\n<\/p>\n
The Champions League final fallout inevitably dominates your Sunday Mailbox despite the best efforts of one Liverpool fan to, in an uncharacteristic move, get in there and make it all about them.<\/p>\n
We\u2019ve got all sorts in here. Proud Arsenal fans, distressed Arsenal fans, neutrals p*ssing themselves. All sorts.<\/p>\n
Let the Schadenfreude Festival commence.<\/p>\n
And get your own views on any of it in to theeditor@football365.com<\/strong><\/em>\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\n Arsenal\u2019s underwhelming performance in the CL final<\/strong> denied England a clean sweep of European trophies this season but at least it will prepare fans for how England will limp out of the World Cup<\/strong> as soon as they come against a half decent team (or a very average one that knows how to keep possession) in the knockout stages:<\/p>\n 1) Score early goal (On purpose, makes eventual loss more crushing for naive funs)<\/p>\n 2) Seemingly forget more goals = win game (Math is for teachers pets)<\/p>\n 3) Opposition equalizes (Why would they do this to us? They must be working for Putin!)<\/p>\n 4) Don\u2019t have another shot on target (don\u2019t want to stress the opposition goalkeeper with such things, it could result in a non-crime hate incident)<\/p>\n 5) Have barely any possession (possession is for fruity European types)<\/p>\n 6) Never even look like scoring again (A tactic the opposition will never see coming)<\/p>\n 7) Run around a lot (Work rate is better than goals right?)<\/p>\n 8) Run around even more (The ball might accidentally hit us and end up in the net)<\/p>\n 9) Lose on penalties (Only Kane scores)<\/p>\n 10) *Insert typical England excuses* (From: tired after long PL season, blame racism, no winter break like those Europeans have, players not used to the heat, Donald Trump, not having an English manager, blame racism again)<\/p>\n 60 years of hurt and I have stopped dreaming *sighs* Thank God for that.<\/p>\n If Arsenal had won the Champions League playing that kind of football it would have been a travesty. And really bad for the game.<\/p>\n They\u2019re the champions of the best league in the world, yet had 24 per cent possession in the biggest game in club football. They didn\u2019t try to attack, happy instead to defend an early lead. If they had somehow succeeded, despite barely having a sniff of goal, other times might have been encouraged to set up in the same way, and football as a spectacle would be far worse for it.<\/p>\n Arsenal have found a way to win games efficiently, and have won the league as a result<\/strong>. But it\u2019s horrible on the eye, and the thought of others imitating their blueprint makes me shudder.<\/p>\n They\u2019ve spent a fortune, and its been enough to win them the Premier League, but thankfully the team that play proper football won the biggest trophy. Well that was a victory for football fans everywhere. 25 per cent possession ffs. \u00a31 billion spent and from the first minute Arteta trying to win like a league one outfit drawn away against a premier league juggernaut in the FA cup. Just dreadful. Arsenal fans have lost the right to complain about teams employing the low block against them for a long, long time<\/p>\n The excitement from the crowd every time Arsenal got a corner was beyond depressing. How can Arsenal fans not feel embarrassed? There was zero moral courage in that performance. Just stealing a goal and 11 men behind the ball trying to hang on for dear life.<\/p>\n The much vaunted Declan Rice was completely anonymous. The forwards were woeful. If it had been in play the VAR that saved Arsenal\u2019s league title would have chalked off the goal for Trossard\u2019s handball.<\/p>\n Arsenal fans I know have tried to portray this shootout loss as some sort of moral victory against the oil states, but labouring under the delusion that Stan Kroenke and Arsenal are the little guys in\u00a0 the realm of European club football is more than a little sad.<\/p>\n Lack of CL cups notwithstanding, Arsenal are a footballing heavyweight. They should play like it, and just as importantly their fans should want them to too. So, the online\u00a0 \u201cschadenfreude festival\u201d has begun!<\/p>\n One predicted thing that never happened though was the Arsenal demolition. Weren\u2019t PSG going to take Arsenal to the cleaners? Fine, the stats show that PSG controlled possession and had more shots on target than Arsenal. However, other than the equalising penalty did PSG have any clear cut chances? Ironically Arsenal was the only team to score from open play.