Goonerholics Forever

The Arsenal travelled to Everton yesterday hoping to end a confidence-sapping run of games without a victory. In front of a small crowd at Goodison Park that did not happen, and we continue to stumble through games looking for a smile from Lady Luck but getting only frowns at best. I must admit this was another game I had to watch again as your intrepid reporter was, not to put to fine a point on it, plastered as he watched yesterday’s events unfold. Masochism perhaps, but in fact it was less frustrating this time round and minus the noisy screaming at the TV for which my family were thankful.

It was an Arsenal side that kicked off minus Aubamayeng, with a calf strain, though no doubt conspiracy theorists throughout the Goonerverse have already lined up more sinister interpretations. It was also a side that saw Hector left on the bench and AMN in to replace him as right wing back. We went with a three-man defence consisting of Captain for the Day Rob, Luiz and KT. Eddie started instead of Laca at centre forward. Pepe returned and Willian continued in his new role of whipping boy. Saka started on the left with an Elneny / Dani duo in the middle.  Joining Hector on the bench were 8 men this time round – though the logic of this escapes me I’m afraid – Laca, Soares, Kola, ESR, Joe W., Martinelli, Mus, and Runarsson.

1st Half

The game kicked off and I wish I could say the first 20 minutes whizzed by in a blur of excitement but that would I am afraid be a gross distortion of a cagey (tedious might also be the right word here) start lacking in anything of any note – a foul from Elneny for which he was booked and fouls by Davies and Calvert-Lewin for which they weren’t plus a long range shot from Keane which Leno had covered as he watched it go wide. If we were following the old football saying of when away from home keep it tight in the first 20 minutes and shut the crowd up then the plan worked perfectly. Unfortunately, we hadn’t planned for the 21^st minute.

Everton 1 The Arsenal 0

We had allowed Everton to work the space for a cross aimed at Calvert-Lewin, he duly nodded it straight on to Rob’s leg for a deflection that nestled into the corner of the net. It was the sort of goal that you just have to take on the chin. I suppose if you wanted to be harsh, a commodity not lacking recently, then you could say that we shouldn’t have let them have the cross in the first place or that Rob should have done a better job on winning the header. However, having watched Everton a few times I have seen that chucking crosses at Calvert-Lewin, a very good header of the ball, is one of their standard tactics and you’re never going to prevent them all.

There followed a nice ball from Saka, I think, to put KT in behind the Everton defence. KTs first-time cut back for an unmarked Eddie in the area was nigh on perfect and then Eddie skewed a shot wide on a bread and butter finish for a decent striker. Another head-shaker in a long line of head-shakers over the last few games, though to be fair to Eddie he is not alone, Auba, Laca and Saka have been the culprits just as often. Apart from Godfrey going through Dani unpunished nothing of note happened until AMN pushed forward into the penalty area following up on his own cross.

Everton 1 The Arsenal 1

Fortunately for The Arsenal an inattentive Davies did not see AMN coming to win the ball and basically kicked Ainsley in the leg instead of clearing the ball as he intended. Pepe dispatched the penalty to Pickford’s right, whilst Pickford dived left, and the scores were level.

The game accelerated to a fast amble after that with an Everton free-kick in a good spot just outside the box fortunately wasted by Siggurdson, KT was booked for the foul simply for cleaning out Calvert-Lewin. A minute or so later I though Dani was lucky not to follow him into the book when the appeared to rake his studs down Mina’s leg. Perhaps it was accidental. In the 43^rd minute a half chance fell to Eddie but he shot straight at Pickford before Leno was called into action a minute later with a good save from a well-hit Calvert-Lewin shot from just outside the area.

Everton 2 The Arsenal 1

From the resulting corner, Mina ran across The Arsenal defence for a near-post header that Leno did well to get a reactive hand to but could not keep out. Mina also did well for the goal to be fair to him. No doubt questions will be asked afterwards on the marking but actually if you look at the facts we haven’t been letting that many in from set-pieces.

It was truly infuriating to watch us give away a goal just before the break again and also after we had managed to get ourselves level. 

In truth though the score was 2-1 neither side had looked particularly dangerous and I felt we didn’t particularly deserve to be behind. A view only reinforced on 2^nd watching – we did little but then neither did Everton.

2nd Half

With no changes at half-time, the 2^nd half kicked off with, for at least the first 10 minutes or so, a more positive approach from The Arsenal as we tried to impose ourselves on the game in the Everton half. The closest we were to come to pulling level came in the 53^rd minute when Pickford weakly palmed away a Willian cross to the feet of Luiz, his quick shot hit the post and the chance was lost. We huffed and puffed after that as the game followed a pattern of Arsenal pressure, the final pass going awry, then Everton playing on the break, and actually failing to do any better than us. Joe Willock arrived in the 64^th minute, followed about 5 minutes later by the welcome return of Martinelli and then the introduction of Laca. As the tiresome twelve had stood in the way of progress once more, that was it for the subs. 

