Once again the Gunners can’t score

If Leeds United can find a way to defeat Crystal Place later today, Arsenal will slide back into the bottom half of the Premier League table.

Unfortunately, this has been too familiar ground for the Gunners this season, and territory that is so unfamiliar to this club, and its supporters.

As I see it, we have two big problems right now…
The inability to consistently finish and score goals, and the bad habit of making costly mistakes that give up easy goals to the opponents.

Mikel Arteta told Arsenal.com, ““I’m not really interested in the possession, it’s the positions that we take with that possession, the spaces we attack and how many open situations we create. It’s about the final pass, the final move, the one-on-one situations where of course you have to hit the target, the cut-backs, the deliveries into the box. All those things we have to improve because with the numbers we produce in the final third, we have to be hitting the target at least 10 or 12 times.”

Okay, Arteta agrees, but the consistency is not there. The Gunners have scored just one goal in the last three league games. With the caliber of attacking options Arteta has at his disposal, why can’t someone consistently hit the ball on target? Shots go wide, shots go directly at the keeper, or shots are blasted high over the bar as if they are auditioning to be a placekicker in the NFL.

Now, I watch the training videos on Arsenal.com, and I see shots going into the net in training, so why can’t there be more consistency during live matches. Sure there is more pressure, more intensity, etc. in a live game, however, someone has to bring training ground work to the pitch and find the back of the net real soon.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has had a strangely difficult season, both on the pitch and off. I believe the team became too reliant on his goal scoring, and now with his current troubles, no one has stepped in to consistently to fill that void. Alexandre Lacazette appeared to possibly be that guy, however, even the French striker has fallen off the pace in recent games.

Personally, I would like to see our midfielders take more shots on goal. Granit Xhaka has a rocket foot, Thomas Partey can score goals 9when healthy), plus, newcomer Martin Odegaard has a nose for goal as well.

So, in the week ahead, let’s hope Arteta can find scoring boots for someone. With ten losses in the Premier League already, Arsenal can not afford to keep missing the target, in more ways than one.

Cheers.
Gunenrs1953