CAN ARSENAL BE TITLE RACE DOMINANT TODAY?
I didNOT think I was going to be here this morning writing another preview… but my word, the Premier League threw up too much sexiness yesterday for me to stay silent.
We had the ideal Saturday, one that ran counter to my (shitty) predictions, because both Liverpool and Manchester City blew their chance to make life very sweaty for Arsenal today.
Liverpool played a Dyche-quenched Nottingham Forest. They are back to their deep-block DNA; the master of shithousery has them scuzzing again, and they put on an outrageously defiant performance at Anfield. They left with 3 points, a clean sheet, and three goals.
Liverpool cannot complain, though Slot tried to. They did not take their chances and they shipped 15 shots, 7 finding the target. That is abysmal stuff at the supposed fortress that is Anfield. They were shite. Forest were more aggressive in the duels, they were braver going forward, and they defended like their lives depended on a clean sheet.
Salah is just not ever going to be the player he was last season, he is done. Virgil has already conceded the season. Konate has been very poor all year and he did not shower himself in glory again yesterday. The 400 million they spent in the summer does not look very good. Their full back issues are still glaring, Alexander Isak looks awful in a team that plays three times a week and has to deal with deep blocks on the regular. Slot also looks lost, like he knows he has been sussed and he does not have the answers. I honestly do not know how you go from Premier League champions, to a 400 million summer, to looking like you still need to spend 400 million to get to the level again.
They are now 11th in the league. They have lost 6 games. They are below United and Everton could go above them if they beat United on Monday. I did find it amusing that Slot was saying all the luck is going against them…
“And like I said, lately, it is almost constantly that we miss our chances and the ones go in that we concede, but that will never continue throughout the whole season.”
This is a very generous assessment, especially after a start that was a rampage of flukey/undeserved last-minute goals. I do not watch Liverpool and think they are being dealt a duff hand. They have just been bang average all season. Long may it continue. It will be interesting to see who switches off now they are most likely done this season.
Then we have Manchester City. No coach is loved more in the Premier League than Eddie Howe. Proper English geezer, managing a big club, playing the game the way the pundit class likes to see it played: rough af (unless Arsenal are doing it - then it’s like holding your fork like a dagger at Claridges). Carragher wrote the weirdest PR piece for him before the City game, suggesting Newcastle need to look after their newly anointed emperor.
But I will eat this one. It’s not humble pie if you ask for another slice.
Newcastle fucked up Manchester City. Kind of. They delivered the St. James Park playbook. They pressed hard. Disrupted play. Blocked off shot angles. Roughhoused. Tried to absorb the attacking talent of City and mostly did a good job, even though they conceded a lot of xG (2.49). Where City were weak was in defence. They just aren't as buttoned-up as they used to be. Newcastle had a crack at them and two moments of Harvey Barnes magic saw them make their 2.24 xG count. I thought Newcastle were well worth their win and I think City losing that sort of game shows you that teams do not fear them like they used to. Arsenal haven’t conceded more than 1.5 xG in a game since Man United - since then, we haven’t conceded more than 1 xG in a single game. It’s really hard to get at Arsenal… no so much any other team in the league at the moment.
Anyway, a great win for Eddie, King of The North.
So, the challenge ahead is clear. Get a win against Spurs at home and give December a real fat boost and make the Chelsea game next week a huge 90 minutes.
To put the numbers in context:
Beat Spurs and we go 6 points clear at the top.
Beat Chelsea next Sunday and we go 9 points clear heading into our 6 games in December.
That is huge. Did I need to tell you that? I did? Superb.
Now, do not make me be a Debbie Downer here (was she a real person? Has anyone checked if she’s ok?). But we have to talk about things that have happened in the past, because that is what makes us who we are as fans… massive, pathetic crybabies.
These types of weekends have tended to not go our way. The narrative of yesteryear would be:
“Three favorites for Premier League all lose.”
The emotion takes over the fans and the dressing room. Someone gets sent off. We get two injuries inside the opening 45 minutes. We concede a sloppy set piece because Gabriel is not there.
We have been here. But there comes a point in a project where things have to be different. This is one of those moments. A test of who we are. As fans we are all scared, but this squad? I do not think they are like us. This Arsenal team feels inevitable this season. It is our time to shine. To jump into the pressure cooker and smile. We have five years of scar tissue and emotional trauma. You either succumb to the things that have hurt you, or you overcome them and enter your monster phase.
This week is poised in a way we did not expect. This is not mission-critical by any means. If we draw or theother thing, we still have more bites at the apple. But this is statement week. This is “oh fuck, are Arsenal running away with it.”
The best thing about the phase we are entering is if we escape the week in good shape, all our players are returning. Attack is about to get firepower. Midfield is getting added creativity. These are huge boosts that will be more beneficial if we are in good shape.
Arteta will have a much better bench this afternoon. My suspicion is the starting 11 will be very close to the one we rolled with against Sunderland. I am not sure we will have better options that are fit enough, but we will have “last 20” guys who will be far more capable than what we had 3 weeks ago.
This North London Derby means everything to Arsenal fans, but I do not want our players to care about it that way. I want them to see this as just another team to bury. I want emotion, but channeled smartly. We want magic moments, but I also want some of that dreary control that snuffs out teams.
This is a big moment for Arteta. A huge moment for the boys. Win today and things are going to start looking very serious for Arsenal.
How fucking exciting is that? Very. Did you need me to tell you that? You did? Amazing. Thanks for reading.
Make sure you tune in for the On The Whistle after the game. Get yourself a membership to Le Grove as well. It is good value and there is a nice deal going right now.
Podcast## ON THE WHISTLE | SPURS (H) | 💥 NORTH LONDON DERBY | EARLY BIRD
Pedro
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3:33 AM
ON THE WHISTLE | SPURS (H) | 💥 NORTH LONDON DERBY | EARLY BIRD
It’s a massive North London Derby Day On The Whistle. Click the video after the game and come join the comments. Win, lose, or draw… we’ll be ready to get deep into the mixer to analyse whatever has just happened.
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