In the 86^th minute Joe Willock nodded a presentable chance wide and that looked like it would be it until in the dying seconds Saka got in behind the Everton defence with a great chance to equalize, which he then hit too close to Pickford. The final moment of frustration for the watching Gooner faithful. Saka like Eddie earlier should have scored. They didn’t and we go into the upcoming games with Man City and Chelsea with confidence at a fairly low ebb it would appear.

Post Game

After the game MA was of the opinion that we had dominated the 2^nd half and were simply unlucky again. I would certainly agree we were unlucky with the own goal but not that we dominated the 2^nd half. There was the usual speculation about Mikel’s future and our prospects of relegation – from my perspective nothing I saw yesterday changed my thinking on either. We should persist with Mikel and there is no chance of us going down. Yesterday, we again played ok in what was a tricky away fixture and deserved a point. I have already read a lot of criticism of the 1^st half performance but it wasn’t that bad, just as I also felt the improvement in the 2^nd half was not that marked. I see no reason to clutch at that particular straw. Until we start finishing our chances things will not get better. Whilst, I am making statements that many of you will disagree with I may just as well add that I saw no lack of effort and that Wilian was no worse or better than any of the rest of our attack. Personally, I didn’t want to sign him but now that he wears the shirt I see no reason to single him out either. Or Luiz for that matter, who seems to be attracting some criticism in a guilt by association line of reasoning that is just nonsense. We actually look better when Luiz plays I think and he did well yesterday as did Tierney. Leno was fine as mostly was AMN and it was good to see Gaby Martinelli back.

On we go then and a couple of big games to look forward to (or not depending on your frame of mind I guess) in the next week. As for me, I am praying for Auba’s calf, Partey’s thigh and a tiny little sliver of luck.

Southampton turned up at the Emirates with the chance to condemn The Arsenal to a fifth straight League home loss for the first time in our long history. A return to tighter restrictions meant there were no fans allowed in to witness our efforts to prevent this most unwanted of records.

Mikel Arteta left Cedric on the bench, instead using Maitland-Niles at right wing back. We reverted to a back three, Ceballos and Elneny played in midfield and Lacazette lost out to the returning Eddie Nketiah who was trusted to lead the line. Prayers were answered as Pepe came in for Willian.

The game started without much flair. Both sides looked up for the game but did little with the ball. Saka went down early under a heavy challenge and Gooners everywhere were concerned. After a delay he was able to continue. Would the knock affect his performance?

About 15 minutes in Ward-Prowse whipped a freekick at goal. Leno punched it unconvincingly but no harm was done. Workmanlike Southampton were seeing more of the ball but a minute later Nketiah registered a decent shot at goal, cutting in from an Auba-esque position but unable to put his foot through the finish.

Soon after, disaster struck. As so often in recent times it took very little to see us go behind. The ball was played right through midfield, a sliding Elneny just failed to intercept it, whilst Gabriel came a long way to get close to his man but was turned by the ever-improving Che Adams who then played a well-weighted pass forwards to Theo Walcott who had made a trademark run in the space between Tierney and Saka. The former Gunner dinked the ball over Leno with confidence and wheeled away in celebration. Fair play to him. It was a great run and an excellent finish, and it would appear that he is finding a role in this Saints team that gets the best from him.

Arsenal – 0 Southampton – 1

We responded with more of the same really. In possession we found it difficult to progress the ball through midfield, leaving our front three struggling to get involved. Defensively we held our shape rather than pressed, but Southampton were on top, although not creating clear chances. In a tussle with Walcott, Saka saw the ball bounce up into his arm but, since the silly season that the league began with has passed, that is, once more, not handball.

Pepe found space in the box to latch onto an Auba pass that was actually meant for the lively Saka. His low, hard shot was blocked. We began to improve, for the last ten minutes of the half we were even on top. Pepe put Ceballos through but rather than shoot he tried to turn. His ankle was lightly clipped by the defender. The ref waved play on. VAR did not overrule him. Had he given a penalty it would not have overruled that decision either. Umpire’s call went against us. We could really have done with a bit of luck.

Moments later Saka drove to the byline and fizzed a cross in. Bednarek stuck out a leg and was relieved to see the ball deflect into McCarthy instead of the back of the net. Ceballos found Pepe whose first time shot was again on target but the keeper held it tight. We were getting closer but still lacked that slice of luck that struggling teams sometimes need. Would we find it in the second half?

