The big Sunderland selection debate after Everton draw
Sunderland host Arsenal in the Premier League on Saturday evening.
Between 1694 and 1727, the Spanish-held city of Ceuta on the North African coast was besieged and blockaded by Moroccan forces to no avail. At 33 years, it is generally considered to be the longest successfully resisted siege in history. Admittedly, Arsenal have still got a fair way to go before they can hope to match those kind of numbers, but they are certainly well on their way.
Mikel Arteta’s men are now on an obstinate run of eight successive clean sheets in all competitions. They have not conceded a goal since September 28th, when Newcastle United had the gall to take an eventually overturned lead against them at St. James’ Park, and as things stand, they have shipped just three in their first 10 Premier League outings this season.
If they continue on their current parsimonious trajectory, they will end the campaign with a Goals Against tally of just 11 - or 11.4 if we’re feeling mathematically impossible - smashing the previous record of 15, held by Jose Mourinho’s unyielding Chelsea side of 2004/05.
And if you’re reading all of those chilling stats thinking, “Boy, I’d hate to be the team coming up against Arsenal at 5.30pm on Saturday afternoon!”, then I’ve got terrible news for you.
It is no longer accurate to argue that Sunderland have not faced anybody of any note so far this season. Ten games in, and they have beaten the likes of Chelsea, Brentford, and Nottingham Forest, as well as picking up spirited draws against the likes of Aston Villa and Crystal Palace. But whichever way you choose to slice it, the reality is that they are yet to test their mettle against a foe as stern as the Gunners.
In recent weeks, as their defence has held effortlessly firm and those around them have faltered, Arteta’s men have taken on the intimidating sheen of champions elect, even at this early stage of the season. And with that looming sense of inevitability comes a swift chaser of impending hopelessness. “How on earth”, the rest of the Premier League bemoans in unison, “are you supposed to score against Arsenal?”
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Speaking to Sky Sports News, pundit Jamie O’Hara summed the quandary up quite astutely. “It is becoming demoralising”, he said. “Teams can’t score, let alone get a shot on target. It’s amazing really, when I watch them as a team. They set up, they can play good football, they can attack - but their defensive attributes as a team are unbelievable. The way they celebrate keeping the ball out of their net or stopping crosses and getting to the edge of the box to stop a shot, it is amazing. Fair play to Arteta, he’s instilled that in them. He’s making it almost impossible for teams to score.”
There is no real hyperbole here either. Arsenal are on a historical streak of meanness, the likes of which they have not recorded since 1903. To put that in perspective, the Wright brothers only managed their first successful flight in December of that year, the Ford Motor Company had only just been founded, and scientists were still figuring out how to send radio broadcasts from the USA to England. The last time Arsenal were this good at keeping the ball out of their own net, they were still called Woolwich Arsenal.
The odds, then, are somewhat stacked against Sunderland this weekend. That’s not doom and gloom, it’s just the truth. Because in all honesty, I haven’t got a clue how they’re supposed to score against Arsenal on Saturday, and neither do you. Then again, nor did Oliver Glasner or Diego Simeone, or any of the other exorbitantly salaried professional footballing brains that they have left flummoxed and frustrated in their wake this past month or so. With that in mind, over to you, Regis Le Bris...
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