₦airaland Forum

BlueRayDick:
Which emergency are u talking about? Lewis-Skelly was handed a starting shirt Vs Bayern Munich when Arteta could've started Calafiori or Hincapie ahead of him if truly it's because of the new guy's he's getting benched as you claim. Guess what? He gave a very woeful performance.

That was not the only match he had his chance but messed up this season.

If you expect the manager to keep fielding him because sentiments or as a reward for his performance last season, then that means you are really not ready for this team to win something.

As for me, I don't care if any young or old player starts or gets benched, the koko is for the team to win something. I don't have any sentimental attachment to players who would jump ship anytime. I have learnt from some of our players that we fans supported through tough times in their career only for them to dump the club when it matters most.

Last season. That's when he became a regular no? When we had issues at that LB didn't he come on and give a great account of himself? Before Mosquera and Hincapie arrived now. I refuse to accept he did b2b woeful performance that earned him this benching. Anything else can fly sha.

My ish is a manager should know who to call on in such situation rather than running the gauntlet to emptiness. Why will i be comfortable with emptiness when a player on the bench has the potential to change esp if i do some pitch side talking to him? Abi manager no get that kine influence ni? Mourinho? Klopp? Conte? Del Bosque?


Unless he didn't know that Pep has finished him tactically before the goals came sha. Same stance applies to Norgaard so it won't look like a MLS bias.

iamoyindamola:
He's toooooooo rigid don't sugar coat it

💯😆😆😆
He nees to ease up. Maybe the EPL title will change that. An eased up Arteta should be scary na. Abi? 😆

BlueRayDick:
We can blame Arteta for anything, but I will never blame him for not using Lewsi-Skelly . That boy was abysmal in the matches he was given chance and no serious manager challenging for titles will think of introducing him in key matches where everything is at stake.

All those talks about the youngest anti-press player is past glory bro. He has been out of sorts this season and do not inspire any confidence at all from my own point of view. Maybe when we clinch the title and don't have much at stake any longer I will support call for him to get more playing time sha. He has been unserious

I don't agree he fell because he was bad. He got bad cos manager didn't see need again. He trusted him during emergencies and the kid stole the limelight but now that he got new guys, he suddenly got bad? That's too convenient. Add the fact that Zubi is causing this very Arteta problems but he still trusts him the next game and if what you're saying is even true in the first place, then we're seeing double standard at play.

Sadly that's not the case. For me i disagree that's the reason for his bench warming.

Everton wan carry Ben White. Brentford too.

Alvarez enroute. These guys wan leave Lookman for Atletico sha(Griezmann and Alvarez)

E remain who wan carry Trossard, GJ, Kai and Odegaard if possible. If we see 80m from them in total, no lele.


Even if these 3 arrive, we go still need a Ramsey-esque midfielder

Fkforyou:
Just thought about yesterday’s game again.

I believe Norgaard coming on for Zubi would have unlocked man city.

He has that ability to give that overhead pass or that forward transition passes unlike Zubi.

I can count how many times Zubi kept giving backwards passes instead of that line breaking passes.

The Norgaard buy is vexing me. I can't fathom a manager getting a b2b player of the season from bis own club and refusing to let him have at least 30% game time of total games available to play. What then is the buy for? I no even wan hear the Sporting Director vs Manager preference talk sef. E don dey ground, USE HIM.

How manager go dey see wetin Zubi dey play b2b in big games and still trust him. For context, he has benched players that did crap in one big 6 game in the past. A final here and 90mins is no enough to factor in such a midfielder that can tackle and make sweet through passes in a jiffy?

He had Nwaneri and Norgaard he no wan use unless injury but he suddenly wants Max but can't trust the kid? Same for MLS. No be 19yo Kanu dey tear top defenders that year?

Spy360:
See the bolded. You're spot on. Just that it must not be MLS. What about Calafiori?

Arteta's choice of Hincapie over him was his conservative nature and wanting to defend instead of attack.

Knowing that he doesn't have a creative presence like Eze and Odegaard, what he needed to do was to add more players with the tendency of attacking more. Like MLS or Calafiori.

Its even for the middle role i wanted MLS sef. That guy is the youngest anti-press player I've seen in a long while. Manager is afraid to risk but he is rigid to lose. That's insanity. The kid at LB or inverting or breaking the 424 of man city would have defied everything a manager thinks he knows on paper. That is one beauty of the game. No be everything on paper dey absolute. Na him ruin the final. Na him still tell the players to watch City trophy parade again. He don overthink sotey he no fit comot the players doing rubbish.


