EPL – Swansea vs Arsenal – 4:00pm - 15/01/12

[Mastadon]

it is quite funny to see how people go all out because we lost to swansea.
on another day, in fact, if we played them again today, we'd beat them qutie comfortably.

so why didn't we win in the first place, you might ask. we underestimated them.

many of you pointed out that we need new signings. sure we do, but you ask for it only because we lost to a newly promoted team?

money spent doesn't equal results. because, a team of lesser quality and logically less money spent beat us. so we don't have to spend money in order to beat sides. we have to spend money to cover for shortcomings like injuries or lack of depth, but not to compete, because our current crop of players is up there. especially with jack,sagna,santos,gibbs,jenks etc. returning and pingpong,lecoq,ryo,ox et.c coming through...

focus. that is what we lack. on our day we're unbeatable. but more often than not it is not our day. stop the wenger out parade every time we lose a game...start to think, and ask for a change constantly.

henry's help is pointing towards zero. useless loan. no addition to the squad whatsoever, he could've joined us as a coach instead and made way for a player signing that actually adds something to the team on the pitch.

What makes you think all this is a reaction to one result? People have been asking for new signings since the end of 07/08 it has f**k all to do with losing to a newly promoted side. Our results have been terrible since January last year and we have won nothing for 6 years. Why does everything have to be a knee jerk and not the cumulative effect of years of poor performances and decisions?

Try and look at the big picture, money spent doesnt guarantee success but it sure does improve your chances of success. On their day any of the top 6 teams could claim to be unbeatable but those days and few and far between for us because this team lacks quality and is just not good enough. And people on this board have been saying that for years, not just since yesterday.

 

[evoh_1]

Henry looked fine when he came on. He showed a very good turn of pace a few times, there was one occasion when he made up a yard on Swansea's left back over a short distance. He looked silky on the ball and clever with his movement.

You've taken reality in that post, Fabo, and ratcheted it up a couple of notches towards the suicidal.

It's easy to forget we had a team out on the pitch stripped of most of our best players. I'm as desperately disappointed as you all are, I was seething yesterday, and I'm still pissed off that we don't have a squad that can cope better with our injuries, and that we don't seem to be even trying to improve that this month, but that doesn't change the fact that Vermaelen, Sagna, Santos, Arteta and Wilshere would have made a huge difference to the outcome of the match. And that needs to be taken into account when calling us rubbish, poorly coached, or whatever else.

Are you deluded we were played off the park in pretty much every element by a team that just got promoted and came back from one nil down to go on and win the game 3-2 with ease. Pure speculation that we would have played better as we never have an entire squad fit as do most other teams but this team should have been able to go out and do the job especially with a goal advantage.

If you want to keep holding out form palyers that will be hitting the ground running when we have lost any chance of 4th place finish, champions league progession and FA cup then thats fine but they weren't there for a reason.

Wilshere played too much last season and got injured for 70% of this season.

Santos got injured in a nothing game and is out for one of the busiest points in the season.

both of these are due to mis-management and poor playing resources in the team.

 

[Kwaku]

There seems to be an inability to close out games especially after we score early. This problem has not just come about this season, but has been a problem for Arsenal for a number of years. Going a head that early against a Swansea team that has just gained promotion should end up in a victory, but only this Arsène Wenger side can mess it up.

 

[Jury]

Song is the most overrated player in our first team line up. Bar his occasional assist, his ability to hold off challenges, and his odd moment of physical dominance, he is always caught stranded in no-man's land.

Yeah I agree. Very inconsistent as well. Arteta has delivered a 7-10 in every game this season whilst Song is either brilliant or a sending off waiting to happen.

As Ive said for the last two years - Song looks great with space and no pressure when we're dictating the pace, but flounders when the balls's being move around quickly and the opposition's pressing in MF. The inevitable booking and a tightrope walk until the end unsues.