<\/p>\n Many opposing fans are commenting on social media about how Arsenal were outclassed and were out of their depth and didn\u2019t have the nerve to go for a second goal. That as far as I\u2019m concerned is a naive or blinkered and biased view on the game. Why should Arsenal, after taking an early lead and having the best defensive record in the tournament playing the team with the best offensive record, open up and go on the charge?<\/p>\n After a cracking finish by Havertz they sat back to see what PSG could offer. They were impressive in nullifying PSG and made them look ordinary. As aforementioned did they produce much? Indeed, if it wasn\u2019t for a clumsy challenge resulting in a penalty Arsenal looked relatively comfortable in seeing the game home. If Mosquera hadn\u2019t made that challenge who\u2019s to say Raya wouldn\u2019t have stopped it as it wasn\u2019t an easy chance as such. In fairness, I thought Mosquera to that point played well keeping one of the best wingers in the game at bay.<\/p>\n Going back to my comment about a festival rejoicing in Arsenal\u2019s failure those people need to be reminded that Arsenal\u2019s main objective this season was to win the league and anything extra would have been a bonus. To take the best team in Europe to the wire and only miss out narrowly on penalties (a lottery) is impressive. Ironically it\u2019s the penalty taker line up that is my only real criticism\/bemusement. Why was Gabriel so far up the list?<\/p>\n It\u2019s still impressive that Arsenal are unbeaten in normal time and extra time in this season\u2019s tournament. Congratulations PSG but they had to work hard to win the competition. In 2006 it felt like the end of an era. Tonight it felt like a stepping stone. Sure, we lost and I\u2019m gutted but, as Dolly Parton said, \u201cyou don\u2019t get a rainbow without a little rain\u201d. I\u2019ll be absolutely shocked if we don\u2019t learn, improve, and triumph. Arsenal\u2019s season still bottled in the end, not because Eze and Gabriel bottled their penalty, but Arteta\u2019s side showing little attempt to winning the game.<\/p>\n It\u2019s always disappointing to lose a final but the disappointment I felt this year was far less than in 2006, even as we only lost in the last kick of the game.<\/p>\n For Arsenal to go on and win more trophies and finally conquer Europe, the pendulum has to swing back to more attacking.\u00a0 Arteta knows this. The team has to be able and willing to match any team in the world attacking wise.<\/p>\n I\u2019d even argue that the current team can do this 99% of the time but they only did 60% of the time all season. That\u2019s down to Arteta\u2019s approach, not his players\u2019 ability.<\/p>\n After winning his first league title, he knows there\u2019s no hiding any more. For more trophies means more attacking and goals. Build on the strong defence not sitting back on it. READ NEXT: Arsenal not the only Champions League final losers \u2013 who was TNT\u2019s coverage actually for?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n I have seen a lot of excited folks on the Internet machines giddy that \u201cPSG saved football\u201d. I get it, partially, Arsenal don\u2019t play the most attractive, flowing football. And I know there are other things folks have a problem with.\u00a0 I get that.<\/p>\n But PSG saving football? The Qatari-state owned team that has spent more money than any team in the world on players.\u00a0And not by a bit by a little but by bounds. The sportswashing team that allows a repressive regime credibility and a World Cup?<\/p>\n You can be happy that Arsenal lost,\u00a0I don\u2019t care.\u00a0 But let\u2019s not pretend PSG is a shining example of the way football should be. If Arsenal held firm for one of their formulaic one-nil scrapes tonight, it still would\u2019ve been the second\u00a0biggest story of the weekend.\u00a0 It did look headed that way to be fair, but Paris out-uglied the ugliest in world\u00a0football to arrive at two on the bounce.<\/p>\n No,\u00a0the\u00a0bigger story is of course Arne Slot\u2019s\u00a0thanks-but-vaarwel departure<\/strong> coming in what must be the longest ever club statement for a sacking.\u00a0 A heavy metal statement.\u00a0 This would\u2019ve been the headline even had Arsenal finally snared a maiden Big Cup.