The managers of the lowest class would simply overload the final third and force city back temporarily at least. If they wan do 424, then push 5 and let the gk load to any red shirt. Afterall he had Kai and Gyokores upfront. But this man refused to just risk it the right way. He owes his tough players an apology IMO.

Man probably doesn't see what Cala and MLS brings down from that left zone.


For me, aside the terrible display from certain key players, this one lies at Arteta's rigidness in a final. Abi baba tldey reason say 2nd leg dey ni?

We getting there sha.

BlueRayDick:
I didn't even need to watch the replay, I saw it in real time that he took so long to hit the ball. I told my friends who came around whom we watched the match together that Eze in that same position will hit it once with his left foot despite being a right footer and the ball will end at the back of the net.

That chance just looked like Havertz went back to his default mode when he first joined Arsenal. If he had scored that goal, we would've destabilized city and take full control of the game. It would've been similar to that 5-1 we trashed them last season when we banked on early goal to take control of the game.

I just want to believe Arteta will make the boys watch that yesterday's clip over and over again so everyone can see their mess-up and learn from it.

Unpopular opinion: Ben White is washed and should not start even in the absence of Timber. I think Mosquera should play right back pending when Timber comes back. I prefer Mosquera's defensive input on that right to whatever White thinks he's doing in that position.

White
Trossard
GJ
Kai


Quick replacements for these guys.


Odegaard
Zubimendi
Saka


These 3 should get like for like competition worthy of entering the XI straight up. And that's me being considerate at this point.



Gyokores repositioned himself 3 times to nod in a cross for those misses but the blatant selfishness of Kai and Saka made such chance become one that will haunt the duo going forward.

Arteta starting Kai thinking he's gonna replicate his form vs City in that UCL final or what. Lol. Even that goal sef na mistake. I keep saying it Since he retrned he's only benefit is winning aerial duels for us but the nodded pass na to opponents.

Im calm sha. 7games to go for EPL. I believe they're hungry enough to wrap that up early.

Just watched a slow Mo of Kai's miss.

Guy took too many steps allowing Traff the advantage. Plus the shot was lame. The rebound by Saka

These two forgot the keeper was low and didn't roof the net or take a cross to two shirts ready to nod in

Skimpledawg:
I've always maintained that Madueke is ahead of Saka for now forget all that Star-boy shiiits. Madueke would have scored atleast 2 goals with the balls Saka joked around with.

This is not even about Saka v Noni. Both are crap currently. Add Trossard. There's a way we felt once ball reach Saka leg. Now, as ball reach leg, your mind is already on the "he'll lose it now now" or "nothing worth is going to come out from this except a back pass"

Our wings are no longer functional. The RW has joined the LW.

Shegzdave:
That guy was horrible today
Them don squeeze the guy finish coupled with injury

All the corner kicks he walked up to take, he was limping abi na swag? Hope no be me see am

Gabzy1:
I had to go back and rewatch Saka highlight compilations. I genuinely feel sad for him. He has lost a yard of pace with the hamstring injury he had. It was easy for him to beat his marker before the injury and his decision making was great.
I don't know if there is anything he can do during the summer to regain the pace he has lost.
Otherwise I am afraid that the starboy we knew is no longer HIM

The loss of 2020 where he sat and tweeted that Arsenal deserves better. Now 6years later and he's not yet 25 but has raked in caps a 28yo baller is supposed to have. Injuries these guys had and were never the same,😓😓😓

iamoyindamola:
Have said it several times saka will go the way of rashford because of burnout and that's what we are seeing
An obsessed manager that will play him even in dead rubber matches
Omo I dan tire

His case is making me regret this Nwaneri loan. We should just be grateful we have Dowman and Nwaneri. Make we get Kvaratskheila in summer and let the LW come alive and consistent.


The Burnout is here!!! My my!!

The approach was foolish sha. The tendedcy to suddenly go cautious vs a Man City that Dem Madrid and Bodo Glimt dey whip? If he was without ideas, all he needed to do was approach it the way these two ucl nightmares of Pep did it. Or simply watch clips pf Wenger's Wembley style and upgrade it. The pairing of Kai and Gyokores no dey ever sweet without Eze. Eze can play well with 1 or the other. Sadly he couldn't play today. But why didn't he then try MLS then. I know many might say this or that but that guy no send City he's direct and loves to make their backline quiver. They were too comfy and when possesion turned, there was nobody to run and press. Kai can't Gyokores needs Eze or Odegaard if na out of possession situation.


Las las, this was self destruct today. City are hibernating but the quick succession of goals was something else. Kepa went on like Nepa. 😥😥

25/28 last available trophies out of reach is what many others will sack a manager for. The 3/28 were community shields.


