szólj hozzá: Milan 4-0 Arsenal – First Half
The first half: The first two stages of grief, denial and anger predominate.
szólj hozzá: Milan 4-0 Arsenal Second Half
The second half: The next three stages unfold as bargaining, depression, and then acceptance that Arsenal are just not good enough. Or even if they are they don’t have the bottle.
Wenger uncharacteristically didn’t mince his words:
” It is our worst night in Europe, we were punished and deservedly so. We were very poor offensively and defensively. We were beaten everywhere. There was not one moment in the 90 minutes we were really in the game. What made it worse is that we had to chase the game. It was always the same problem, balls over the top and we were well beaten.”
The Arsenal blogosphere was understandably subdued. Arseblog, who had been vocal about the lack of transfer activity and making proper investments while at the same time being supportive of Wenger had this to say:
” Yet you cannot look at the way this team, this squad, has been managed and not worry about where we go from here.”
This is a perceptible shift. We might have the talent but they are not being developed the right way or there seems to be a mismatch between strengths and their expected roles within the team. Theo Walcott is the most glaring example.
He is listed as a winger without the necessary tools to harness that pace to its fullest extent. You only need to look at Antonio Valencia as a reference point. Walcott could be a second striker with his direct speed but he’s shown questionable finishing skills and no great skill on the ball. He is now officially in a developmental cul de sac.
The enigma is not confined just to his role but to his onfield presence. Did anyone remember Walcott being on the pitch yesterday? These levels of anonymity are not new.
Walcott will be negotiating a new contract with more money expected. Johan Djourou just signed a contract which gives him better wages. Someone, somewhere, please stop this madness. For a club so careful about dishing out transfer money, there seems to be an awful lot wasted on players who don’t perform. How does blind faith square with a self sustaining economic model?
It’s time to consider we maybe reaching a ceiling effect with Wenger and Pat Rice.
The CL is but over bar a miracle at the Emirates. Now we must recover in time for the FA Cup fixture against Sunderland for this weekend. Arsenal have to kindle that fire for the next seventeen matches. Here is Dennis Bergkamp who knows something about a winning mentality in his interview with the Telegraph. Tell me the number of times you nod your head in agreement. His Ajax take on Utd today in the Europa Cup.