Arsenal’s performance against Sunderland on Saturday mirrored their dismal display at the San Siro last Wednesday. No longer in the FA Cup, the Gunners will certainly finish the season without a trophy.
The 2-0 defeat at the Stadium of Light greatly resembled the 4-0 disaster against AC Milan. And it wasn’t just the terrible playing surfaces. Arsene Wenger’s side showed an alarmingly low rate of urgency in both games. Other troubling signs from the two matches include (but are not limited to) our poor defensive positioning; lack of width; and the creation of too few goalscoring opportunities.
While the FA Cup clash at Sunderland was supposed to act as a ‘bounce back’ game, it turned out to be a continuation of that dreadful night at the San Siro.
One of the more disheartening factors of the last week has been the sluggish pace of Arsenal’s ball movement. We are accustomed to watching passes zip to-and-fro as the opponent’s defenders are left mesmerized. Unfortunately, much of that beautiful football has ceased to exist this season, but before the Milan match, the ball movement was still fairly quick.
As a result of this slowdown, the width of Arsene Wenger’s side has been close to non-existent. When Arsenal have been at their best this season, their wide players have been getting in behind the opposition’s back four. Recently, the wingers have been drifting inside far too much, which has made life easy for the defenders of Milan and Sunderland.
Part of the problem is that we have an overabundance of players who are best suited to play in the middle. Arshavin, Rosicky, and Benayoun definitely feel more comfortable in a central position. Arsene Wenger has said that he envisions Theo Walcott as a striker, and the Englishman has spoken of his wish to play up top as well. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has even been called a future centre-midfielder by Wenger.
On the subject of Chamberlain, some Arsenal supporters have been too lenient when discussing his part in Sunderland’s second goal. The Black Cats set off on a counter-attack after the Ox gave the ball away. To his credit, Chamberlain didn’t drop his head. Instead, he chased after the play and knocked the ball into the net for the own goal. For scoring the own goal, he is unlucky, but for giving possession away cheaply, he is guilty.
Oxlade-Chamberlain was one of the lucky players in that he escaped unharmed from the array of ditches at the Stadium of Light. Not all of the Gunners were so fortunate. Arsene Wenger indicated during his post-match press conference that Francis Coquelin, Aaron Ramsey, and Sebastien Squillaci all sustained injuries that will keep them out of the North London derby. Counting Mertesacker, we have now lost four players to that sorry combination of grass, mud, and dirt.
Arsene Wenger stopped short of blaming all of the failures of the previous seven days on the pitches: “I think it was a committed performance, we gave everything we had left but three big games in one week [Sunderland in the league last week, Milan last Wednesday and the FA Cup tie] were too much.
“We fought hard but the pitch was heavy and we were a bit unlucky. We gave absolutely everything that was left in our legs. Sunderland left us the ball but we didn’t create a lot due to fantastic defending from Sunderland. They defended very well and scored with their first shot. Then we had to chase the game and take every risk and got caught on the break for the second goal.” (Source: The Guardian)
Wenger was more complimentary to his team than he was on Wednesday night, although the performance on Saturday looked far from “committed” to my eyes. The mood at the press conference quickly turned sour after Wenger was asked about the criticisms made by some former players:
“People talk and criticise and analyse and destroy and it’s important we face all that and show internal strength and resilience. At the moment I get many lessons from many people. It’s very difficult tonight to say where it leaves us and what we will do. We have to take criticism on board, stay together and face the critics.” (Source: The Guardian)
The mood at the press conference turned from sour to ugly when a reporter asked Wenger about whether he would consider stepping down: ”I think it’s better we finish this press conference now.” (Source: The Guardian)
In the aftermath of our elimination from the FA Cup, many have gone for Arsene Wenger’s throat. And they are well within their rights to do so, but maybe they should sned their anger in multiple directions. Some fans are placing the blame solely on the manager, solely on the players, or solely on the board. In reality, the pie of blame should be cut in several slices and served to several different parties.
Arsene has become the easy target because he is quite simply the face of our club. Fewer people, though still a significant amount, are directing their angst at the board. Even fewer are pointing the finger at the players. In my opinion, the players should receive a more equal portion of the blame because they have appeared unmotivated in the pervious two matches. Sure, part of the manager’s job is to inspire his players, but these footballers should show some life simply in the name of pride. If not for pride, then certainly for their massive wages.
The seven-year trophy drought does not bother me nearly as much as the dyer performances we have witnessed this season. The overall situation has to improve. Each time we play like we have in the last two games, I nudge a bit closer towards the anti-Wenger brigade. Fortunately for Arsene, I’m not there yet.
