MASSIVE WEEKEND AND THE CHANCE TO GO TOP AGAIN
‘All in, let’s go for it.’
The message from Arteta was clear. We all knew what it was going to be. He has framed this as a season reset. I’ve framed this as a best of 5 because I’ve been Americanised intonot believing that the winner of a league is the absolute champion… oh no, we like to turn a league into a cup over here.
Is this the framing we’d hoped for 2 months ago? Probably not. But we were all a little toxic about the idea of the quad and I think far too many of us had fallen in love with the idea that we could romp the Premier League.
Maybe, just maybe, the league would have been simpler had we gotten more out of our forwards… but the simple truth, for me, is we haven’t had our best options available, together, in form… all season long. That’s not an excuse, the manager is culpable for how he trains and rotates players… he’s also culpable for who we signed in the summer to be the bang bang goal machines. But that chatter is for the end of the season regardless of outcome.
The big question: Will this weekend see us get closer to our best assortment of attackers?
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HandofArsenal@HandofArsenal
Arsenal duo Bukayo Saka and Calafiori have been included in the squad for the Newcastle fixture tomorrow. Remains to be seen if they make the official matchday team sheet.
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Bukayo Saka steps into the ultimate quad, which for me, is Eze on the left, Kai in the middle, Saka on the right, with Martin Odegaard marauding as a controlling 10.
If we play like we did at the weekend, we will win the Premier League. We’re at the phase of the season when fatigue really shouldn’t be an excuse. Heading into this Newcastle game tomorrow, it absolutely should not be in the conversation. We’ve had a week to rest key names, the sunshine has been out, and according to the manager, the energy and focus has been really good.
The same, that the energy raised, the belief raised, I think the clarity of what we have to do, it cannot be better. Five games to go, tomorrow, game one, all in. Let’s go for it.
No crazy rallying cries from the manager for this one — just calm focus on the players. At this point, it’s down to them to decide if they want to become immortal and push this season over the line.
My faith in this project has been restored. Arsenal have a more favourable four-week run than Man City, and I do not believe our foes up north have it in them to go 5 for 5 against a rotten group of clubs who know how to frustrate.
This is a late kick off, it’s under the lights, fans will have had time to get lagered up nicely… and Newcastle are weak. Very weak.
PIF are shifting their focus given all the geopolitical stuff that’s going on in the world, sports assets are going to take a hit.
They were given a HIDING in the Champions League, and haven’t recovered since.
They are 7 games without a win and they’ve lost their last 3 games in a row in the Premier League.
Their big dog players are all seeking moves away from the club… Gordon, Bruno, Livramento, and Tonali all have agents agitating.
They’re 14th in the league, safe, but nothing to play for…
That’s quite a desirable set of circumstances for the home team to be looking at. The last thing they’ll want to do is come down to Arsenal, sit in a fizzing atmosphere, and gut it out in a really hard game.
Talking of fizzing atmosphere, it needs to be that, just ask Bournemouth’s Tyler Adams.
“I think you can tell early on, when they are trying to play out from the back, that there was a sense of nervousness,” Adams told Men in Blazers.
“The thing was, the team was playing well. Arsenal in the first five, ten minutes played some of the best football they did in that game.
“You saw they were confident, but it just takes one little error, one little mistake, and the fans get a little bit nervous.
“That’s a difficult atmosphere to play in and thrive in when you are trying to chase a championship. Because we talk about them like they’re not sitting first in the table still. They are in complete control of everything.
“As an opposition, it’s the best thing to hear. When you’re playing an away game and all of a sudden it feels like the momentum is swinging, and it feels like a home game.
“At certain moments in the game I heard our fans celebrating or cheering and it was like: ‘why’s it so quiet in here?’
“They are trying to chase a title, we are trying to chase potentially finishing in a European position, but it feels like we’re playing for a little bit more in the circumstances. I think it can be really difficult when you are in an environment like that.”
American’s loved to say ‘do better’ in the early 2020s… this is that. How dare he. But, does he have a point?
I absolutely believe that the pro-pundit media works the same as propaganda outlets in certain countries… they work the media against people to depress the voter turnout. If you don’t think that part of the equation with ex-Liverpool and United players is to turn fans on their own teams, you’re out of your damn mind. They make you feel shitty about your team, despite all the key indicators suggesting you should maybe feel a bit better about where you are?
The home fans are going to be important. If it’s a gaspy afternoon full of moans and crossed arms, the game will be harder, it’s that simple.
The players have their role to play here as well, if they come out on fire, guess what… the fans will react to that. It’s usually pretty clear what type of Arsenal team is showing up after 5 minutes… the challenge for the home crowd is to support the players through nervy moments, not add to it. Easier said than done… but certainly easier to get in the mood if your diet is toxic positive publications and personalities.
Always remember, no one is going to reward you for premature pessimism…. unless you are taking money from a shady organization to be pessimistic to down Arsenal’s title hopes? Are you shilling for big pessimism? Is that you? I thought not…
Ok, that’s me done. We’ll be back tomorrow for a wonderful adventure! Check out the Before the Whistle with me and Johnny AND the midweek debrief! Soooooo much content. x
P.S. Get signed up and be READY for the members on the whistle tomorrow. x