I THINK before I launch into some forthright opinions on last night’s debacle, I should reiterate that this is a ‘Fan’s Column’.
As such, it is hard to be an Arsenal fan emotionally invested in the manager, because I hugely admired Mikel Arteta as a player and feel he too, feels the same attachment to our club.
As such I have wanted him to succeed and perhaps given him more latitude personally than I gave his predecessor and opposite number last night.
Despite all that, I was, after 60 minutes, at the point I had reached with Unai Emery, after a cold night watching a 1-0 defeat to newly promoted Sheffield United in 2019.
Nicolas Pepe’s calm penalty and Etienne Capoue’s rashness, to equal that of Dani Ceballos, may have bought our manager a last drink at the Europa League saloon, but in truth he got so much wrong last night.
STRANGE SELECTION
Starting a new formation, deploying a false nine and asking two players to rotate that duty who had probably never played the role before, in the biggest game of Arsenal’s season – BIZARRE.
MISSING MARTINELLI
Doing so when he had Gabriel Martinelli, fit and available to start made the decision even stranger and it was obvious the Brazilian added what the team had missed as soon as he entered the fray.
Before he came on, Arsenal offered no real threat or pace, behind the
Villarreal back line, barring the occasional run from the valiant Pepe.
CALLING A CEB
To start Ceballos, after indifferent form and his comments this week about preferring the Spanish league, was misjudged but to leave him on at half time, when on a booking and having already been exposed for is lack of pace on so many occasions was criminal.
It nearly cost Arsenal the tie and Arteta his job in my view.
NO MO
Elneny is not every supporter’s cup of tea, but he would have been a better option in a big away leg. The decision, however flawed, was made to persevere with Granit Xhaka at left-back.
The Egyptian would have kept it simple, moved the ball swiftly and allowed Thomas Partey more licence.
XHAK AT THE BACK
The decision to play Xhaka at left-back was also the wrong one for me,
and also so unnecessary.
He could have played a wrong-footed specialist fullback such as Cedric Soares, or a left footed mobile centre-back in Gabriel, but I have wanted Bukayo Saka there since Kieran Tierney’s injury.
Those who suggest playing our best creative player at left-back is a waste,
cannot have been watching the flying Scot all season, where his heat map frequently shows him as consistently our main attacking threat.
MIDDLE OF THE PARK
This decision to field Saka at left-back, had Arteta made it, would have allowed Xhaka back in alongside Partey, giving us more discipline and still allowing the Swiss star to cover the attacking left-back, as he has for Tierney this season and indeed did for Saka last season.
PACE UPFRONT
This correct selection would have seen Odegaard far more comfortable in his natural No10 role, behind a pacey striker in Martinelli, with Pepe and Emile Smith Rowe able to rotate either side of him.
This, I should add, was the three behind the striker for the win over Leeds, arguably our best attacking display in a while.
SILLY SUBS
Finally, again last night Arteta’s substitutions were debatable if I am being kind.
If Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was fit enough to make the bench, surely, he could have been introduced earlier.
Pepe’s strike had us back in the match on 73 and on top, Villarreal were down to 10 men on 80 minutes and Aubameyang was not brought on until the 85th minute.
To add insult Arteta made two inexplicable substitutions, one you would normally associate with time wasting – when we had a set piece in injury time.
The Arsenal manager was handed a get out of jail card last night, which his tactics, selections and decisions did not merit.
There have been occasions in this inconsistent season when he has been let down by his players, but last night it was profoundly the other way around.
I hope with Tierney, Aubameyang and perhaps Alex Lacazette available for the home leg, he makes best use of his undeserved reprieve.
You can follow Dave on twitter @GoonerDave66
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