Makes sense that you would still support him then.
I’m not at all convinced he can replicate it across one whole season, I’m not sure what reason there is to think he can or what that view would be based on. We’ve had a favourable run of fixtures and picked up a decent points tally, which is only really impressive when contrasted with the first half of the season. One swallow does not make a summer and all that… Personally, I cant get behind this “top four since Christmas” losers mentality, its a shit arbitrary measure used when convenient, because ultimately football isn’t assessed that way.
But I guess that’s why they call it “faith”, because like with religious faith, its not really about evidence or facts, its about gut feeling. Hopefully your faith isn’t misplaced and we have turned a corner.
Arteta is like a toddler trying to ride a bike. You can’t shit on a toddler for falling off the bike 20 times once he’s actually got on with riding it. It’s just cruel
In that 15 game sample size just listed in which we’re 4th for points, 2nd for goals scored and equal 4th for goals conceded and clearly top 4 on GD. We’ve played City, Chelsea, Spurs, Leicester & Man United, West Ham, so I’m not sure it’s a favorable run of fixtures, played more or less nearly all the top sides in the league.
OK, but what you’ve mostly done there for me is highlight that we’ve been playing like a top four team for fifteen games. Its not like I wasn’t aware of that, my point is more that its only fifteen games and that there isn’t yet a good reason to assume that this is our new level, that Arteta is going to be able to get us doing this consistently.
But if people want to believe that, then great, I hope the people who do are proven to be correct.
Fair enough if I have overstated the case on the favourable run of fixtures though.
Yeah I agree that all remains to be seen, could be a false down but I really hope it isn’t.
Different mentality doing it all season and getting a top 4 place also, I’ll concede that, I’m just choosing to have faith at this point and I’m really hoping I’m right.
And lost at Wolves, Villa and drew at Burnley. I think there’s an improvement and Odegaard has helped that a lot.
No certainty he stays though. My main issue with the improvement being spoke about is trying to find games we dominate and im not seeing enough of that could you name what you see as the better performances?
So, if we add the 5 points we were robbed of @ Burnley and Wolves, we are comfortably 2nd in the league since ESR introduction/Odegaard arrival/Partey playing more.
I thought the first 70 mins of the Spurs game and the Leicester game would be two games that standout when you consider standard of opposition also. We destroyed Newcastle and WBA but yeah we know they’re trash.
Those 3 games you mention and I know these are excuses but we win that Burnley game 9/10 on the balance of play or VAR did its job, also the Wolves game we really so easily could have been 3 up before the sending off.
Depends on what other points teams were robbed of in that period.
Or if anything went in our favour at any point.
People are never willing to factor those things in when claiming their favoured team has been hard done by, because it wouldn’t fit the desired narrative and because its more comforting to believe that we deserve better than the mid table position we’ve earned so far this season.
What game do you believe a ref decision has got us extra points in the last 15 league games out of curiosity ? Got any examples ?
Are you factoring in all the teams around us in this on decisions or just Arsenal?
I haven’t watched every game this season, but I have seen all Arsenal games so this question was just in relation to our points ?
I can’t think of any games a big decision has got us extra points in this period, so I’m curious if others think different.
I don’t think we’re better than the mid table position we’re in because the 14 games still count and we were rightfully battling relegation at the time. I’m just more inclined to believe the last 15 games is our level going forward, rather than the first 14 we played minus ESR, Odegaard and Partey barely featuring. I mean, if we had a little more fortune we would be in the running for 5th/6th maybe, but when you play as we did for third of a season I can’t complain.
So it’s not really a true indication. I mean I remember United being turned down a clear handball at Chelsea off the top of my head. Liverpool having bad calls early in the season etc. .
I’d be shocked if many other teams were worse than -5 points in that period though, but yeah I haven’t watched every game.
If I really wanted to go by the letter of the law though I could also so the 2nd goal west ham scored shouldn’t have stood and we deserved to win last night. But given how bad we were first 30 mins I won’t go to those extremes.
@Aussiegooner Scenes when Mikel delivers the 2nd place post Christmas trophy (good last 8 games coming up on paper)
Just to clarify also people the level in the last 15 games is the bare minimum I expect from an arsenal side 8-4-3 with a GD +14, I’m not saying we’re world beaters or anything and still have a long way to go.
Look I can think of Everton and Brighton were Liverpool had bad calls go against them. That’s 4 points which would have them 1 point off Chelsea for top 4.
There bigger issue and admitted by Klopp and most people though is they’ve been really poor this season and were they deserve for now.
Further down the League you are the worse a decision impact you because your margin for error hurts you.
City had a naf call against Southampton the other week didn’t impact them because they are way better.