Back to the Emirates

Football is back - for fans who want to go to matches.

I am still slightly apprehensive though about going to a match, though I did go to Meadow Park to watch the Arsenal women's team. That stadium is somewhat regrettably, usually not full but it makes me feel a bit better about not having to squeeze together with thousands of fans.

That of course, plus the fact that the women were playing a lot better than the men in the first few games of the season. Played 3, lost 3, bottom of the table and we were the butt of many jokes in those weeks. Still, apart from the Brentford game, which in hindsight turned out to be less of a surprise than it was at the time (they held Liverpool to a well-deserved draw a few weeks later), we were always going to be underdogs against Champions League winners Chelsea, and Premiership champions Man City. Losing was always likely, though the manner of the loss against City was quite depressing. 5-0 and Pep's assurances that Arteta was a good manager didn't help much if at all.

Even if I thought Pep's comment was a bit unnecessary, I did believe (or hoped) that Arteta would improve us and he did. Xhaka getting sent off against City was a lucky moment for us in some ways as it perhaps forced Arteta to reconsider his options. Managers like players, need luck too. Anyway, no Xhaka for 3 games and we got a glimpse of what the future of Arsenal would look like and many liked what we saw. So what if it was only Norwich (a real 6-pointer between the bottom 2 teams)? Or only Burnley? The real test would be the NLD...

Meanwhile I went to Meadow Park on a weekday night to watch us beat Slavia Praha 3-0 in a Champions League qualifier. This season has been a revelation for the women as they started in complete contrast to the men, dominating their games. They have a new manager Eidevall who comes from the Klopp school of sideline coaching, wearing his heart on his sleeve, albeit without the magnificent choppers that Klopp caricaturists have so much fun with. They also have a bunch of new players who have really won fans over. Frida Maanum a leggy Norwegian who reminds me of Vieira somehow, Tobin Heath, American star and Gooner, and best of all, Mana Iwabuchi, described in some Youtube videos as the Japanese Maradona. She's real class, even better than Van De Donk who left. (With Tomiyasu who has been a revelation in the men's team, we suddenly have a really good Japanese connection on both fronts. Both are real talents and not just nominal squad players who can sell jerseys)

I've taken to watching the women's team more closely and can now speak with a bit more authority on the players. The standout performers so far have been the stalwarts Kim Little (captain), Beth Mead (who is sublime and underrated because she plays alongside Miedema) and Lia Walti. Going forward, pressing relentlessly, and unafraid to play more directly quickly, the team is so different from last season. Defensively though, they are a little suspect and lacks a bit of speed - Leah Williamson is the exception, and has already captained England this season but she tends to drift sometimes. She is still young and will improve though.

They started the league on a high, beating defending champions Chelsea 3-2, and then routing Man City 5-0 (though City were missing many players who were out injured but hey, you can only play who you face). Villa were routed 4-0 away and then it was off to defending champions Barcelona for the Champions League group stages.

It is fascinating how the fortunes of the men and women flipped at precisely the same moment of the season. The men, with wins over Norwich and Burnley, had still not quite won the sceptics over and were still firmly ensconced in the bottom half of the table. Beat Spurs however, and we would overtake them.

I have had the privilege of watching 2 NLDs at the Emirates and we had not lost either of them (2-0 in 2017 and 2-2 in 2019). I was so very tempted to go and I daresay if the tickets were a bit cheaper I would have.  A decent seat was going for about 150 pounds and coupled with the fear of the crowds, I decided it would be better to stay home and watch it while chatting with the boys back home.

3-0 up after 35 minutes or so, and I have never screamed so loud at home while watching a game. Granted that back home it would normally be late at night so I have never had the opportunity to do so. But this was cathartic. Doing one over the old enemy after such a horrible start released a lot of pent-up energy. Maybe I didn't have a good round of golf that morning haha...

Suddenly our season ahead looked much, much brighter. ESR and Saka both had a goal and assist, Auba scored a great breakaway goal that featured a great team move. Oh and the move involved Xhaka, who was reinstated in the team. It's funny though how sometimes the narrative is shaped by an angle, and it illustrates how our perceptions are often distorted by the media.

