Another massive weekend of BARCLAYS Premier League football, and I cannot wait for the drama to unfold.
Places to watch for drama?
Man City annihilating Ipswich Town and the media bloodbath after it happens
Liverpool away at Brentford - could be bad for Iraola after a midweek CL game
Chelsea away at Everton - worth noting they’ve not had a Champions League game this week, so not a nailed-on defeat, but Everton are in VERY good form.
United away at Leeds… not going to be a fun afternoon for a team that has no midfield runners
Arsenal are playing 15th-placed Nottingham Forest. See my handy PDF for the details.
The key number for me is that they’ve scored 5 goals off 10 xG. The finishing is diabolical, but the truth is that the 15th place in the league is a bit of a mirage. They aren’t shite; the luck is just not rolling with them, and we need to be VERY careful when it comes to fan complacency. Honestly, I just can’t have you rolling into this game with a lavender latte and a treat-yourself danish pastry… it’s a ‘still water’ kind of Sunday. Nothing fancy, I’m talking meal deal stuff. A Poland Spring in a crispy plastic bottle if you’re in New York. Nothing more grand than a lukewarm Volvic if you’re in England. Let’s not get sloppy.
We haven’t scored at the City Ground in the Premier League since 2024. Our last two results there have been 0-0 draws. Not good. Also worth remembering that Oliver Glasner doesn’t really like Arsenal that much. He’s an older manager in the Premier League, I’d imagine he probably hates that a younger guy like Arteta landed the plum job right out the gate, while he’s been slumming it… so he puts a bit of Emery into these games.
There are some decisions to be made for this game, though I am sure that who is number 9 for this game is not in doubt. Viktor will be back on the bench, despite Mikel giving him layups in the presser.
These are moments in a player's career, or in a season, I would say, and we are trying to help him as much as possible. He has some very good moments; three or four times he's been in front of goal with no keeper, and the ball should arrive to him, and it doesn't. Then maybe they are talking about something else, but these are the strikers. It's very small margins - scoring or not scoring changes the narrative. We should know the perception of how much he can help the team.
Despite my general disdain for his talents, we do need him to stop the skulking and start doing striker things. Exiting the Lille game with no shots and no chances created is outrageously diabolical. All the talk of his intangibles, like having elite mental strength, are starting to look as off as his touch right now. He’s not the first choice; he needs to adapt to that reality and become an incredible backup.
The most interesting pick for Arsenal will be on the left. Does he want to give Noni another go, despite being visibly irked by his performance on the right against Lille? Or will he reward the extremely lovely goal from Eze with another start? My gut says Noni’s pace might be favorable to balance out the right. He was also EXCELLENT against Leeds.
It’s also going to be interesting to see how he rolls in midfield. Myles, I suspect, will go back next to Rice, with Calafiori going to left back after he was rested in the week. Myles needs to be watered as a young talent, and the jury is very much out on whether Bruno is a 3-games-a-week kind of midfielder, because Newcastle certainly weren’t a three-games-a-week team in the Champions League.
Arsenal are open-play goal-scoring monsters this season.
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OptaJoe@OptaJoe20 - Arsenal have scored 20 of their 21 goals in open play in all competitions this season, the highest ratio of any Premier League side (95%). Modified. 9:23 AM · Oct 14, 2026 · 678K Views315 Replies · 3.24K Reposts · 16.3K Likes](https://x.com/OptaJoe/status/2110300551372296638?s=20)
This via Sam Dean.
Arteta's Arsenal have a new trademark goal. Set pieces are out... and flowing passing moves are in. So far this season, AFC have already scored five goals after a sequence of 10 passes (36% of all goals). Last season, it was just 10%. Is Wengerball back?!
What are we reading into this? Arsenal are fun to watch again. We’re rubbish at set pieces. We’re good at passing teams to death. All the melts who said Arteta couldn’t do good football were wrong… again.
What changed? Maybe the handbrake came off. Arteta just managed the course last year, played dull football, just to get the win. This season also has a different flavor because we have a proper 9, a focused Odegaard, a fitter Saka, and extra depth in midfield. Better players are at the manager’s disposal, and it would seem the football is now a little more 2023.
What I like about this sort of change is it shows the manager is not resting on the past. He is always changing. Forcing other clubs to shift how they think about us. Clearly, we can still be a dangerous set-piece team, but now we can play on the ground and dance through deep blocks. We’re a menace. It must be so hard to plan for what we’re bringing to each game. I love it.
Ok, that does take me to the end of the blog, but… fear not, I have a members-only Before The Whistle for you. A fun one with Johnny. Get involved.