I pray he comes out next game and finish this campaign well. For his sake he better.

mostob:
Bro.. Saka has regressed since he came back from injury. There was a time I jokingly asked if Tolani abi wetin be her name did something to him.
They said the board et al view him as the face of the club. Whatever that means.. .

Yeah. You said so. I even noted it too. Lol. Benson don touch boy he no wan gree pass between men again 😣
My own is the rush to always renew his contract or modify it.

mostob:
For real?
But when Madueke started against Forest, una tall say the coach dey sabotage the team

This is not about even Madueke or about who is better. He's just not it. Im comfortable to say it right here and right now. Guy played like he doesn't know this was a final. Others did as they didn't know as well, but this is who we have our captain armband on. Heck, we queried Odegaard for abysmal display and poor leadership. Same applies here. No immunity. Sincerely.

Saka doesn't deserve a starting spot going forward


I said it.

Schemerkhiz:
Let’s see how it goes first ohh.

At least it will reveal their potential for WHOEVER loves what they see if home no wan gree engage.

Kepa might start over Raya. He's good enough to start of he was trusted to handle it all from the very 1st cup game. Jas he set a wrong foot so far sonce he started? Can't remember.

Las las, anyone Arteta trusts. Timber amd Eze are definitely starting based on training pics from yesterday and today

mostob:
Why all these legends dey famz us na

Someone said it's italy coming to learn work. Others said they came to watch Calafiori. Low-key dem like Arsenal style but as bad boys of Serie A, na abomination to praise English rivals

Schemerkhiz:
One thing you must know is that those top Ex-internationals who are coaches won’t come over to stay in Nigeria 🇳🇬 just because of the Head Coaching job..

One reason Florence Omagbemi wasn’t reappointed before Thomas Dennerby took the job back then.

Better working condition issue or just lack of foresight?

Schemerkhiz:
Nigeria also have top Foreign Born female Coaches with UEFA Pro License and the highest level of coaching Badges from Europe & America..

[1•] Sade Ayinde is the Head Coach of the University at Albany (UAlbany) Women's Soccer program, leading a Division I team of college girls. She was named the 14th head coach in the program's history in February 2022, bringing extensive experience as a player and coach.

[2•] Helen Nkwocha UEFA License Coach

She became the first female coach of a top-flight men's team after taking charge of Tvoroyrar Boltfelag in Faroe Islands 🇫🇴. Nkwocha coached in England, China.

Is there a way you can do a thread and include all the female coaches home and abroad, with heavy CV to take over Nigeria female teams in the future? I've lost count. They're too much. It will be FrontPage worthy.

PDPGuy:
The dates for this year’s U-17 World Cup, to be hosted by Morocco, are now confirmed ✅

Hope this was not one of the cards morocco use sway caf to gift rob trophy for them sha.

PDPGuy:
Also….

Fifa for just start with cadet teams. The reason being that it will increase the pool of coaches that will go on to swarm the senior stage one day.

For senior level, na who sabi pass suppose dey regardless of gender. Waldrum had a female assistant and i think they booted her.

For me, i sha want the ex-ints that are qualified to handle this team. We have 5 qualified ones. Th other issue is i expect them to also get jobs in other african countries as well. But.....


Las las, i no like like this idea for senior team level. The inference is counterproductive.

mostob:
cook bro... Cook

I saw this earlier today and laughed
This was in August/September

Till May sha. We got this!! We do.

BlueRayDick:
Nobody is saying Partey is not a good player , but so also is Zubimedi not mediocre . They are both great players , just that Zubi is more reliable because he’s always available when we need him.

Simple !

When you start invoking nostalgia to say “ Partey and Eze for cook wetin no good “ in a season that Zubi’s availability has kept us going , then one needs to point it out that u are overhyping him beyond what he did for us on the pitch . We are talking about actual performance and not potential bro .

We don’t deal on “ What could’ve been” here , we
talk based on what we saw on the pitch with our naked eyes.

I never said Zubi is mediocre. I just said Partey's shoes are big for him to fill so far. You brought the overhype talk which i found hilarious. Cmon!! I didn't even take Zubis error seriously cos i felt it was a one time thing. But the misplaced passes and ball watching in b2b games has made me frowning, especially vs the top 6.

You'll have to allow me cos it is a norm in football to imagine the what ifs. This one is no different. The past few seasons has been complaints about recruitment and squad depth and so it is not a terrible idea to imagine what two players might have cooked. It is normal.

germaphobe:
currently i think the only thing zubi has over partey is availability. He has gone so soft than earlier in the campaign. But we will be alright.