 

[redwhiteAustrian]

Could someone who's using Twitter confirm this shambolic piece of news I just read:

So apparently Aaron Ramsey has been receiving death threats on his twitter account!! I know he played awful today and did cost us two goals, but no need for death threats!

I pray to god no one can.

 

[ricky1985]

Henry looked fine when he came on. He showed a very good turn of pace a few times, there was one occasion when he made up a yard on Swansea's left back over a short distance. He looked silky on the ball and clever with his movement.

You've taken reality in that post, Fabo, and ratcheted it up a couple of notches towards the suicidal.

It's easy to forget we had a team out on the pitch stripped of most of our best players. I'm as desperately disappointed as you all are, I was seething yesterday, and I'm still pissed off that we don't have a squad that can cope better with our injuries, and that we don't seem to be even trying to improve that this month, but that doesn't change the fact that Vermaelen, Sagna, Santos, Arteta and Wilshere would have made a huge difference to the outcome of the match. And that needs to be taken into account when calling us rubbish, poorly coached, or whatever else.

Are you deluded we were played off the park in pretty much every element by a team that just got promoted and came back from one nil down to go on and win the game 3-2 with ease. Pure speculation that we would have played better as we never have an entire squad fit as do most other teams but this team should have been able to go out and do the job especially with a goal advantage.

If you want to keep holding out form palyers that will be hitting the ground running when we have lost any chance of 4th place finish, champions league progession and FA cup then thats fine but they weren't there for a reason.

Wilshere played too much last season and got injured for 70% of this season.

Santos got injured in a nothing game and is out for one of the busiest points in the season.

both of these are due to mis-management and poor playing resources in the team.

It's "pure speculation" that we would have played better with Sagna, Santos, Vermaelen, Arteta and Wilshere playing. Yeah, okay mate, pull the other one.

 

[ricky1985]

Could someone who's using Twitter confirm this shambolic piece of news I just read:

So apparently Aaron Ramsey has been receiving death threats on his twitter account!! I know he played awful today and did cost us two goals, but no need for death threats!

I pray to god no one can.

Yep, it is. Such pearls as "no wonder Gary Speed hung himself".

Disgusting, but typical of Twitter.

 

[outlaw_member]

The thing is though, our lack of spending and consequence lack of proper alternatives is what leads to so many players breaking down. We had no option besides Wilshere last season, Denilson doesn't count, which meant that we had to play him till he died, which he unsurprisingly did.

Sagna has been an ever present for us in recent seasons, partly because we were able to rest him for Eboue from time-to-time. This time we had Jenkinson who is vastly inferior, and as such, we couldn't rest Sagna, unless it was a cup competition in which mainly fringe players were going to play in, anyway.

Santos is another player who got injured, because we had no-one besides him that could feature. Gibbs as we all know is a crock, and our lack of investment in this area, forced us to play the Brazilian in an otherwise meaningless game.

Arteta is yet another who has had to play game-in game-out without the possibility of rest, because we have zero midfield backups to rotate him with. One of our backups was sent out on loan at a very bad time, whilst the other picked up an injury whilst covering another position.

Vermaelen is once again another example of a player who had to be rushed back due to our lack of options, and has then had to assume a physically demanding role, which he hasn't had to perform in, in over 2 years. Not only was it risking his full recovery, but we couldn't take it easy with him, due to, you've guessed it, a lack of alternatives.

No doubt, other ever present players like Koscielny, Szczesny and van Persie will get injured over the next year, and no doubt we'll be stating how we would be much better without them. Our lack of spending hurts us in more ways than one.

 

[evoh_1]

ricky we have barely had them play together so it is speculation that a team with them would have played any better, the team that we did bring should have been able to out perform swansea but seemd to think just being their was enough.

 

[evoh_1]

The thing is though, our lack of spending and consequence lack of proper alternatives is what leads to so many players breaking down. We had no option besides Wilshere last season, Denilson doesn't count, which meant that we had to play him till he died, which he unsurprisingly did.

