Martin Keown: “They only have themselves to blame.”

Mikel Arteta following Saturday’s loss to Newcastle United, “I am very frustrated, we deserved to lose today. We got dragged into the game Newcastle wanted and not the one we wanted. But you have to be at your best in every game to give you a chance to win.”

Ian Wright, “It is really frustrating to be ten games in and feeling like you do now. That’s only because we know how tough is it is to try and chance Manchester City. One shot on target  against Bournemouth, one shot on target today – it’s not good enough for a team going for a title. There’s a lot of work to be done in that dressing room. We can’t keep looking and saying we’re missing Martin Odegaard, because we know we’re missing that.”

I really didn’t think we would be so frustrated at this point of this season. Expectations were set at a much higher standard then where the Gunners stand right now. If Chelsea wins later today (Sunday), Arsenal will be 5th on the Premier League title, and after the ten league matches, the club is seven points behind first place Liverpool, and five points behind Manchester City. Even Nottingham Forest is ahead of the Gunners in the standings.

No, this is not where we thought Arsenal would be after ten league matches. As a side note,  the 1994 Blackburn team is the only club to come further back in points after ten games and win the title.

Arsenal legend Martin Keown, “They only have themselves to blame. They have kept pace with City for the last two seasons, but they were just not at the races today. It is going to be a very difficult dressing room. Arsenal didn’t turn up, didn’t play like champions, and they are now nursing their wounds.”

Here’s a telling statistic: The Gunners have lost consecutive away matches in the league for the first time since May 2022.

Arteta, “It’s not about the hope of winning the title, it’s about being our best selves every week. Today, we weren’t our best version.”

I wouldn’t disagree, however, it is solely about winning the Premier League title. After close calls the last two seasons, Arsenal’s goal has to be winning the title. Have the players and all of us we put too much pressure on the team to do just that?  In sports, we have seen this happen more than once. In my opinion, the team looks tired and, at times, lacking focus.

Yes, the Gunners have dealt with some major injuries to star players, and yes, there has been several officiating calls that didn’t go the Gunner way, but at the end of the day, football is a team sport, that requires every man to step in and step up when needed. There can be no excuses.

Now, there are 28 league matches to go, so there is time to regroup and win a lot of matches. Yes, Odegaard is a player Arsenal needs back on the pitch, and yes, Arteta needs to figure out a regular front line and a steady left back. The talent is there for this club to have a very successful season in all four competitions, however, some soul searching needs to take place, and Arteta’s squad needs to bounce back with two very good performances on the road this week v Inter Milan and Chelsea, or this season could be in serious trouble of a major collapse.

COYG! We believe!

Gunner1953