Arsenal delivered a wretched display in Sunday's Carabao Cup final as they were brushed aside with ease by Manchester City at Wembley.
Defeat against an outstanding City team would have come as no surprise but the manner in which Arsenal lost the final has led to further calls for Gunners manager Arsene Wenger to step down at the end of the season.
Here Sportsmail examine 10 of the major problems surrounding Arsenal both on and off the pitch as they head into the final three months of the season.
Lack of mental strength
Until this season, one of Wenger's go-to phrases to use in post-match interviews was: 'We showed great mental strength', deployed after watching his side come from behind to salvage a point or scrape a victory.
It's no coincidence it's now disappeared entirely from the Frenchman's vocabulary.
Arsenal have shown a repeated lack of mental fortitude this campaign and Sunday's result was the latest in a series of gutless performances when they are up against it.
As soon as Sergio Aguero scored the opener there was a feeling Arsenal would struggle to come back into it and so it proved, as they meandered to a 3-0 defeat while leaving little impression on the Wembley final.
Time-and-time again this season Arsenal have wilted when the pressure is on. Their eight Premier League defeats include sacrificing leads to lose at Swansea, Bournemouth and Watford as well as a 4-0 capitulation at Liverpool.
The FA Cup third-round exit to Nottingham Forest and Thursday's shock Europa League home loss to Ostersunds are further examples of a team who routinely collapse in the face of adversity - whether that's on the big occasion in the cup final or simply against a more well-drilled team.
Wenger's tactical naivety
That's not to say Arsenal haven't been out-thought as well as outfought this season.
Wenger regularly loses out to Premier League rival managers Pep Guardiola, Antonio Conte, Mauricio Pochettino and Jose Mourinho in the big games because his teams are set up far too naively to see out a positive result.
The constant switching between a back-four and back-five this season has contributed a lack of defensive solidity which culminated in Shkodran Mustafi's shambolic mistake for Aguero's opener. An individual error yes, but one born out of an under-instructed and under-prepared defence.
In front of them, Wenger continues to select teams without any solidity as the combination of Aaron Ramsey and position-less Granit Xhaka offered no protection to Arsenal's backline in the face of the best midfield in the country.
Wenger has always encouraged his sides to express themselves but they are repeatedly too naive defensively. It's hard to escape the feeling he simply gives the same instructions to his players before every match - regardless of the opposition - which smacks of a serious lack of planning from the Arsenal boss.
Big players going missing in big games
Arsenal needed Mesut Ozil to deliver a big performance on Sunday but for the umpteenth time the German failed to produce the goods.
Rather than provide the creative outlet Wenger's men so desperately needed to gain a foothold in the final, Ozil was ineffectual and completed less successful passes than his own goalkeeper David Ospina.
A wonderful player to watch when Arsenal are at home against weaker opposition, Ozil simply does not perform when it matters most for his side.
He wasn't the only guilty party on Sunday - Laurent Koscielny, Mustafi, Ramsey and Xhaka can attest to that - but Ozil's failure to show is indicative of Arsenal's mentality heading into the biggest matches of their season.
Arsenal celebrated Ozil signing a bumper new contract with the club last month having let his deal run into it's final six months amid fears he was set to leave. Based on Sunday's display, you wonder how in-demand the midfielder really was.
No leaders
It's a cliche for a reason - Arsenal lack leaders in their dressing room.
Though the captain has assumed less importance in recent seasons, the last eight occupants of Arsenal's armband tell their own story of the club's leadership issues.
Current captain Per Mertesacker, like Mikel Arteta and Thomas Vermaelen before him, rarely features and therefore lacks authority by default.
Robin Van Persie, Cesc Fabregas and Thierry Henry were handed the captaincy in part to convince them to remain at the club but all eventually left while William Gallas' spell as skipper resulted in his infamous tantrum at St Andrew's.
The departure of maverick Alexis Sanchez sparked a series of social media posts praising the togetherness of the squad but there's been no sign of that new-found unity since the Chilean moved to Manchester United.
The team are in desperate need of a Tony Adams or Patrick Vieira to lead their side when the chips are down. Sunday's skipper Koscielny could hardly command his side given his own poor level of performance.
