₦airaland Forum

OkpaNsukkaisBae:
Arteta have successfully turned Arsenal to Rugby Football Club. Too sad. He's giving Stoke City set piece vibes.

They will say you are just jealous because your team can't play like Stoke City.

BlueRayDick:
You didn't speak to any of the facts in my post; instead you chose to double down on insisting we rely heavily on corners without you having any data to back it up.

Sorry I can't be arguing with you over your assumption that is not the real picture of things. Because tell me how crossing the ball into the box suddenly translates to wanting corner kicks at all cost 🤦‍♂️.

The media has done a number of you guys to believe what is not a fact and you have decided to die on that hill.

Of the tradional top teams (Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool, Manchester United and Chelsea) in the league, the stats shows you have the least percent of open play goals and the highest percentage of goals scored from set-pieces.

What was funny yesterday was seeing Trossard attempting a cross everytime when we all know that Trossard is a player that will rather cut back to his stronger foot...Imagine attempting a cross at every chance when you have Jesus up against Maguire...

everton4life:
Omo, that match is an eyesore. Upon everything, Girona still score dying minute goal Na the fans wey dey buy tickets to watch that sacrilege of a match I dey pity pass.

I noticed his utterly defensive style when Greenwood was on loan there. For Greenwood to have done well they tells you he is a special talent...

That Bordelas makes Mourinho and Simeone look like coaches who play ultra-attacking football...

Ibime:
This is like counterball in my days. When you play corner, you line up all the counters in one line at an angle from the backpost so that it will hit one counter and go in.

Arteta na counterball manager

You just reminded me of counters and those corners where you have to pack your players in the box, to increase your chances of scoring.

everton4life:
Jose Bordalas might just be the most haramic and disgusting coach I've ever seen to manage a team. Which kain satanic football Getafe dey play like this

That man is the most defensive-minded coach in the world...I have known him and his Getafe team for some time now.

See the Dibling that Southampton wanted to scam us with...

engrelvis:
My problem is Carrick riding on wave of new manager bounce? Amorim has already structured all players to be defensively minded n discipline .lt was there to see yesterday.If Carrick is really good tactically it will show as more matches are being play.Presently besides Dalot,Yoro we r not too bad so I didn't really understand what u mean " if we continue with these crops of guys" . Personally is only that midfield we need to strengthen.

Which useless Amorim? You forget so easily.

BlueRayDick:
This post of yours is not based on fact, but solely based on fallacy that has been pushed by the media against arsenal this season.

1. As of 16th January 2026, when Sky sports did an analysis of goals set piece goals scored in the EPL thus far, Arsenal had only scored 14 set piece goals out of total 40 goals scored in the EPL. Man Utd followed closely with 13 set piece goals out of 36 goals in the EPL. If you look through the attached graph you will see other teams with the respective number of set piece goals they've scored in the EPL as at 16th January 2026 when the data was compiled.

How do you arrive at the conclusion that Arteta set up arsenal to heavily rely on set-piece goals when data available didn't show a gulf between arsenal and other teams as far as set piece goals is concerned.

2. If your personal opinion about set-piece goals not being sustainable is to be believed, then we can all agree that the other teams like Man utd, Newcastle, Chelsea and Aston Villa will also witness sharp decline in their goal returns going forward abi no be so?

3. Anybody who read your post up there would think maybe 70% of Arsenal's goals this season was scored through set-piece. Data available showed that as of yesterday, we've only scored just 35% of our goals through set piece which is not even far off from what Teams like Chelsea and Man Utd that don't have media focus on them tally as well.

https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11095/13493842/arsenal-and-liverpool-rank-as-best-and-worst-from-set-pieces-as-premier-league-clubs-embrace-trend-between-the-lines


Yesterday match was one of our worst, but we still had shots on target that were not set piece related. I agree we have a creativity issue that needs to be sorted out ASAP, but let's not make it seem like what Arsenal has been doing all season is score corners and park the bus afterwards.

You are fixated on goals scored just like the article you referenced but that's not my point. I am rather focused on the teams attempt to win a corner kick and the seeming belief that it is more or less a chance to score. You might disagree but from the body language of the Arsenal players, coaching staff and fans, corner kicks and other set-piece opportunities have most of you expecting a goal.

Arsenal was not a team renowned for its reliance on set-pieces to create chances or score goals...That Arsenal is hardly seen these days, set-pieces should be an option and not the primary source of chance creation. Look at the number of times Trossard and Saka attempted a cross when Jesus was the CF. They did that to win corners. It is evident if you leave your biases aside. Not even Barcelona with Lewandowski or City attempt so many pointless crosses.

Whilst at it, point to the number of chances you guys had that were not set-piece related.

TrebleChamp:
The board can renew his interim Manager contract...

Any manager not named Enrique, Flick, Pep should not get more than a 2-year contract, so that in any case where we have to terminate the contract, we don't break the bank to do it. If Carrick does well, let them start him on a one or two-year contract...

TrebleChamp:
True, every game now is a difficult game for all teams. Some are fighting for the title, some for CL, Europa and Conference League, some are fight to escape relegation.
Unless Shitty improve from their current poor form and Assnal of course enter their bottlejob mode...

It is always in the month of February that they capitulate...February is around the corner, watch it happen again...

First, it was all fun and games, now it isn't anymore. For the quality Arsenal possesses in their ranks, taking the ball to the wings every time in the hope of winning a corner is the stuff mid-table and bottom-placed teams are known for. Arteta's very compact system, which is heavily reliant on set-pieces, is not sustainable in the long term; when it fails, Arsenal struggles...

