₦airaland Forum

One of the key methods of top managers is to have a standard eleven and let others be squad players. This may sound awkward because people want to see competition for places. But constant tweaking for the sake of competition affects team bonding which is more important for success than individual performance. This amongst others was the problem of Unai Emery.

My opinion and observation.

kokaneprodigy:
i’ve stated my gross with Guen, spending too much time on the ball thereby hampering the fast flow of attack, escorting the opponent instead of tackling, if he can up these significantly I don’t have problem with him starting.

With Xhaka gone, i’ll like Ljungberg to try Luiz in that role.

I will be thinking in that line too. May be Luiz can bring a lot of improvement in our midfield, the needed experience and leadership. A role Guen has been playing though immature.

Not like Luiz has been exceptional in his defensive role though.

Roland17:
Torreira was already bossing the game before Guen or anyone for that matter came in.

Yes. But he rested when Guen joined him.

Fkhalifa:
Bellerin, Holding, Tierney, Pepe and Xhaka all out of Liege. Xhaka concussed, will also miss City. Length of Tierney’s absence not yet clear, but he dislocated his shoulder at West Ham so could be lengthy. Bellerin & Pepe to be assessed ahead of City. Holding two weeks away.

A team of Martinez
Niles. Mustafi. Mavro. Kola
Guen. Willock
Smithrowe
Nelson. Saka
Laca

Should at the least get a draw.

Barring injuries, this game should be used to reinforce our confidence and newly discovered formation. Which means playing practically the same team that won West Ham. If I were Ljungberg I will quickly add one more win to my record.

kokaneprodigy:
how was Torreira more effective?

OK within the few mins he had, Torriera became less busy as Guen moves around more wanting the ball and easing the pressure. This is in comparison to Xhaka. Any way, if Guen isn't playing who should?

Jodera:
I would only have agreed if we're not safely qualified to the next round. I mean, this isn't knockout we're talking about, but last game of the group stage match were we need to lose 5-0 to be eliminated. If only the boys who are playing Europa league are shaky, maybe you'll have a point, but these boys brought us far here. Secondly, after today's match, no more EL till Feb, which means we'll totally focus on the league. Why expose our first eleven to injuries and fatigue for a course that will start properly February? The way you're talking, is as if top 4 is gone... It's just 7points, and this is not the time to start prioritizing El over the league. I mean it's way too early. Even mou that prioritized it for man utd then did that during the quarterfinals stages when they know top4 is long gone. Let's don't have this defeatist mindset that top4 isn't salvageable till wen we know and we're certain that it isn't. Putting all our hopes now on Europa that will start Feb is really poor planning that might backfire, and backfire badly. Me I still maintain o, it's better to lose liege (as long as it's not a very huge scoreline) and win/draw man city than vice versa. Rest our main guys and use our Europa squad.

I don't really get your point. Unless I am wrong, we need to win to top our group. That for me is important as we need to avoid stiff opposition.

Top 4 is still achievable by all means, but what we need to consider is the probability when compared with Europa.

Liverpool and City are destined for two spots already. Currently we have Leicester occupying second and they don't look like losing soon. That leaves us with Chelsea, Tottenham and United as traditional teams chasing fourth. Amongst which we are worse off. While is remains possible, it is herculean. The earlier we begin to consider Europa the better for us.

I am only being realistic.

kokaneprodigy:
Guen/Torreira can’t work. You will kill Torrera with work.

How?

Did you watch our last match and noticed how Torriera became more effective the moment Guen came in?

Jodera:
it's like you don't know we have Manchester city weekend ba. We're playing away to liege and you want us to use full squad against team wey we've 99.9% qualified from the group. Nah bro, I no gree that opinion.

They should use the normal guys that have been playing Europa(use lacazette for martinelli, since martinelli na senior team player now). The normal guys have been bringing good result, why change them now for an almost dead rubber match wen you even have Manchester city weekend. It doesn't make sense lailai

Of what value is our match against City compared to Liege?
Between each, which is more winnable?

Bros it makes a whole lot of sense. EL is our more probable route to CL next season, you don't want to battle opponents now that are direct competition. Not at this period when we are struggling.

We have two matches between now and weekend, we could win one easily and also lose one easily. Why not focus on the one we can easily win and make it certain. Rather than on the one we can't win and end up losing both.