Sagna has been an ever present for us in recent seasons, partly because we were able to rest him for Eboue from time-to-time. This time we had Jenkinson who is vastly inferior, and as such, we couldn't rest Sagna, unless it was a cup competition in which mainly fringe players were going to play in, anyway.

Santos is another player who got injured, because we had no-one besides him that could feature. Gibbs as we all know is a crock, and our lack of investment in this area, forced us to play the Brazilian in an otherwise meaningless game.

Arteta is yet another who has had to play game-in game-out without the possibility of rest, because we have zero midfield backups to rotate him with. One of our backups was sent out on loan at a very bad time, whilst the other picked up an injury whilst covering another position.

Vermaelen is once again another example of a player who had to be rushed back due to our lack of options, and has then had to assume a physically demanding role, which he hasn't had to perform in, in over 2 years. Not only was it risking his full recovery, but we couldn't take it easy with him, due to, you've guessed it, a lack of alternatives.

No doubt, other ever present players like Koscielny, Szczesny and van Persie will get injured over the next year, and no doubt we'll be stating how we would be much better without them. Our lack of spending hurts us in more ways than one.

Exactly we have stretched ourselves to breaking point and it is showing now in the results I can't see how selling eboue and clichy has been mediated my jenkinson and santos / gibbs.

 

[ricky1985]

ricky we have barely had them play together so it is speculation that a team with them would have played any better, the team that we did bring should have been able to out perform swansea but seemd to think just being their was enough.

I'm sorry mate, but it's not speculation.

Sagna, Vermaelen and Wilshere are among the very best players in the League in their positions. And Arteta and Santos are none too shabby either.

We had a team cobbled together out of rusty players, young players and players playing out of positions - that is fact, not speculation or opinion. It's disappointing that we couldn't go to Swansea and avoid embarrassing ourselves (regardless of the outcome, the performance was shambolic), but it doesn't help either when you're down to your 4th choice right back and 7th choice left back - things like that, whether you accept it or not - affect what actually happens on the field during the game, and can't be ignored as factors when analysing the match.

 

[redwhiteAustrian]

Could someone who's using Twitter confirm this shambolic piece of news I just read:

So apparently Aaron Ramsey has been receiving death threats on his twitter account!! I know he played awful today and did cost us two goals, but no need for death threats!

I pray to god no one can.

Yep, it is. Such pearls as "no wonder Gary Speed hung himself".

Disgusting, but typical of Twitter.

:shock:
I'm literally speechless now.

 

[DiamondGooner]

When I rewatched the highlights on match of the day one thing stuck out and that was whatever the faults were on both teams one major difference is that their wingers were better than ours.

Sinclair and Dyer owned Arshavin and Walcott on contribution and over all play.

Sadly once again the only time our wingers did anything good was down the middle highlighting once again square pegs in round holes.

If were gonna play 4-4-3 then we need wingers plain and simple.

I never thought I'd say it because I hate the system but seeing as though Wenger does not have the balls for 4-4-2 then we should play 4-4-1-1 and have a CF/CAM behind RVP, Walcott or Arshavin would be able to play there easily.

 

[DJ_Markstar]

Yup. 4-3-3 needs competent wingers. We have a poor African one and a young English one, a failed Russian one and an English striker playing badly as one.

Why not just go out and buy a proper winger? Sinclair would be a better natural fit for our system than any of the players we've used out wide this season.

 

[GDeep™]

Showing highlights of yesterdays game ahead of the City game, not pretty viewing ahead of the UTD game.

 

[redwhiteAustrian]

Someone else watching Fans Forum?

Cross is spot on with everything he's said so far.
Some "harsh" comments as well.

 

[DJ_Markstar]

I was for a bit because they turn off Arsenal Player when it's on. Why the hell do they do that?

 

[redwhiteAustrian]

Perhaps to drag your attention to the discussion.
Which is a quite interesting one tonight.

 

[Yaya]

Nope, haven't watched it. Could you summarize of what has been said?

 

[redwhiteAustrian]

It's still on, will do it later.