Looking at the quality in Arsenal's rank, I expect Arsenal to play a very expansive game with slick passing and combination play...I still maintain the Arsenal team of 3 seasons ago was the best, the team attacked with purpose and speed leaving the opposition limited time to organize their defence. Now, it is aimless passing at the back and when they go forward, they try to win a corner more than create a scoring chance. Maybe it has sunk into the players' heads that the best way to create a scoring chance is through set-pieces...

KingAzubuike:
These ones beat city and arsenal and are already dreaming of winning league.

Wonders shall never end

It is Wolves and Burnley that we need to beat before we start being optimistic?

LostMyZeal:
When will Amorim get his flowers for transforming this team? Or we're just gonna pretend like the man did nothing to this team. What about his acquisitions? At this point it'd be delusion to deny the man's imprints on the team.

Yeah, he played most of the players out of position but the team is in this position now because the man got us there for someone else to build on his legacy.

I hold no brief for the man, but this is Amorim's legacy. Never forget that even as you're overjoyed.
It's always good to beat the two teams we've beaten so far, but just like Carrick is not carried away, nobody should be about this team cos these players are still suspects.

If not for the blunders and the needless draws, we would have been contenders even and that's because of one man. There's also the possibility of the players rebelling against his Iron hand approach, but he formed a team that was frustrating to play against.

DO AWAY WITH SENTIMENTS AND GIVE WHAT BELONGS TO CEASAR TO CEASAR.

I can't say for sure whether the new signings were all his preferred choices, as I don't think he knew much about Mbeumo and Cunha. Sesko was not his choice; he preferred Gyokeres. I think Dorgu was his signing, and that's about it... Where I'll give him credit is that he tried to restore discipline to the team and didn't hesitate to rein in the egos of players who thought they were bigger than the team.

He assembled a good team, but he didn't know how best to utilise their strengths, so I am not sure that his team was frustrating to play against, as you opined.

TrebleChamp:
Assnal is winning the EPL this season, they remain the most consistent team. Manshitty and Villa are not so consistent, unless Pep team suddenly hit good form...

Arsenal are away at Elland Road next. It will be a very tough game for them.

CrystalTiger:
Woke up, went to Twitter and saw a crazy stat..

After match day 23 in the 95/96 season, 30yrs ago, we were 12pts behind Newcastle and ended up winning the league 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣..
Now we're 12pts behind Assnal after match day 23 in the 25/26 season 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣..

Carrick, what do you have for me?? Joy and imagination wn injure me...Fit pay my workers double salary today sef..

It's Villa or City I am looking at. If we keep up the momentum, the top 3 is achievable.

afrodoc2:
Different meaning ? I no understand.

No vex baba I was just stressing the need for quality coaching.

I don’t know what the future holds for Carrick but his coaching crew seems to be better than the previous 2 that we had.

Baba no vex. Let’s all celebrate this change in fortunes. We deserve am.

I know it's early days but if Carrick delivers a top 3-4 finish, he will be in contention to get the job permanently...

It will be interesting to see how he approaches the games against mid-table and bottom-placed teams.

The way Maguire bullied Jesus first and then Gabriel was very pleasing...

Martinez was on another level. If he were playing for any other team, I'd have hated him. See the knock he gave to Jesus for his troubles...😂 😂 😂

Roland17:
FK Milan. This Haram no be here oh!

This style of play is not sustainable. Roma have been all over Milan...

afrodoc2:
Of course, i am right.

Fletcher changed from 3-4-3 and we still got kicked out of the FA Cup. It is because he is not as good a coach as Carrick. At least not yet.

That was me agreeing with your submission...You don dey read different meaning already.

afrodoc2:
You think we would have done better with a change of formation from 3-4-3 to 4-3-3 with a poor manager who has only ever coached 3-4-3 in his life and even the 3-4-3 he can't coach it properly.

He is not a good coach. Even if we had been better after a change as you say it would have been marginal, maybe enough for him to last 2-3 years here that would have been a waste. It is good he stuck to his formation and got kicked out relatively early.

You're right.

afrodoc2:
It is not only because of 3-4-3. Amorim was just not a very good coach. ETH did not play 3-4-3 and we had gaps all over the place.

Carrick looks like an incredible organizer. I have not seen any defensive gaps in these 2 games. We appointed a bad manager in Amorim to replace a bad manager in ETH. No formation change could have saved either of them.

I am certain we would have fared a lot better. We did have the personnel especially in midfield and the wingback positions to play 3-4-3. With 3 men in the midfield, our CBs are not exposed to so much pressure.

afrodoc2:
He seems to be a good organizer. Now the challenge changes for the next few games. We need to show that we can break down teams that play low blocks.

I think Cunha will be drafted in against the weaker teams.

We pressed as a cohesive unit. This is about the first time I have watched us play and remain in sync as a team for the duration of a game. The 3-4-3 formation invites pressure, this is what some of us were shouting since. See how well we pressed and kept the ball in midfield because we had that one extra body...

With 3 men in midfield, the defence is better protected but some of you don't get this...

Look how we limited Arsenal through the middle and on the wings, we had Amad and Dorgu doubling up on their wingers.

If you go back to Carrick's two games as interim manager in his first stint, you'll understand that he has it in him...

I still maintain that Amorim's 3-4-3 formation was responsible for 60% or more of our problems...

That fraud overloaded our team with CBs and left us short in midfield.

This is the link to Arsenal thread is case you can't find your way there.

https://www.nairaland.com/810639/arsenal-fans-thread-finally-reborn/4094#138257917

This thread should be renamed...This is the Manchester United thread annexe...

Roland17 and BlueRayDick, go and get the drinks, the owners of the thread are here...

eph12:
If Amorim is still in Manchester, they should lock him up asap

Hmmm

My combined Arsenal and Manchester United 11...

Arizoner:
pass me that weed you are puffing. It must be the original

You deserve better beatings...

Please guys, hold on...

Ref should end the game.