You get it. I think many are confusing his availability as reliability. Two different things entirely. The only excuse is it's his 1st season, but Partey arrived and began work straight up. Another difference between them. I cut him some slack but i no go dey here and see person dey do like Partey's last season naim dem go kon use summarize his overall contribution for Arteta since he arrived.

We need him even more organized than early on cos we've entered the serious phase now, especially this UCL.

BlueRayDick:
You guys overhype Partey and I don’t think he did enough for Arsenal to deserve such .

Agreed he’s a quality player who handles the midfield role well , but He was almost always injured when the team needs him most . He is similar to Chelsea’s Reece James whom the fans agree is a good player but his injury woes would not allow the club enjoy him to the fullest .

If Arsenal had kept Partey this season , there’s no 100% assurance he would stay fit long enough like Zubimendi has done . Zubi enjoyed a very good first half of the season that kept our title hopes alive and I will give him that credit . He’s not enjoyed much flawless performance in the second half of the season which may be due to fatigue but I remember 2023 season Partey made some mistakes too that affected us in the latter part of the season ( I think one of such matches was the Southampton match that Walcott scored ) .

I don’t like the idea of saying “ Partey and Eze for cook wetin no good for our rivals “ as if Partey didn’t play with quality players when he was with us and we ended up not winning the league . It gives vibe of overhyping trust me .

Let’s just acknowledge the contribution of the players to where we currently are .

Overhype!!??

Guy, Even those hatewatching testify. What exactly do you mean by overhype? My my!!!

So your logic now is that because we didn't win the league, his quality is in doubt and those praising him or preferring him are OVERHYPING him?? 😭😭😭🤦🏽‍♂️

Should i mention extremely quality players that never won the title with Arsenal that will walk straight into Arteta's team since he took over, or even his current team??

Overhype and Partey in same sentence is impossible!! Lol

Conclusion: he's not an upgrade to Partey!! He gets overwhelmed easy compared to Partey, especially in big games.

Whatever you feel, no lele about that. Sha no go talk this one to rival fans. Discussion go just be like na dem be d gunners instead of you.

germaphobe:
Earlier in the season my most impressive summer signing was Zubimendi, man gave his all and played so fuccking good I never missed Partey. Now, he looks average but still gets it done.
Hincapie always showed he's a raw diamond and now he's up and steady at the back.
Madueke,I believed it was a good deal for someone who's coming in as a back up, and even though he's been off and on, I still appreciate his game.
Mosquera is a beauty to watch and still has a lot to go from.
Norgaard has impressed me with the few minutes he's got, I wonder why he still doesn't get enough pkay time.
Eze is finally getting it together. Last two games has shown a great change in his game ,I wish to see more from him cus I know it's there.
Gyokeres to be honest, I didn't expect so much from him, but the hype around us needing a traditional 9 made the hopes so high. Now he ain't even scoring the type of goals everyone expected of him, nor turning up in games like the media and fans made it look like he would. I still wish he scores important goals for us. Aside from the two goals he have on Everton, he hasn't scored a winner or a game changing goal(i might be wrong tho). I feel like his first season is just mirror symmetry to kai's first season. But then kai scored more game changing goals.
Ps: Kai is still my favourite most not loved Arsenal player.

Let me do this.

Some of us saw the boldened early on. Me in particular have a track record here for early detection despite backlash. Iamoyin also detected it. We know he's his own player but Partey shoes are giant shoes. Without that court case and regular injuries, Partey and Eze for cook wetin no good for rivals. For now, manager don finally accept say Zubi no be am. He didn't want to until now. He still has much to contribute this season sha💯

Arteta setting up Gyokores to score the way the scored at sporting, against Sporting. That will be deja vu. Lol.

BlueRayDick:
Eze was injured , they needed a player who can play in midfield to replace him so Kai had to come on .

The if Eze didn’t get injured , Kai would’ve replaced Gyokeres as expected

Sure. Just that baba no do anything.

Where's Fred sef. Caicedont debate is over
Sanchez comaparism don taya dem
World champion chop 8-2. They shamelessly decided to cause themselves more pain by watching the beauty of Arsenal football 🥱😆😆😆😆😆


If na dem get Rice na Balon d'Or shout we for don dey hear by now with all the Lampard regen every market day. Nobody in that their backline better pass a half fit Tomiyasu or Kiwior. Infact put Partey for RB sef, e slgo still defend better pass those carpintaaahs dem gather

The MLS sub as i dreamed of happened. Guy was so thrilled to come soil his neat jersey. He's been waiting for it. That's a good sign from coachie. He'll get more minutes. I didn't understand the Kai sub sha. Esp with Gyo still on.

Commentator: bayer are not playing bad at all. It's just that Arsenal are just too good for them, back to front.