It did look like a better balance and we did the basic things right. But our consistency of recent has been questionable and it's something we need for CL qualification. United, City and Pool will go full throttle until the end. We have to play until the last game of the season.
Of course. Nothing less is acceptable. That is why we should NEVER give up. A couple of weeks ago everybody was saying Arsenal have blown top 4. Now we have a game in hand on City and two in hand on Liverpool and if we win them, could be level on points with them in 3rd.
It should be noted Theo scored again. Been a terrible Season but he's actually been very good for the most part. 18 goals in 31 games is a good return.
Not so impressive when you consider who he's scored against. He should be in his prime but he's mediocre.
This Season scored against Bayern, he scored against Liverpool, he scored against Chelsea, he scored against Manchester City.. When he is fit, Theo scores goals. May not be the most technically gifted player but he is an excellent finisher and his pace is ridiculous. I often think he would do even better in a side like Liverpools - we dont really make the most of his ability to catch teams on the break.
For those with BT Sport, documentary on David Rocastle and Ian Wright showing now. Didn't know they grew up on the same estate
The bloke can't get in a crap England squad. At 28 he should be a key player and be there with Sanchez dragging the rest into the top four with ease. Ten years into his career and what's he done, really? Yes he scored a few goals against decent sides but ten league goals is nothing to shout about, inflated by a few against Sutton, Lincoln and Ludgorets. He probably could have been the real deal but I don't think Wenger had it in him to do that.
Quite easy to be taken in when someone posts something like that without breaking down a players statistics. When you do then you'll know he hasn't had a particularly "good" season. He's only significantly made an impact a few occasions in the PL. Only front players that can claim to have had a good to very good season is Sanchez and Giroud. The rest have been average, that's why we're in the position we are in.
Unfortunately it highlights the lack of mental sense by the players sometimes. Henry or Wright would never have done that. They would have picked up the ball, ran for the touchline and gone hell for leather for victory. Different mindset, that's why we keep on collapsing mid-way in the season.
You can't really argue with his record but I don't think his all-round game is quite at the level you need. I think a lot of players go for self-promotion rather than what's best for the team nowadays. He probably just got caught up in the moment of getting a late equaliser, albeit in the ****iest way possible.
I agree, his record has been good for us but it's the mentality that is missing. But it's hard to single him out when so many of our players do it. This is where a hard line manager like Conte would whip our players into the right frame of mind. Wenger expects our players to do it automatically, but the days of the Adam's and Vieira's have gone, he just doesn't see it. It reminds me of the comment that Mourinho made about Shaw, "he used his body and my mind". Yes what he did was wrong bringing it up in public, but it shows you how players need to be babied sometimes, even to think for them. Wenger gives our players too much credit, he needs to tell it like it is sometimes!
I'm not convinced that it's Giroud, so much as the squad as a whole. Selfie culture, if you will. He's good enough for Arsenal, but probably not as a definite starter. Bring in an upgrade, use him in rotation and there's no complaints. He'd probably still hit double figures and it's very useful to have that in reserve.