Mikel Arteta: Managerial Royalty

[Makingtrax]

We all have biases when it comes to the manager / players etc. I don't believe anyone's judging our present situation as a cold hearted observer, nor would I expect them too. We're all Arsenal fans with biases and that clouds our judgements and expectations.

When you boil it down, It's about winning football matches. No football match is won by underlying data or xG it's won by what actually happens on the pitch.

So yeah, the underlying data doesn't make great reading but until the point the actual on field results reflect that data I'm going to be happy we're doing pretty well.

I agree, but in the long term the underlying data nearly always matches the real data, even if it takes two seasons, unless there’s an improvement.

 

[MikelHadADream]

The bigger issue is the lack of use of our very finite resources. Even if Pepe is from the previous regime and we have enough evidence that Arteta has been on a mission to clear out most of those players, he should be made to try and extract the most use out of pepe until he is sold. I am very annoyed when I know that the club was penny pinching for almost a decade and missed out on so many good players to now see us spend heavily on a player who hasn't lived up to the weight of the price or been given the opportunities to showcase what he can do.

I personally don't hold the price tag against pepe but I do have an issue with the club buying someone so expensive and not using him. Especially when that purchase constrains us from acquiring other potentially beneficial players.

The lack of Europe is hurting us here. There are only so many games this season, and to be fair to Arteta he's tried to fit Saka/ESR/Ødegaard/Pepe all in the same team, we just lacked balance. Its hard to change a team, that's has a week of rest before games, that is also unbeaten in 10. I think we'll see Pepe more over the Christmas period, hopefully he will be of use.

 

[Fewtch]

xG though is a pretty good indicators of how effective the attacking football is. We're 9th for expected goals and 11th for actual goals scored. If our xG stays this way, it will catch up with us over 38 games. Hopefully it will improve.

This shouldn't be so controversial at this point, we all witnessed it with Emery. Even the gaffer knows when a winning/losing run is sustainable or not.

 

[Paperino]

A-M would've paid £70 for Maddison but not Van Dijk.

I actually tried to say that Mustafi was better than VVD based on stats back in the days. Not my finest moment here.

 

[Trilly]

Rawk was no longer funny once liverpool started to win.

Forgot that place existed, it’s hilarious because we actually used to laugh at them quite a bit.

How are they now? Guessing they just think Klopp and Salah are the best in the world? They’re probably even right.

 

[Trilly]

We've seen it all before. Unai went on a 22 unbeaten streak with poor underlying stats. If we had good football with the team creating chances but just not converting them, I'd jump on your train.

It all depends what kind of person you are. Fans whose emotions ran away with them by following their heart instead of their brains are what caused our 5 year decline to mid table by forcing a rapid change that the board hadn't planned for. A lesson some still haven't learnt.

Yeah I wish I could be like you @Blood on the Tracks but my response to pain/stress is to do what I can to prevent it from happening again. Refuse to get invested in any kind of top four/title race unless we are genuinely good enough to have a chance.

The last few years have absolutely destroyed any optimism left in me but I won’t need much to get on board. I don’t actually think asking for good underlying stats is a lot, it’s just really under scrutiny atm as people are weaponising/disregarding them to suit agendas.

 

[Rex Stone]

Yeah I wish I could be like you @Blood on the Tracks but my response to pain/stress is to do what I can to prevent it from happening again.

The last few years have absolutely destroyed any optimism left in me but I won’t need much to get on board. I don’t actually think asking for good underlying stats is a lot, it’s just really under scrutiny atm as people are weaponising/disregarding them to suit agendas.

This the sort of cringe stuff you see in the Notebook bro.

It’s just football. I’m Arteta in because we’re winning. When we lose it’s back to Arteta out again.

 

[Blood on the Tracks]

Yeah I wish I could be like you @Blood on the Tracks but my response to pain/stress is to do what I can to prevent it from happening again. Refuse to get invested in any kind of top four/title race unless we are genuinely good enough to have a chance.

The last few years have absolutely destroyed any optimism left in me but I won’t need much to get on board. I don’t actually think asking for good underlying stats is a lot, it’s just really under scrutiny atm as people are weaponising/disregarding them to suit agendas.

That's understandable.

For me I'm starting to be quite happy with the squad we're building through recruitment and the younger players cementing themselves. So either Arteta can carry on the decent form and push on or someone else will probably come in to get the best out of it.

Even though they're dicks I don't believe the ownership would be okay with another season of just treading water in 7th or 8th, particularly after the fairly sizeable money we spent last window.

I do think we're starting to build something squad wise. Maybe someone else will have to come on to get the best out of it though.

 

[boonthegoon]

Ahh the pepe debate again. Arteta did much more than emery did with him. Played him in left last season which seemed to work somewhat decently. Still its just not happening. You want to play him just for the sake of his price tag and break up the winning line up? Even Ødegaard who is this regime's signing has not been able to come back in to the line up. Even this season he tried to play a 433 with pepe also in the line up. But we sucked in those games and Pepe was just losing possession all the time.

 

[Kav]

Ahh the pepe debate again. Arteta did much more than emery did with him. Played him in left last season which seemed to work somewhat decently. Still its just not happening. You want to play him just for the sake of his price tag and break up the winning line up? Even Ødegaard who is this regime's signing has not been able to come back in to the line up. Even this season he tried to play a 433 with pepe also in the line up. But we sucked in those games and Pepe was just losing possession all the time.

