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Arsenal losing to Man City has prompted a barrage of opinions and we start with questions about whether Mikel Arteta is fit for purpose.<\/p>\n
There will be more mails along shortly \u2013 and there\u2019s non-Arsenal mails here \u2013 but mail theeditor@football365.com with your views.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Constant refreshing Piers Morgan twitter account.<\/p>\n
I love this. It\u2019s fine, we just have to beat every team left by a whole load of goals. More than City. No problem.<\/p>\n Seriously though, playing against such a heavily doped side really sucks. Wish it was one of the other teams challenging, at least it would feel like a more level playing field, this just feels so unfair. \u2026So right off the bat, City were the better team and got the win. There was plenty in that game which could have just dropped a little differently, but it is what it is \u2013 had Havertz sunk that header, I don\u2019t think it would have been entirely unfair.<\/p>\n But. I actually think today I saw the fight and creativity to make me more confident going forward.<\/p>\n There is a game today where Arsenal concede that goal and fold entirely. Instead they fought and at times looked like, if not the team that might win this game, one that could win any and all the next ones.<\/p>\n And that is key, because in this period when everyone\u2019s been getting their bottle jokes in, Arsenal have mostly looked flat and exhausted. In one CL game, our bench was 4 teenagers and 2 GKs. Odegaard, who is essential for our forward play has managed 14 starts all season.<\/p>\n But today we didn\u2019t. Odegaard was back and pressing well, the linkup with Havertz looked better, Eze actually did well enough at LW to make me confident he can add goals from there finally and we are still hoping for Saka back soon.<\/p>\n Now, we just have a straight shoot with City. Almost certainly the same number of games to the end of the season. They have undoubtedly the harder games in the league, we have a CL semi final \u2013 we are no longer playing looking over our shoulders, we have to play with the bit between our teeth.<\/p>\n It will go to the last day, I am certain. And there will be one last twist in our favour, I just feel it. Whether it is Bournmouth punching them in the mouth just after\/before the FA Cup final, or Villa on the last day needing a win to make CL, I just think City are no more likely than Arsenal to win out.<\/p>\n So yeh, disappointed with today, but not devastated \u2013 we can still do this. What a sad day for football. The 115 charges that Man City are facing don\u2019t seem to matter. What\u2019s obvious to discerning individuals is that their financial doping has been largely forgotten.<\/p>\n Back in the good old days, the mighty Man United conquered all based on their successes on the field, which translated into huge revenues and a huge fan base. This allowed the team to attract top talent from other teams. Call it cherry-picking, but at least the club did this using the revenue it generated.<\/p>\n But now we have a team that has been accused of all manner of charges, using highly paid attorneys to delay, to disrupt, and to deny the due process of the law.<\/p>\n If there is any justice in the world, the footballing gods will ensure that Man City and its fanbase, which largely consists of Johnny-come-latelys, Glory hunters, and people who have no idea of how the dirty club got here in the first place, don\u2019t get to enjoy the proceeds of ill-gotten wealth. #Resist<\/p>\n Thank you for your attention to this matter. Gutted to lose that game. City were the better team, creating more chances and controlling the flow, but we had chances (3 in the second half) to take something away. At this point, although we may still lead on goal difference, it certainly feels like City\u2019s title to lose.<\/p>\n What riles me up more is that Arsenal actually played today. They pressed hard, they fought, they tried to take their chances. Instead of the anemic drudge in the Sporting, Southampton, and Bournemouth game, there was some real desire to try to be the difference maker. This team has obvious flaws, and they aren\u2019t the easiest on the eye at the best of times. But if they had played any of the last five games like they played this one, I don\u2019t think we would have had the same results.<\/p>\n Therein lies yet another of Arteta\u2019s key failings as a manager. It\u2019s not just the set piece gripes, the mind games, the sideways horseshoe-shaped passing. It\u2019s the ability to see the season as a whole and to anticipate the ebbs and flows to be able to have the team playing their best in April. Guardiola \u2013 with a 79% win rate in the league \u2013 can clearly do that. Arteta \u2013 with a 44% win rate \u2013 clearly cannot.<\/p>\n I\u2019m forever grateful to Arteta for pulling us out of the doldrums and making us respectable again. It wasn\u2019t too long ago that we were a slapstick team. But if Arteta can\u2019t get us over the line this year, it certainly feels like this is the end of the road for him and this group of players. There needs to be a new voice to motivate.<\/p>\n Lastly \u2013 I\u2019m sure there will be a lot of noise about this game, but ultimately, I won\u2019t look back at it as when we lost the league (recognizing that there\u2019s still more to play). It\u2019ll be Bournemeouth or Wolves or Brentford. READ: 16 Conclusions from Man City 2-1 Arsenal: Cherki, Bernardo, Haaland, O\u2019Reilly, bottle<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u2026So there it is. The inevitable transition from haunting theory to cold, hard reality: Bottlemagedon has officially arrived. While the mathematicians will tell you it\u2019s technically not over, the rest of us blessed with the gift of sight and a history of North London heartbreak know exactly how this particular tragicomedy ends. We\u2019ve seen this script so many times it\u2019s practically a period drama.<\/p>\n \u200bI\u2019ve always subscribed to the notion that cup competitions are governed by a bit of luck, and a favourable draw. The league, however, is a different beast entirely, a 38 game audit where, ultimately, the best team wins. And let\u2019s be honest, city are simply the better team. Arsenal put in their most spirited performance in weeks, but trying to stop the Pep machine just seems a step too far. It\u2019s a well oiled, relentless juggernaut.