The second half started with us finally taking control of the football. Six minutes in Gabriel sprayed the ball wide to Saka. His quick feet and sheer determination saw him bounce through three defenders and his pass found Eddie Nketiah who provided a deft touch to take it into the path of Auba. Our captain had the keeper and the pressure that came from his own goal draught to contend with but neither troubled him as he slotted calmly into the bottom corner with the class that he will always possess. I must admit I went a bit nuts. It had been ages since we scored a League goal from open play and I cheered it mightily. And I clapped Saka long and hard. He provided a decisive moment as well as a top performance. We love you Bukayo!

Arsenal – 1 Southampton – 1

I cannot have been the only one who thought that we might just go on to win from there. Could we finally take three points?

There were a few yellow cards. The Saints picked up a couple for late challenges in the first half whilst Danny Ceballos got one for knocking the ball into the ground in frustration. I am a bit confused why this should be a yellow card when he deliberately knocked it straight to the bloke taking the freekick but what our current crop of referees lose in competence they make up for in ego, so we would be wise to avoid giving them reasons to book us. Silly yellow to pick up.

Gabriel gave the ref another reason just shy of the hour mark. He went through the back of Adams high up in midfield. Maybe was lucky not to be booked for the foul. However, he kicked the ball a few feet away to prevent a quick free-kick and Paul Tierney took his name. This was frustrating as the ref repeatedly ignored Southampton’s tactic of standing in front of the ball to prevent us taking quick freekicks. I do not understand why this is rarely penalised when it has exactly the same effect as kicking the ball away? Anyway, play went on and it was hardly a decisive moment, surely?

Our opponents had not shown anything in the second half. We were not excellent but we were on top and applying pressure. Things were looking much better than they had at half time.

However, this team just loves to shoot itself in the foot.

Gabriel again got tight to his man on the halfway line, this time tussling with Walcott. Had a foul been given against Theo for holding he could not have complained, he clearly had his arms around our defender first. However, no foul was given, so when the forward spun past the Brazilian and was hauled down the ref had no choice but to reach to his pocket. A deserved second yellow card in four minutes saw us down to ten men for the three hundred and ninety second time this season.

It was a rare moment of panic from a defender who has been one of the best players in our team this year. It is hard to overstate the impact it had on our chances of taking all three points. Almost immediately David Luiz returned, for the first time since his clash of heads with Raul Jimenez, in place of Eddie. The young striker had worked hard and got an assist yet still not looked quite as effective as we hope he will become. Danny Ings also had a quiet night, yet he might well be a player Eddie could watch closely to see how he might contribute more.

Willock came on for Ceballos, who had been tidy but no more, to bring some fresh legs into midfield and the option of a runner into the space vacated by Eddie. We lost our momentum as we reshuffled and the Saints began to take the initiative that we had so generously handed back to them. Nathan Redmond hit the bar with a half-volley after a ball from the busy Romeu, whose performance showed some steel as well as some class. If we had conceded then it would have been a tough pill to swallow.

We were on the back foot but not under the cosh. Djenepo came on for a lively cameo but his final ball was lacking. Cedric replaced Pepe. Time ticked on. We did not look like scoring but, as we entered the last five minutes, fans across the globe knew how painful it would be if we conceded, even as we hoped against reason that there might be just one more chance for us to snatch a winner.

Holding ran through Djenepo in our box but the forward did not have control of the ball and despite a moment of fear, based on the vagaries of the refs, it was rightly ignored. Kieran Tierney then felt he got an elbow across the chest/face but I cannot comment as no replay was shown. From the resultant freekick Saka whipped in a dangerous ball which Rob Holding headed brilliantly at goal. It was only a half-chance but he rose wonderfully and was desperately unlucky to see his effort cannon back off the corner of bar and post. It was the last real action of the game as we held on for a point, stopping the run of home losses, but once again leaving us to rue what might have been if we had played the entire match with eleven men?

In the aftermath it is worth noting that generally the players worked hard but lacked confidence a little. It is only to be expected given our form. Holding is really growing. He takes responsibility in defence and I like his progress. Gabriel made a couple of costly decisions today. He must learn from them. Pepe is a hugely improved player from the one we signed in terms of his work-rate, positional discipline and desire to contribute when we are out of possession. Yet he needs confidence with the ball at his feet. He is a great talent who needs to start dribbling at players like he expects to go past them. Auba is a top player. His class is undoubted. As a captain he is fantastic around the club and leads by example on the pitch but if he is struggling with his own form then it can be hard to see his in-game leadership. We do need more of that.

We just need three points so badly right now. Hopefully Auba will keep scoring. Hopefully we can build on this point. All things considered we did well to hold on to a draw. But we simply have to stop making our own lives so difficult.

