I’m sceptical. Arteta is just a yes man. The Kroenke’s can give the impression he can do what he wants and he will pretend that is the case, even if it is a lie.
Just hoping for the fans able to go to the Emirates make him accountable.
Genuinely the first time in 30 years I have been worried about Arsenal. Even more than our 8-2.
1 Like
You’re giving KSE too much credit, they’re really not masterminds of any sort. They just don’t want to get involved in the football side of things.
There’s no way we sign White for instance without Arteta’s direction.
3 Likes
Signing Ben White is ok., but it isn’t as if Arteta can go out and spend 250m by himself. He got approval for Ben White because he decided to make that an early priority signing. For other 50m+ buys though we’ve kept on hearing about the need to sell, in part to help with funds. That is not autonomy for Arteta. Of course there are restrictions.
If he can choose who is sold and who is bought then that’s autonomy over football decisions. No coach sets their own budget.
1 Like
How can he choose who to buy and sell if he doesn’t have control over the budget? lol.
… and this takes me back to my original point about Conte. The argument was our manager apparently has autonomy to a level Conte would be happy to sign on at Arsenal. Who says? As I am making clear there are still restrictions imposed by the Kroenke’s. We don’t even know what the final net spend at the end of this window will be. In the end it could well be still nothing particularly special.
It seems from my POV the club spends what is available, and we’ve spent alot recently on transfer and contracts.
Where the evidence of KSE restrictions?
You are saying here that the club spends what is available. You are admitting therefore there is a restriction.
We were not told this summer the club “would spend what is available”. We were told to be excited about spending a big transfer warchest made available by the Kroenke’s, presumably through a loan arrangement. Arteta backed that all up about the big warchest. Have Arteta and Edu been acting as if there is something special this summer? Ben White can be made equivalent to Partey last summer.
If there was such a big warchest why the pause when it came to the other additions, and selling deadwood quickly even if not for great prices? Does this all look like Arteta acting autonomously, or instead a yes man puppet being held back by the Kroenke’s while pretending to fans he isn’t?
This is grim.
6 Likes
I think it’s an absolutely genius plan to not pass to your strikers all game when you are trying to score, then sub them off because they’ve not scored.
Amazing stuff from Mikel Arteta, genius manager.
11 Likes
Is he going to bring Odegaard in and try to coach him only to look to Tierney and punish him if he even dares play a ball up the center of the pitch? Smells like it to me
2 Likes
Arteta’s tactical set up about 10 years out of date, It’s basically a bastardized derivative of Pep’s work
1 Like
I think @BigWeng_4LYFE is spot on with his thoughts, our board will never go for a Klopp or Conte as the board and ownership don’t want to be challenged by a demanding coach.
2 Likes
Can’t be too harsh on Balogun when he was never set up to succeed, veteran strikers have floundered in the exact same piss poor set up.
Essentially sabotaged on his debut
3 Likes
Marcelino please. His 4-4-2 formation is the closest out there to how we played during Wenger’s glory years (1997-2006). Favours fast counter-attacking on the wings, sometimes pivoting the two up front with one as a shadow striker/link with midfield.
Maybe a bit left-field but the biggest names aren’t always the best fit. Wenger and George Graham were relatively unknown and somewhat risky appointments. So being brave doesn’t always end in disaster.
Wouldn’t be unhappy for Alegri or a one season contract for Wenger with him helping select our next manager before giving him a place on the board above Edu as a Director/Advisor.
4 Likes
I feel like I’ve seen a identical passmap just like this last season about 30 times.
When will it click Arteta is done out here.
3 Likes
Didn’t Marcelino also drag Valencia to a cup a few years ago despite having absolutely horrendous ownership?
@Great-White-Gooner Ødegaard will basically be shoehorned into the team to replicate the pass out wide to Tierney so that way we can have three different players, White, Xhaka and Ødegaard, constantly looking for that pass. Not sure who Tierney is supposed to cross to since we don’t really get anyone in the box. 
2 Likes
He got sacked for winning the cup instead of resting player to push for CL football, and ended up getting CL football regardless.
4 Likes