<\/p>\n \u200bThis brings us to the billion pound elephant in the room: Mikel. We are now staring down the barrel of a \u00a31bn spend with nothing to show for it but a collection of \u201cVery Good Effort\u201d certificates. Surely, the nearly man tag is starting to stick? At what point does a process simply become a loop? His position is rapidly approaching the untenable; if you can\u2019t get it over the line with this squad and that level of investment, when can you?<\/p>\n \u200bThere is a nagging suspicion that a psychological ceiling surely has been reached. Is the mental block now so profound that the players can smell the collapse as soon as spring rolls around? You have to wonder if the team can ever actually conquer the summit with Mikel at the helm. I hope I\u2019m wrong, I really do, I hope that come the summer I\u2019m celebrating a miracle as we lift a trophy, but it\u2019s no longer in our hands and instead is in the hands of an all conquering team of serial winners in blue.<\/p>\n \u200bSo, we do what Arsenal fans do best. We will pick ourselves up, brush ourselves off, and convince ourselves that 26\/27 will be the one. We\u2019ll talk about lessons learned and squad depth over the summer, but make no mistake this one stings. It\u2019s the hope that kills you, but it\u2019s the bottling that leaves the lasting bruise. \u2026Given our form recently, I was really just hoping we didn\u2019t get humiliated. That was our best performance for months and probably deserved a draw. The difference having some of our players back makes was clear. Silva and O\u2019Reilley were brilliant. Great game.<\/p>\n This could genuinely come down to goal difference, let the fun (or immense stress\u2026) commence! I saw this coming after the insipid 0-0 draw against Liverpool in January but it was called \u201creactionary\u201d to write off the title bid so early. But it\u2019s not \u201creactionary\u201d if it\u2019s based on observing 22 years of Arsenal failure.<\/p>\n Any time you hear it\u2019s Arsenal best chance to do something: open a big lead at the top\/beat Liverpool\/win at the Etihad\/win the league etc, you know they won\u2019t deliver. They never look like scoring and the so-called \u201cbig\u201d players (Havertz, Odegaard, Rice, Martinelli) are nowhere to be seen when it matters. The \u201cbest defence in Europe\u201d can no longer keep a clean sheet. Contrast them with a demob happy Bernardo Silva who was absolutely determined that Man City would hold on for the three points. That\u2019s the difference between the two teams \u2013 Arsenal have good Premier League players, Man City have winners. How is Gabriel not off for that? Guaranteed United player would be. And also he pulled Haaland hair in first half\u2026 weird how these things work. \u2026I mostly stopped watching Arsenal a while back because I value my free time (but not enough to stop watching Liverpool yet) but had to tune in today.<\/p>\n How much of a cheat is Gabriel? The head butt incident was a bottled call by the ref; it\u2019s a red all day and he should be absent for the next 3 games for violent conduct.<\/p>\n This cheating issue is also true of the entire Arsenal team to be fair. Neville on commentary used a lot of words to describe some of the pathetic decisions they got: weak and soft were the two that spring to mind. Every time I\u2019ve watched them it\u2019s the same, they want to try and fight you and be aggressive but if you touch them they roll around like they\u2019ve been shot. Today Gabriel slapped Cherki on the head in the box. Can we slap players now? If not then that\u2019s a penalty and a yellow card as a minimum because it\u2019s done with intention but the VAR doesn\u2019t intervene to point out this disgraceful behaviour. Even better if slaps to the head are ok then why not punches? It sells out NHL stadiums so let\u2019s bring it to the Premier League. Not the refs fault for missing it but if VAR is there and wants to analyse whether someone\u2019s bollock hair has snuck out of their trouser leg to play them offside then use it for actual important points that cross the line of gamesmanship into straight up cheating.<\/p>\n I also had an epiphany about gamestate. Coaches teach tactics depending on game state (i.e you\u2019re winning, don\u2019t lose. You\u2019re losing, attack more if there\u2019s 5 minutes to go). But actually this 0-0 was very different to this 1-1. At 0-0 there was uncertainty but at 1-1 Man City knew Arsenal were brittle defensively whereas Arsenal felt lucky to have work horsed their way back into the game.<\/p>\n This Man City is no Pep Vintage and might still mess it up but this Arsenal would be the worst league winner I can think of. Coached in inferiority, nasty cheats, terrible to watch. The most undeserved champions in my living memory from a football perspective. Up to very recently it was possible, if not actually probable, that Arsenal were set to win everything and also witness Tottenham\u2019s relegation.<\/p>\n Given the rapid decline in fortune for the Gunners, it will be no surprise if Spurs manage to stay up. <\/div>\n
Paul<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\nArsenal bottling? It\u2019s all fine\u2026<\/h2>\n
JazGooner<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Tom (and whether we do or not, I\u2019ll probably then take honorary retirement from this site and the purile drivel it now pumps out) Leyton<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\nIt\u2019s a sad day for football\u2026<\/h2>\n
Muthama Gitonga, Nyeri (Mount Kenya)<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\nEnd of the road for Mikel Arteta if Arsenal lose this<\/h2>\n
Kentaro Morrison<\/strong><\/p>\n
Adam \u2013 AFC<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Rob A (got my eye on how long Rodri might be out for though\u2026) AFC<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\nArsenal do not have winners<\/h2>\n
Matthew<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\nHow did Gabriel stay on the pitch?<\/h2>\n
Anthony, Dublin<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Minty, LFC<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\nIs it all getting turned upside down?<\/h2>\n
Eoin (Iraola in for Arteta?) Ireland<\/strong><\/p>\n