brilliantly summarized TTG!
Congratulations to Balogun on his debut! The two academy players that shined the brightest on the evening — Joe and Reiss — can also be an inspiration for him to stay back at the club and realize his ambitions. He will be given a fair chance here.
Willian in his brief cameo played as an aggressive winger in their final third and dribbling past players for the first time in Arsenal colors. He played a very safe and tactical game until now — most likely because that was what was asked of him — and it was good to see the glimpses of the well-known abilities.
Between Saka, Willian, Reiss, Pepe we have wingers of different types but all capable of producing something special in the final third. Maybe it is time to choose two of them — and mix and match as necessitated by form and tactics — to be on both sides of Aubameyang. Either Lacazette in current form or Eddie are not offering enough to start league games down the middle. Great subs though they are to come off the bench.
I think we have to give Willock a chance to start we have to breed those young fellas is they will never get the sharpness of a PL game if they will remain on the bench, Guendouzi was a bright spark last season, breath of fresh air and no fear, bad in a way but this carried us forward, he made a mistake got his slap now it’s time for Willock and Nelson to be introduced to the game. Play Auba up front Saka though the middle maybe, the ball really sticks well to his feet, give it a go at least. We are in all honesty really boring to watch right now. Let’s have a go at United and outscore them in every department.
TTG, the penalty numbers are rotten indeed, and quite possibly in more ways than just one. And thanks to techno wizzes Trev and ATG for bringing the 🗄 to💡
The penalty numbers do look
bad but taken in isolation they…
oh
Taken in isolation they look bad
too. Surprised spuds aren’t higher
as Kane and Son are blatant divers.
Be interesting to see which players
get the most individual penalty awards.
I suspect English strikers are leading
the way.
bt8 @21
G’day back at ya.
Things are okey dokey here, summer on the way, virus (mostly) under control and a nice lie down banishing all thoughts of inept refereeing further hindering our somewhat stodgy recent form. Any sort of win at the old toilet would keep the good vibe going.
Hope you’re also top of the milk, so to speak.
UTA.
(
G’day Noosa.
Winter’s on the way here. Funny how that works but it was a beautiful if unusual summer up in this part of the country. Continued good health to you.
Indeed, bt8,
Artur without me to help him is like a fish without a bicycle 😉
Another aspect of Man U penalties is not only do they get awarded more than other teams (14 in the 2019-20 Premiership season, versus our three), but they accounted for 15% of all their goals in the league. Only Watford (19%) had a higher share. Chelsea and Bournemouth were the only other clubs in double figures. Our ratio was 5%. Man U’s ratio would have been even higher had their conversion rate not been so low, 71%. Only four teams were more profligate.
Man U had three penalties awarded against them (only five teams conceded fewer). We had eight, behind only Leicester (10) and Watford (9).
Also, we received the most red cards last season (four straight, one ‘second yellow’). Man U received none. Until the Spurs game earlier this month, they had not received a red card since early April 2019, and that was for a second yellow.
we didn’t have a good season
last year but three penalties
given against eight conceded is
nonsense. Makes a big difference
when finishing positions are
tight at the end of the season
OM@44: Breaking down Man U’s 14 penalties last season, you could argue that they were worth at least 22 points to them. Two were winning goals (six unarguable points). Five were the first goal of games that Man U went on to win (probably 15 more points). One was the go-ahead goal in a game Man U went on to win (arguably three more points). One was the equaliser in a draw (one unarguable point). One was the second goal in a big win. The other four were missed, but one would have been a winner and a second would have salvaged a draw. The other two were missed in a game Man U was leading and won comfortably.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>