Ljungberg will still be here if he wins Liege and loses to City. But if he loses to Liege, he may not be manager against City. Sense things.

Today's match is a must win for two reasons.
1. To strengthen the new confidence in the team after coming back to winning ways.
2. To win our group and avoid unnecessary challenges in the next round.

This therefore is not a time to keep experimenting. Ljungberg should play his best possible line up, while considering rest for those who are over loaded.

.................. Martinez ....................
AMN ..... Cham .. Luiz ......... Kola
...... Torriera .............. Guen .........
...................... Ozil ........................
Pepe ....... Lacazette .... Martinelli

Subs: Leno, Mavro, Willock, Saka, Auba


With Ceballos out, I sincerely hope Willock will grow up and give Ozil a fight.

I will love to see Lacazette with back to goal post and how that can be an improvement in our attack compared to having Auba.

With the RW up for grabs let Saka and Martinelli compete for it. As for Nelson, he can just go on loan if he is not serious about his career.

Most importantly, Ljungberg must stick to the double pivot formation that worked on Monday, he must allow the players master it overtime. With Xhaka in pains, let's try the future- Torriera/Guen.

raumdeuter:
Ferguson had the FA in his pockets and his rolex wristwatch gifts to the FA and Howard Webb ensured they continued to rig in his favor

The FA tried last year to stop City but couldnt that was why they were giving Salah penalties for obvious dives, overlooking Manes offsides

This year they just stepped up their bias

This is ridiculous. Unscrupulous. Fantastically incorrigible.

MrDojo:
Lol. I'm with you on this. Ancelotti has a CV that most coaches would envy, but I don't feel he is a good fit for us. He's not a known tactician, neither is he known for handling rebuilds not developing young players. He has good man management though, I'll give him that. But, how team needs more than a good man manager.

If you want to compare is other teams to us, his appointment, if it happens, won't fill me with joy. In fact, I believe we'll end up wasting another 18-24 months.

One thing I can't get over is the way, Arsenal handled Napoli home and Away last season.

I hope we go for a manager with a lot of potential to develop into the next Ancelotti/Pep/Klopp etc...


Another scenario I hope will not happen, is if Arsenal pass up the opportunity to appoint Arteta and he ends up being a pep regen in another club. I'm not going to lie, it will pain me gan.

Honestly, I dey suspect that Arteta guy. He looks quiet and unassuming, but exudes confidence and guile. No matter who we sign and how successful they may be, if that Arteta turn out to be a Pep....
I go vex.

So Ancelotti is now available. But I don't want him. I don't want a modern coach who will be hungry for success.

Akinbahm:
Bro, he should just leave my pretty club and give room for better people like Ndidi, Decoure or Partey

Tell your pretty club to sign those guys first...

BlueRayDick:
Bros, its obvious Ozil is washed out and on a decline, but Xhaka's case is inexcusable. He's been consistently dishing out woeful performances over time.

I don't think it is the manager's job to ensure Xhaka does not misplace passes like he did all tru the night yesterday. (Do u know the number of loose passes he did yesterday that nearly led to goals yesterday?)

I don't think it the manager needs to tell him to observe restraint rather than make rash tackles while he's defending against an opposing player in our 18 yard box (Do u know he almost gave out a penalty yesterday with his regular rash tackles?)

I've said it before, Xhaka has shown he can't play in the middle either as CM,DM, AM or any other M in the EPL. He can be easily dispossessed, doesn't provide enough cover for the back 4 and makes reckless decisions going into tackles.

Abeg Xhaka should pack and go

It was clearly not his day and I think our pattern of play doesn't suit him. You know certain players suit certain types of formations.

But there have been times when he has been decent. He is not a bad footballer that's for sure. He should just be let out.

BlueRayDick:
While I was happy seeing the boys bounce back in the second half of the game yesternight having falling behind in the first half, It is important Ljunberg work more on the Psyche of the players else they will make him Emery 2.0 version. I mean the first indicator of things not being right was Arsenal under Emery always conceding first and later fighting it out to either get a draw and some times win. Even when we played the few games unbeaten last season, almost the same thing happen. We were always chasing games instead of dictating the pace of the game from the first blow of the whistle.

