Morning all.
Today’s game is massive. It’s a game very few other than Arsenal fans think we can win. Actually, scrap that as I don’t think many Arsenal fans think we can win later, I know I don’t. No, that’s not me being negative it’s me not having had my head in the sand for the last few months because our football has mostly be pretty drab. However, if more drab football secures at least a point at The Etihad Stadium later today then I’ll take it.
Arsenal and City have played each other enough times to know what each is about. City will knock the ball around like a training session before trying to find that one killer pass into the box. They might lump the ball over our midfield to Haaland, hoping his power and pace will outdo William Saliba or Gabriel. Their wingers will be busy, as will the ghastly little player Silva.
Arsenal’s Adrian Clarke:
_Guardiola’s decision to switch from 4-1-3-2 to 4-2-3-1 in the Carabao Cup final was a smart call that unlocked City’s attacking excellence. Deploying Jeremy Doku wide on the left, with Antoine Semenyo hugging the opposite touchline, there has been greater width to their play, freeing up central pockets of space for No.10 Rayan Cherki and allowing full-backs Nico O’Reilly and Matheus Nunes to underlap._
_Cherki is the man in form, and given freedom to roam, the France international is almost impossible to man-mark, so we must close down his space as a collective. If you give Cherki space to look up and play a pass, he will hurt you, while he has also made six assists from ball carries._
_Guardiola’s four-man defensive screen when we tried to play out from the back at Wembley was a ploy we never really got to grips with, so faster restarts, playing through the first line of defence, or clipping passes over them could be fruitful. Passes over the top and counters tend to be the most effective ways to open City up, who squeeze up and commit bodies forward, so we need to be fast and efficient on transitions._
_We cannot go gung-ho, but sharp, progressive passes will cause them issues. Out of possession, we must track runners with the utmost concentration, and where possible, disrupt City’s flow by getting tight to them inside our half._
At Wembley, we started well but sadly, fizzled away rather rapidly. The second half was awful. Toothless, unimaginative and quite frankly, underwhelming. Pretty much sums up the second half of our season really, domestically anyway.
As Clarke said, we never got to grips with Guardiola’s change of approach. I wonder if today it’ll be Mikel Arteta who tries something different, something which will bamboozle City in similar fashion. I’m not holding my breath.
I wouldn’t mind seeing Christian Norgaard start today with his role being to just sit in front of the back four, Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi ahead of him with Ebe Eze and two of Gabriel Martinelli, Kai Havertz, Viktor Gyokeres or Noni Madueke either side of him. Oh, or Gabriel Jesus. Yes, similar to what City did at Wembley against us.
Press from the front every time and they will pass their way through and round us, quickly too so our players could get caught out so why not drop off of them for a change. Let them try and find a way through a front bank of four.
But of course, it’s easy to make suggestions from the comfort of my settee, it’s what Arteta does which matters and he said we’re going for the win… As if he’d say anything else.
Whatever his approach, I hope it works.
Equally as important as Arteta’s tactics is the attitude of the players. I want to see all of them, not just a select few, fight for every ball, be clinical with the passing, no faffing around at the back and if chances come, be ruthless.
Catch up in the comments.