<\/p>\n We have designs on a seventh; we\u2019re a bigger club with bigger clout and bigger following, we inspire your gaffer, your anthem, your fans, your entire club ethos.\u00a0 These are the facts (said in Rafa\u2019s voice) but I\u2019ll stop talking about Arsenal because my thoughts are on my club and how we move forward.<\/p>\n Fella named Alex wrote a great letter in the last mailbox<\/strong> but football moves so quickly one news cycle can obsolete any well-fleshed theories or observations; Konate has since packed his bags and now Slot too.\u00a0 But in the main, Liverpool hierarchy would never commit three at the back as we\u2019d need two additional wingbacks as cover and ultimately it\u2019s a lot of furniture reconfigured for a pattern of rug nobody\u2019s quite enamored with.\u00a0 Two seasons ago Ruben Amorim was swerved\u00a0for precisely that reason, one can assume the same of Xabi Alonso, this.\u00a0 But I enjoyed Alex\u2019s take and if I dusted off an old copy of FM or Winning XI or Pro Evo I\u2019d have some fun trying out those ideas.<\/p>\n In a vacuum I\u2019d argue Slot probably deserved another season but sometimes it\u2019s not about the deserves, and never is football played in a vacuum.\u00a0 Unfortunately most of the issues were borne above Slot\u2019s\u00a0remit.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t great in his second year and his recalcitrance spelt his doom, but he was given a series of hospital passes and the fates did set him up for failure.\u00a0 Michael Edwards has dined out on the glory of his first stint with the club so much so he\u2019s remained mostly bulletproof in all this, but questions must be asked of him and of Richard Hughes.\u00a0 They\u2019ve acted with such hubris in last summer\u2019s window that I cannot find confidence imagining what they might conjure this window, especially with each having a respective foot out the door.<\/p>\n If we had a time machine I\u2019m pretty sure most Liverpool supporters would take Cherki over Wirtz, shift Gakpo and retain Luis Diaz, retain Quansah, retain Kelleher, add Semenyo, Guehi.\u00a0 We\u2019re probably fine without Isak, Newcastle fans wouldn\u2019t suddenly abhor us, and Isak\u2019s cost alone is probably two or three quality backups.<\/p>\n Equally we could\u2019ve bought three or four Cherkis with one Wirtz.\u00a0 **Digression, but this last bit reminds me of a certain family member who comes to LA and has us take her to Erewhon year after year for a Hailey Bieber strawberry smoothie, a \u00a321 beverage that\u00a0tastes like any other smoothie.\u00a0 But of course in family\u00a0spirit we all have to get one and suddenly that\u2019s \u00a3100 spent on incredibly average smoothies.\u00a0 I\u2019m not tight but we could be getting actual groceries.\u00a0 And water is healthier.\u00a0 Instead we\u2019ve got strawberry\u00a0Florian Wirtz.\u00a0 Absolute hubris.<\/p>\n Anyway, it\u2019s an odd time to be a Liverpool supporter and it\u2019s times like these I\u2019m glad we have a storied history, because it could be awhile before normal service resumes.\u00a0 We\u2019ll still get a seventh in Europe and to 21 in the league of course, I\u2019m sure of it.\u00a0 I\u2019m just not too sure when, I\u2019m not too sure the people in charge appoint the right people to take charge, and just a few too many question marks heading into the summer.\u00a0 Likely I\u2019ll resurface in August predicting a mid-table finish for us.\u00a0 Yeah.\u00a0 Farewell Arne, we hardly knew ya. <\/div>\nArsenal = England<\/h2>\n
William, Leicester<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\nTravesty averted<\/h2>\n
Rob Pearse<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\nBring back shame<\/h2>\n
Robert Vard<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\nA Schadenfreude Festival sounds really good, actually<\/h2>\n
Chris, Croydon <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\nAnd people say she\u2019s just a pair of t*ts<\/h2>\n
Phil.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\nThe B word<\/h2>\n
Kia Nian<\/strong>
Singapore<\/strong><\/p>\nWash cycle<\/h2>\n
David<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\nThis Means More<\/h2>\n
Eric, Los Angeles\u00a0 CA (Was texting one of my mates during the penalty shootout and we both said Eze would miss, his pen-taking walkup face betrayed his\u00a0nerves.\u00a0 And pens or no pens, the less said of Gabriel\u2019s face the better.)<\/strong><\/p>\n