So the results before we kicked off were all good for The Arsenal. No, not at the top of the table, where our interest had cooled since match day 2, but below us, where Sheffield United, WBA and Brighton had all lost and Fulham had only drawn.  As the game kicked off, we were seven points clear of the relegation zone, with our opponents Burnley in that 18^th spot, on 6 points from 11 games. A win would take us to the dizzy heights of 14^th, ten points clear of relegation. What is this defeatism, I hear those who have only known Arsenal since Mr Wenger took over? Well, settle down to real life I say, with decades of bitter experience behind me. Forget the heady days of titles, and top four. We are in a relegation scrap and on a miserable run of matches, especially at home. 

To the groans of the online faithful, virtually the same team that tamely lost the NLD was chosen to take the field, with only a forced change of Elneny for Partey and both the current bête noires of Willian and Xhaka playing.

Leno, Bellerin, Holding, Gabriel, Tierney, Xhaka, Elneny, Saka, Willian, Laca, Auba

Bench: Runarrson, Ceballos, AMN, Mustafi, Willock, Eddie, ESR

The mood in the bar was dark when this line up was announced. Everybody wanted to support our Basque manager. But there was a feeling that this dismal run had to end. Your correspondent was sadly unsuccessful in the ballot so took station in front of the TV with only a glass of malt to sustain him and Countryman Junior for company. 

The first ten minutes were tedious. Same old, same old, with little or no attempt to take a man on or make progressive passes. After 10 minutes, a good move down the left saw the ball fall to Laca, around the penalty spot, but he miskicked. The ensuing corner saw Willian blaze over. Up the other end, Brady found Wood totally unmarked in yards of space in our area. Fortunately he made a complete Horlicks of it when he should have scored.

Finally after 20 minutes we had a decent attempt on goal. After a passing exchange, Saka found Rob completely unmarked on the penalty spot. Sadly, his header was just over the bar. 30 seconds later, Auba had a chance to put Saka in, but a badly misdirected pass saw the Burnley defender sweep the ball away. After 27 minutes, a lovely flowing move saw Laca slipped in but Pope (the best English keeper?) blocked well with his legs. Laca surely had to do better.

Half an hour gone and, apart from the Wood chance, Leno had not had to stir from the deck chair where he was reading a novel and drinking a cup of tea. Brady was yellow carded for being a prat after KT3 was fouled, but really much ado about nothing. 

Half time. Same old, same old. To think I’m missing the Strictly results for this dross.

HT Arsenal 0-0 Burnley

 No changes at half time. Much chuntering about Groundhog day in the bar and it’s difficult to disagree.

On 50 minutes a lovely piece of play from KT3 on the left wing saw Auba in space. He drove to the byline then cut the ball back to KT3 who hit a sharp shot but straight at Pope. We were knocking on the door. Immediately, Auba ran through midfield, found Willian on the right, who found Saka who again fired the ball straight at Pope. Tierney left his opposing right back for dead and put in a great cross. Again it came to naught. 

Then came the turning point of the game. Right in the middle of our best spell of the match, Xhaka chopped down McNeil. He was carded for the foul (rightly) but then behaved stupidly, as VAR showed that he then went for the throat, with his hands, of a Burnley player. A richly deserved red card and utterly, utterly stupid. Get this man out of my club! There was no need to take that action, he was at fault in the first place. Surely, surely, enough is enough.

As a result, Laca came off and Dani came on. But our whole momentum was killed. Once more we had to play 10 v 11 as a result of the total stupidity of a senior player. When will we learn?

On 70 minutes, Burnley took off the big man, Chris Wood and brought on Vjadra. Hector was carded for a late challenge and misses the game against Southampton. On 72 minutes, Elneney put his hands in the face of Tarskowski.  It should have been a red card, but was generously given as a yellow. But we were punished immediately. The retaken corner was swung in and Auba steered it into his own net, our first goal conceded to a set piece this season. 

73 mins Arsenal 0-1 Burnley (Auba og)

The 2000 strong crowd were silent and who could blame them? On 82 minutes, Eddie came on for the utterly useless Willian.

On 86 minutes, Saka picked up the ball on the right, stepped inside and fired a great shot, well saved by Pope (again).

FT Arsenal 0-1 Burnley

Desperate under achievers: Xhaka, Willian, Auba, Laca, Bellerin and Arteta. The only positive performances came from Saka and Tierney. Leno had nothing to do. Elneny did some good things but should have been sent off. Centre backs did OK.

These are desperate times. We all want Arteta to do well but it’s yet another awful Sunday night.

We’ll win again
Don’t know where
Don’t know when
But I know we’ll win again some sunny day!