At what point does a manager change his ethos or style of play to try and move the team in a more positive direction?
We now have a good idea of how an Arteta team plays - adding those key ‘forward’ signings, is it enough to change the tide and convert those 8+ xg stats or is it a case of redesigning how his team plays?
Injuries, form, squad planning and hangover from the last two seasons look to have really affected us this season. Honing in on one of those points you can make an argument out of but when they are combined, I’m conflicted if we can do much else.
Going out of the League Cup and FA Cup, then losing the NLD in consecutive games is not a good look for a title challenging team so we’d better win this.
Saw this criticism levelled at Thiago Motta’s Juventus and thought it was relevant to us:
“There’s never any spark or personal initiative from the players. They only try to replicate what was prepared during the week. The play is slow.”
Think it’s the problem with a lot of top coaches these days. Fabio Capello also criticised Thiago Motta for not adapting his play to the strengths of his players and only looking for one solution. I think managers are too wedded to their “philosophy” these days that it comes at the expense of results. An important quality in coaches is to be able to look at the main strengths of the squad and to build a system that suits the players rather than to try to impose their style on players who aren’t suited to it.
Well put, “system” is important but you have to be able to adapt and invest more in individual brilliance. If i remember correctly at the beginning of the season Arteta said we need more than one tactical approach so we can be less predictable, if you ask me you can achieve this by playing those creative players that do things opposition does not expect, we seriously lack this profile, only Saka IMO. if you look at our recruitment lately, Merino, Havertz, Clafiori etc. all brought in to fit the system. What we need is Kvara, Cherki, Isak…
I agree fully, but as soon as a manager starts trying to adapt to the players, if the results go badly, then he is accused of not having a philosophy, what is the team identity, etc.
So pretty much damned either way unless you win games and then no one cares
I think the issue with the lack of individual brilliance in our team isn’t that it’s not allowed, it’s that we don’t have the personnel to do that. I think Arteta wants players to be brave.
Take the Leicester game for example this season, some people thought Jesus was acting a bit selfish when he came on but Arteta praised him for it in his presser. He did the same for Nwaneri.
When Saka decides to take on 3-4 players on his own, sometimes hopelessly, you never see Arteta shouting at him for trying that.
Players like Calafiori, White and Timber are usually on the front foot. Often they may get caught out because of it but I think he embraces that and that’s why he wanted Calafiori the past summer.
Partey gives us heart attacks at least once every game with how risky he is with his passing and the way he gets out of a press at times. Still one of Arteta’s main guys.
I think what’s non-negotiable for Arteta is that we have no slackers in the team, especially off the ball.
Ozil, for all his faults, is probably the best passer of the ball I’ve ever seen in an Arsenal shirt. It’s a travesty we wasted his prime years with Giroud, Welbeck, Sanogo and Walcott ahead of him.