Some reporters said Xhaka's inclusion was a vindication of Arteta's decision to give him a new contract, that he was a real leader, and that he had had a great season and had fully redeemed himself after that incident against Crystal Palace. I don't know enough to say he's a good leader though I have always had the impression that he seems to think he is (though his disciplinary record suggests otherwise), but above all, I don't rate him that highly overall. He is probably one of those players that coaches love because I think he does understand the game and tactics, though his self-belief occasionally outstrips his ability. When he switches into hero mode, either because he thinks the team needs it, or as is more often the case, he seeks to redeem himself after a mistake, he is often rash and cynical. You can see it as taking one for the team and maybe that is what it is, but a less charitable view (which I am often guilty of when it comes to him) is that he makes it more about himself than the team.

The other major narrative is that he divides opinion and thus writers go overboard when he has a decent game, knowing that it will rile up his detractors. He has never had a great game, at least not those I have seen. He has good defensive discipline, except when he feels he must take it upon himself to save the day and abandon his position. But he is by no means a great passer of the ball. He is above average granted, but he does not split defensive lines etc. His favourite pass is to the outside of the defence where a wide forward is waiting. He rarely puts anyone in behind so I don't understand how his fabled pasing reputation came to be.

He is highly risk averse and this is where I give him some credit for knowing his own limitations. He is not great facing his own goal, and has been caught in possession there before as he does not really have the skills to break out of tight situations. But I digress. This was meant to highlight one aspect of the Spurs game, that Auba goal that involved Xhaka. The context is however useful.

Ramsdale played a short ball to Xhaka that was almost intercepted. Xhaka recognised the danger and was maybe a split second slow but he made the most of what the situation presented and nudged Hojberg off the ball with his considerable derriere. And he released the ball quickly enough - fair play to him. But to call his role in the goal as anything more than making the best of a bad situation is absurd. The irony is that if he had time to receive the ball and was then pressured, he would almost inevitably have passed it backwards and there would be no breakaway move. But that would not have made for a sexy storyline.

Anyway, Spurs were duly despatched 3-1 and the second half was a bit of an anti-climax as we saw out the game fairly comfortably. Next up, a 0-0 away at Brighton in the most appalling conditions but that was no excuse. Brighton played with much more enthusiasm under the same conditions and we got out with a lucky point. Annoyingly Spurs won to move ahead of us again.

Meanwhile in Europe...

Arsenal women went to Barca and got a schooling. 4-1 and it really could have been much worse. And that was from just watching the highlights (I was out watching Bond).  Barca were utterly dominant and it looked impossible to get at them, just like the game the men played against Chelsea. Sometimes teams are just so well coached and in tune that it looks like they have more players on the pitch than their opponents. It's suffocating. The best teams today all do it. Chelsea, City, Bayern and the old Barca were the best exponents.

In essence it is the best complement to playing out from the back when you have possession - though that requires that you have the skill to break down an opponent who presses you. When you don't have possession, pressing high up relentlessly allows you to win the ball in a good area for a quick transition.

The Arsenal women against Barca looked like they were caught in two minds. The forwards tried to press but the defence sat back and Barca's forwards repeatedly dropped into the space in-between to provide easy options to bypass our midfield. They had an outstanding forward line that kept running at our slower defenders (I have always felt that some of them might not be good enough - slow and mistake-prone) and we could not live with them. Overall a bad day at the office and Barca were very good too (even if we made them look better with our own inept display) - both things can be true.

Is this a temporary setback that humbles the team, so that they can learn and continue to improve on their great start to the season? Or a deflating loss that tells the players they are far from the elite teams? This will show the character of the coach and team.

For the men, after the international break (the Nations League semi-finals provided great entertainment especially France coming back from 0-2 down against Belgium to win 3-2) they play Crystal Palace on a Monday night. It is the week of my birthday and I will probably go if I can get decent price tickets. The other reason is that we welcome back Vieira who is now Palace manager and I hope the crowd will give him a good reception before the game. I want to hear the Vieira song, which is one of my favourites.