Many Gooners are hurting and one image that made me hurt more than most was the sight of a couple of Gooners exiting the Emirates after the match. They had like me stayed until the stadium had almost emptied. Paralysed by disbelief at what we had just witnessed. The father looked glum and spoke very little, the anguish etched across his brow. Beside him, a proud junior Gunner, almost in tears, every article of clothing was official Arsenal merchandise. In his hand he clutched a brand new Football in the Arsenal Armoury plastic carrier. His small head covered by his Arsenal woolly hat, he walked in silence his head almost bowed. The misery in his eyes made me feel sick. This is what it is about. The dreams of young followers, dashed. The pain of defeat so obvious for all to see except by the players responsible. For if they had seen these supporters, they would have realised the impact of their poor performance has on ordinary fans who give their last penny to follow the club that they love. This is the real story of the defeat.
This is not so much a rant but an expression of despair and frustration. After our second loss at The Home of Football, I think that it is not unreasonable to try and understand the reasons why. However my concern is not so much about the fact of the defeat, but the MANNER of the defeat. We were beaten yes, but did we play with hunger and desire for 90 minutes? NO Were we unlucky, to an extent yes. Theo, and Cesc Fabregas hit the bar, Krul saved an almost sensational strike from Nasri. Fabianski was rightly criticised for the first goal, but after then, he had a reasonable game. How he responds to this latest mistake will decide our fate before Christmas. The solution? Clone Jack Wilshere and play six of them on the park… We would win every game. He has courage, he has desire, he never stops running despite receiving punishment from opposing players. In the absence of such a fix, I suggest that someone makes the players submit themselves for analysis of their performance. No enough pressure on the ball, Players appear happy to concede possession and not work to get it back. Not enough pace in the pass, so slow sideways passing movements which allow the opponents to regroup, means lost opportunities.
Yet I have lost count with the number of blogs that I have written the same things about the manner of our playing style. Despite very high wages for their age, this group of players continue to be inconsistent. Several players were unrecognisable, and gave below par performances, including our captain Cesc Fabregas. This is not the end however. Happily Chelsea lost to Liverpool, but we should have been in a position to capitalise on this result. The season has a number of twist and turns to come. So there is no need to panic. No need to get rid of managers or players. What we need however is a sign that the players can collectively bounce back from this loss. Going to play Wolverhampton Wanderers is now a bigger challenge than ever before, as that proud team will scent blood, and as a hungry pack of wolves they will hunt us down and go for the jugular. What we don’t need is a rehash of the same old excuses. Losing hurts and much more than the players realise…
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