I think he needs to find a way and psyche them up to get their Hustle on from the first minute. We should not be put in position to be chasing games always. You can't chase game against some teams, it won't work all the time. Take a look at City, they hustle you for the first 20 mins of the game. You only win city if you can withstand their pressure for the first 10-20minutes. They will so probe u till u fumble. That's the kind of hustle we should put on.

Ozil in the first half was just too casual, no urgency in his game. He only raised his game in the second half which leaves me wondering why he never did that in the first half. Xhaka has no future whatsoever as a Midfielder in a top club in EPL. If they will keep on using Sokratis at then back, then there should be a rule not to pass to him at the back, that man cannot play ball with his legs; he's unstable like power supply in Okokomaiko....

I won't subscribe to blaming the players for the team performance. None of our players are ordinarily bad. We have just not found a way to use them. Its the managers job to maximally utilise a player and move him on if he feels he is no longer useful. Just as Man Utd let Lukaku and Smalling go, see his they are doing now.

Xhaka may be terrible playing for us but he isn't a bad footballer, he just doesn't fit in. Same as Ozil etc. The Ozil situation which leaves us with a little regret for selling Iwobi.

As for Ozil, after the match yesterday, I began to wonder if the club have actually starting thinking of a replacement, one that is quite imminent.

BlueRayDick:
Martineli appreciation post

Its the vibe that he brings. That's why I said allow the younger players. The moment he got that goal, the whole team became rejuvenated. The vibe.

I think the double pivot did the trick on the defensive side.

Keep two midfielders in front of the defence, let them just stay there let the other front four do the attacking.

This is a typical Wenger-ish Arsenal. Play rubbish for 81mins then kill the game for 9mins with breathtaking attacking football.

Roland17:
Silent prayer gbu'o gi there!!!

Lol

BlueRayDick:
This team makes sense no be lie

Wow! This man has my thinking. Just seeing this now. Except for Socratis. Why this guy is still starting baffles me.

Fkhalifa:
Preferred team to face Westham from media and blogs in UK.

The Express
Leno, Bellerin, Holding, Luiz, Tierney; Xhaka, Guendouzi, Aubameyang, Ozil, Martinelli, Lacazette.

Evening Standard
Leno, Bellerin, Luiz, Holding, Tierney; Guendouzi, Xhaka; Pepe, Ozil, Aubameyang; Lacazette.

The Guardian
Leno, Bellerin, Luiz, Sokratis, Tierney; Torreira, Xhaka, Guendouzi, Pepe, Ozil, Aubameyang.

The Independent
Leno, Bellerin, Luiz, Holding, Tierney, Guendouzi, Xhaka; Pepe, Ozil, Aubameyang, Lacazette.

Red London
Leno, Bellerin, Chambers, Holding, Tierney, Guendouzi, Torreira, Xhaka, Pepe, Aubameyang, Martinelli.

Which is the best,?

None of the above.

Leno, Bellerin, Chambers, Luiz, Tierney, Xhaka, Torriera, Ozil, Pepe, Aubameyang, Martinelli.

I will like an all attacking formation. No need to be cautious. Let's win 5-3 if that's what it takes.

---------------------- Leno --------------------
Bellerin -- Cham-- Luiz -- Tierney
--------- Torriera --------- Xhaka -------
----------------------- Ozil --------------------
Pepe ------------- Auba ------- Martinelli

Sub's: Lacazette, Guendouzi, Saka

Fkhalifa:
You don't get it, who is the captain material after Cech and Kosc? There is none worthy to be the captain.
Xhaka ended in tears and Auba is far from it. Maguire is everything a leader, big man at Leicester and England at world cup..
.Pick a leader at Viera,Kompany,V.dijk,Milner,
Ramos kind of personalty at Arsenal.. You'll not be able..

As for Emery, until I see another manager come do wonders with the Xhakas and Mustafis, only then I'll agree he is shitty.

Bookmarked.

Keky:
Emery wanted a midfielder reinforcement and a good CB. He knew our weak points. He got a winger, no midfielder and an old CB. This shows that the club isn't run properly.

Stop giving excuses for Emery.

