What is the Arsenal equivalent of “Spursy”?
For years, Tottenham have been mercilessly mocked by supporters of rival clubs – in particular, from those of rival capital clubs – for their propensity to collapse when it matters most. But over the past week, Arsenal have comprehensively out-Tottenham’d Tottenham.
First there was the collective head loss in Thursday’s north London derby, followed by the abject surrender in the north east on Monday night. Arsenal have frittered away a four-point advantage in the top four race in the space of five days and find themselves relying on Norwich to salvage their season. That, most Canaries will attest, is a sub-optimal position to be in.
“There is nobody in world football who thinks Arsenal will make Champions League football off the back of that. No chance,” was Jamie Carragher’s dismissive deconstruction of Arsenal’s capitulation. Nobody, except the planet’s most pessimistic fanbase, perhaps. Tottenham supporters’ joy at Newcastle’s 2-0 win was quickly replaced by a fear that they could yet chuck it all away at Carrow Road. Spurs fans have had to put up with a lot down the years, but they will never, ever live that down.
More from Football
But barring a final day shock, Arsenal have blown their big opportunity. The golden ticket has been fumbled like a bar of soap. And the inquest into how and why this has happened is already underway, with fingers being pointed in all directions, including, if Granit Xhaka’s post-match tirade is anything to go by, within the four walls of St James’ Park’s visiting dressing room.
As always, a combination of factors have contributed to this extraordinary collapse. Injuries have hit at the worst possible time. Ben White, Gabriel Magalhaes and Takehiro Tomiyasu had three operational hamstrings between them on Monday night, an issue exacerbated by Rob Holding’s suspension, while Thomas Partey and Kieran Tierney have missed the entire run-in.
Those absences have exposed Arsenal’s blatant lack of squad depth. The drop-off in competency from Tomiyasu and Tierney to Cedric Soares and Nuno Tavares is enormous. Mo Elneny, to his credit, has been one of Arsenal’s better players in recent weeks, but his limitations are clear. In attack, Mikel Arteta has picked between two soon-to-be out-of-contract strikers.
Should Spurs and Arsenal occupy their current positions in the table by the close of play on Sunday, the pivotal date in each club’s campaign will not have been last Thursday but January 31. While Spurs upgraded their starting XI considerably with the deadline day additions of Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur, Arsenal ended the January transfer window with a squad weaker than it was on New Year’s Day. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Calum Chambers all departed, with nobody brought in to plug the gaps.
Kulusevski, Bentancur, the irrepressible Luis Diaz and Newcastle’s clutch of recruits, spearheaded by one-time Arsenal target Bruno Guimaraes, have shown the cliché that it impossible to complete good business in the winter to be a fallacy. Arsenal had the means to invest but chose not to and it looks to have cost them dearly.
Can Arsenal still finish in the top four?
Premier League table
4. Tottenham – P37, W21, D5, L11, GD +24, Pts 68
5. Arsenal – P37, W21, D3, L13, GD +9, Pts 66
Remaining fixtures
Sunday 22 May:
- Norwich vs Tottenham
- Arsenal vs Everton
There is also a sense that a youthful team and fledgling manager have lacked the nous and experience to drag themselves over the line. That was certainly the case in the last two games when the raucous backing of the home support had such a disorientating effect on Arsenal’s side that it looked as though each player had been spun around 50 times before taking to the pitch.
Unlike after Spurs when he railed against the officiating in an attempt to foster a siege mentality within his ranks, Arteta looked like a man defeated on Monday. He admitted that Newcastle looked “10 times better” than his side, saying that his team “could not cope with the game we had to play here”.
But he also urged his players to pick themselves up for one last push. “There is always a chance in football and you have to be there just in case that chance appears,” he said. Arsenal must beat Everton to have any hope and given their inferior goal difference to Spurs, require Norwich to win for only the sixth time this season at the same time.
In effect, they need Spurs to be well, Spursy.
from Football | News and analysis from the Premier League and beyond | iNews https://ift.tt/chbZ7sS
Post a Comment