I don’t think you understand what is being discussed. I am not saying to play any player just because of his fee. Meritocracy is what should always govern football. However this management team has not always relied on the principle of meritocracy. Last season for example Willian got many minutes ahead of Pepe even though Pepe contributed much more than Willian over the course of that season.

When you take the entirety of his time here he has not been a good investment. Now any big club would either use him or sell him and recoup/salvage its investment in the player. We have not been doing that.

My argument is that we can’t afford to waste money like City/Chelsea/Man U.

Right now he’s being out performed by two youngsters. If you don’t want him here let him go and use the money to invest in our midfield. God knows aside from Partey we are lacking good players there.

 

[boonthegoon]

I don’t think you understand what is being discussed. I am not saying to play any player just because of his fee. Meritocracy is what should always govern football. However this management team has not always relied on the principle of meritocracy. Last season for example Willian got many minutes ahead of Pepe even though Pepe contributed much more than Willian over the course of that season.

When you take the entirety of his time here he has not been a good investment. Now any big club would either use him or sell him and recoup/salvage its investment in the player. We have not been doing that.

My argument is that we can’t afford to waste money like City/Chelsea/Man U.

Right now he’s being out performed by two youngsters. If you don’t want him here let him go and use the money to invest in our midfield. God knows aside from Partey we are lacking good players there.

Agree with last season but this season it hasn't been like that. Meritocracy has been followed. Examples - both pepe and Ødegaard like I mentioned earlier.
We can't use him because we aren't in Europe. Yes we need to sell him asap but I don't know who will be ready to buy him though.

 

[drippin]

Right now he’s being out performed by two youngsters. If you don’t want him here let him go and use the money to invest in our midfield. God knows aside from Partey we are lacking good players there.

We will need a good winger if we sell Pepe. Martinelli hasn't shown enough after his injury for a club of Arsenal's size.

 

[Sanchez11]

When is his next presser, see if hes learnt anything!

 

[Barry]

The bigger issue is the lack of use of our very finite resources. Even if Pepe is from the previous regime and we have enough evidence that Arteta has been on a mission to clear out most of those players, he should be made to try and extract the most use out of pepe until he is sold. I am very annoyed when I know that the club was penny pinching for almost a decade and missed out on so many good players to now see us spend heavily on a player who hasn't lived up to the weight of the price or been given the opportunities to showcase what he can do.

I personally don't hold the price tag against pepe but I do have an issue with the club buying someone so expensive and not using him. Especially when that purchase constrains us from acquiring other potentially beneficial players.

Think that's a very reasonable point tbf

 

[Farzad]

Every second of Willian’s minutes last year were a waste of time Laca, Pepe, or ESR should be getting. I actually would of been vool firing Arteta end of last season just for his bizarre team selections and lineups.

 

[Farzad]

We will need a good winger if we sell Pepe. Martinelli hasn't shown enough after his injury for a club of Arsenal's size.

In fairness he has never been played the kid scored like 10 goals in a burst and then was never given a chance, ESR needs to play central we have good young side players in both Pepe and Martinelli who just need time. I still believe ESR best position is in the middle as furthest forward midfielder, he is the number 10 we need both literally and figuratively

 

[Blood on the Tracks]

I don’t think you understand what is being discussed. I am not saying to play any player just because of his fee. Meritocracy is what should always govern football. However this management team has not always relied on the principle of meritocracy. Last season for example Willian got many minutes ahead of Pepe even though Pepe contributed much more than Willian over the course of that season.

When you take the entirety of his time here he has not been a good investment. Now any big club would either use him or sell him and recoup/salvage its investment in the player. We have not been doing that.

My argument is that we can’t afford to waste money like City/Chelsea/Man U.

Right now he’s being out performed by two youngsters. If you don’t want him here let him go and use the money to invest in our midfield. God knows aside from Partey we are lacking good players there.

To me the fundamental issue with Pepe is that we should never have bought him. Not for 72m or 7.2m.

I'm not knocking the player himself or saying he's not a good footballer but he's never really fit into any system we've employed since he's been here and to be honest I don't think either Emery or Arteta have ever really fancied him.

There was clearly some disconnect between what Raul was getting up to in terms of signing players and what the manager wanted.

I think we didn't do ourselves any favours with signing Pepe, it was a bit of a waste of money and we've kind of wasted 3 years of a pretty talented players career.

For what it's worth I do think Arteta has tried with Pepe, it's just not working out currently. There's still plenty of the season to go though and he'll get another chance.

 

[drippin]

In fairness he has never been played the kid scored like 10 goals in a burst and then was never given a chance, ESR needs to play central we have good young side players in both Pepe and Martinelli who just need time. I still believe ESR best position is in the middle as furthest forward midfielder, he is the number 10 we need both literally and figuratively

ESR hasn't been very good in the middle yet. Surely he will later in his career when he gains more experience. He can be our LW playmaker.

 

[Riou]

"Kos-tafi"

...Mustafi dragged Kos down to his level, as soon as our fans started saying this.

 

[Sanchez11]

"Kos-tafi"

...Mustafi dragged Kos down to his level, as soon as our fans started saying this.

Nah Kos was on his last legs!