The Arsenal were winning a
lack lustre game 2-0, which Fulham overturned to make 2-3. The final score 3-3
was probably a fair reflection of the merits of each teams performance and
added a point to our mediocre tally. Later the same day Manchester United were
losing 2-0 and they managed to turn things around making it a 2-3 victory to
maintain their position at the top of the league. These two games are a
microcosm of how things have changed in the standing of the top clubs that used
to battle it out for domestic supremacy.
The next fixture in the
League is a home game against the team currently sitting above us in the table
and that is all the game is (on paper): an opportunity to climb the table.
However, everyone knows that the game is an important fixture on a deeper level
as it is against a team who are obsessed with the Arsenal. With the negativity
currently swirling around the Emirates a defeat would increase the levels of
dissatisfaction that are on the increase to almost fever pitch. This escalation
of hostilities will have make no significant impact on the powers that be who
are comfortable with the financial side of things though.
Ironically a game against
Sp*rs at this moment in time, to an extent, represents a no win scenario. Victory will offer a
distraction from the realities of our current predicament. Defeat will be
accepted with resignation and a draw will seem like a defeat and therefore
viewed in the same manner.
This time around we are
facing another mid-table side in the quest for points. That’s it pure and
simple. Gone are the days of the Arsenal reiterating our superiority with a victory and laughing off a defeat because Sp*rs treated a victory over us as the be all and end all.
In criticising the Board and
the manager it is unfair to exclude the players from any negative analysis. I
believe that the quality of the squad is reasonable. Not great, reasonable.
Debate can be had as to how we arrived at the squad we now have, certainly
replacing quality with inferiority is a contributing factor, but the earlier
part of the season hinted that there were enough players who looked like they
were up for the fight.
As the season has progressed
there is a sense that the issue is a deeper one as far as player performance is
concerned. Players being played out of position is accepted when the team is
winning. Weird substitutions are tolerated when the team is triumphant.
Unfathomable selections are borne when the points are mounting up. These last
two weeks have given the impression that the group of players that Arsene
Wenger has assembled this season are an unhappy bunch. Fair enough, grins are
not compulsory, particularly when results are going badly but there is a sense
of defeatism amongst the boys. A glance at the bench during the Fulham game
told its own story.
The corresponding fixture
last year was something of a turning point in terms of our league position and
contained performances from the likes of Sagna and Walcott that were great
examples of playing for the supporters. There was still a feeling that the
Arsenal could achieve something after that victory, a sense that these sorts of
games meant something to the players. It was a response; an indication that the
team understood what it was all about.
This season can we say the
same? I’m not sure.
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so I said...