1. He said he needed a winger (he was using Iwobi, Mkhi and Ozil as wingers prior), a cb, a midfielder and a lb. He was asked to make his priorities as the club can't get 4 super stars in one window. He got Pepe and Tierney, then Ceballos and Luis to make up. These are no mean signings, if it was Wolves or Leicester you could imagine how terrific they would have been.
2. Our squad is not as bad as those of Wolves and Leicester but look where they are, even Kelechi don dey ball.
3. Its a bad manager that will struggle to name a captain. If you can't find one, make one.

Emery fell from grace due to poor decisions. He failed to properly utilise what he had available which any good coach can. He lost the support of his players and they refused to fight for him.

Meanwhile, today's game is Ljungberg's last chance of becoming permanent. Any nonsense formation of failure to win, trust fans to call for his head.

Fkhalifa:
I'm not interested in the politics side of your talks, if a buharist see your post, he/she will also counter and rubbish what you put there.

Emery was asked to come take us back to UCL, that was the target, every other thing else is secondary..

Kokanes's believe that Emery destroyed the good work Wenger left is what I'll never agree, in truth and in fact, Wenger was sacked, the team was going down, fans boycotted the stadium, we were in deep mess.

The reality is this is not city where anything change overnight,I'm telling you no top manager will do wonders with this squad, we're stucked with deadwoods, we can't even see any buyer and everything is in shambles..

Emery's first year was okay and nearly every fans will agree his loyalty to rubbish players was his undoing...

Wenger would have won us the smaller cups is laughable, football has changed, he won't win jack in this present age and time.

My argument was not support or cover Emery,but to reject the idea of "Emery spoiled the great work of Wengee"

Sarri inherited a title winning squad, Lampard? Season hasn't finished, Emery was also in top4 last DEC.

I am not with you on this. There is absolutely no excuse whatsoever. Wenger became obsolete, but Emery was shitt. If Emery had continued, we would be taking guns and other ammunitions to defend Emirates. Wenger in all his deterioration, never led us to this extent where we dropped to 11th and being scared of facing Newcastle away. Wenger was a come back lord, he would have found a temporal solution to get us back again.

kokaneprodigy:
Even Watford will tear them apart

It won't be news. Common Brighton tore the senior apart.

kokaneprodigy:
For the records I ain’t saying we shouldn’t introduce youth players, neither am I saying we should stick solely with the senior clowns.

What I don’t agree with is the idea of benching all senior players for the youth.

Tell us what we could most as out on?

kokaneprodigy:
With the exception of Saka and Matineli I’m yet to see any youth I can bench the senior guys for at the moment.l with the kind of football we want to play.

Do not misunderstand the above as saying the senior players are doing very well. They might not be performing as expected based on the pedestal we’ve placed them but none of the current youth has shown he can do better position for position. only few can come close at best. Unless we don’t mind relegating.

The season has been lost already. So why not use try the young guns at least for experience and fresh vibe. Like as we always say, there ain't nothing to lose.

iamoyindamola:
we need total overhaul on the senior players without sparing any the young ones will change with time...

Your idea I believe will make sense. The young players will be easy to coach, nurture, psyche, and control. They may not be perfect now, but they can give decent performances and fresh vibe like we see in the EL.

Besides what have we to lose? They are not going to be worse than the senior clowns.

Akinbahm:
Good physche from Manager is enough for the lads to gear up who believe Guendozi and Aubameyang could turned out the way they are, now imagine with a good coach who has tactics, vibe, physche etc think what those boys mentioned above would av turn to....

You have raised very good points especially in supporting the team and manager.

Meanwhile the guys you quoted do not buy your sentiment about Guendouzi. They actually think he is the cause of our current predicament.

pazienza:
What Memo? You okay?

The downfall of this club started right after Kroenke take over, when Dein left, Gazidis came in, and Wenger accepted the mediocrity standard of "fourphy" Kroenke set.

"If you don't know where the rain started beating you, you are likely not going to know where it stopped ".

Why don't you go and make a tent in the past so you can dwell there and whine all you want and leave us alone. We belong to the present future.

pazienza:
Damn !
It's graveyard here.

Whatever happened to my beloved Arsenal.

Shame on you Kroenke, Wenger and Gazidis.

Its the 2019/20 season we are in bro. Seems you didn't get the memo.