When Arsenal went two goals down their heads dropped and the players stopped talking on the pitch. Contrast that with the scorer of that goal, City's captain Vincent Kompany, who delivered an emphatic display to lead his side to victory. How Arsenal are crying out for a motivational leader in the same mould as the Belgian.
Dysfunction at board level
Wenger has ruled Arsenal with impunity for the majority of his tenure but recent changes at the club suggest the 68-year-old's position is finally under threat.
The board are split over the future of their manager and the divide culminated in the lengthy delay on Wenger's contract extension being announced.
Chief executive Ivan Gazidis has delivered contradictory statements on the Frenchman - promising that last season would provide a 'catalyst for change' but then overseeing that new two-year contract for Wenger.
Sir Chips Keswick released a statement last season in which he refused to back Wenger and the chairman is understood to support a change in manager.
Stan Kroenke, the club's largest shareholder, appeared happy with Wenger consistently achieving lucrative Champions League football without seriously challenging for the Premier League. Wenger himself called it the top-four trophy.
But now with Arsenal looking set for a second-straight season in the Europa League, even Kroenke might be thinking if Wenger's time is coming to an end.
A team of negotiators have joined the club including former Borussia Dortmund's former chief scout Sven Mislintat and there has even been talk of a director of football, something which Wenger strongly opposes.
The recent arrivals of strikers Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang are both decidedly un-Wenger purchases, further suggesting power is slowly being wrestled from the Frenchman's stubborn grip.
It all speaks to dysfunction at board level and the uncertainty surrounding the manager's future creates an instability which filters all the way down to the pitch.
Fans unrest
The full-time whistle of Arsenal's 2-1 Europa League loss to Swedish minnows Ostersunds was greeted with loud booing from the 20,000 or so supporters who were still inside the Emirates.
Fans are becoming increasingly frustrated - directing their fury at both the board and their manager - with a growing section of supporters believing Wenger's time at the club should have come to an end last season.
Despite relative mediocrity in recent seasons and no Premier League title since 2004, Arsenal fans pay comfortably the highest season-ticket prices in the top flight.
The furious ranting of Arsenal Fan TV is not an accurate reflection of supporters' attitudes but there is anger that north London rivals Tottenham have now surpassed the Gunners in the Premier League standings.
The 21-year reign of Wenger, the last of the long-term managers, has overseen a stagnation over the past decade and the Frenchman is at risk of leaving his legacy in tatters when he finally departs the club.
Wenger has bought himself a stay of execution by winning three FA Cups in the last four seasons but there will be no such reprieve for the Arsenal boss this campaign.
Wonky transfer strategy
Aubemeyang's January arrival so soon after Lacazette's speaks of a team severely lacking in a clear transfer strategy.
While Arsenal have had problems in the attacking third, those pale in comparison to their issues at the back, in defensive midfield and with the goalkeeping position.
To sign two star strikers within six months of each other, not to mention the addition of another creative midfielder in Henrikh Mkhitaryan, is symbolic of a team with confused priorities.
Arsenal have also allowed three of their key players to run their contracts down into their final six months this season. Alexis Sanchez left for rivals Manchester United, Ozil signed a new deal and Jack Wilshere has yet to agree terms.
Wenger has also developed an alarming habit of selecting players to play just days before selling them to Arsenal's rivals.
Olivier Giroud featured against Swansea but was sold to Chelsea in the January transfer window the following day while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain started Arsenal's 4-0 loss to Liverpool before moving to Anfield later that week.
Lack of effort
'Look at Ramsey walking. He's walking. Xhaka's walking, Ozil's walking. They're walking! Don't walk at Wembley. Don't walk on a football pitch. It's impossible. You're two-nil down, run.'
Gary Neville's rant during Sky Sports' commentary of the Carabao Cup final came after Arsenal conceded their second goal of the match, with the cameras showing Gunners' central midfielders strolling across the pitch.
It's harsh to say Arsenal's players weren't trying but they were far too easily out-worked by City during Sunday's showpiece clash.
The likes of Kevin De Bruyne, David Silva and Fernandinho were able to knock the ball around with little-to-no midfield pressure from Arsenal, who failed to disrupt their opponents' rhythm and were left chasing shadows.
The work-rate of players Ozil, Xhaka and Ramsey have been called into question in the past and on Sunday their body language smacked of disinterest and indifference, Nothing infuriates supporters more.
Defensive midfielder
It's been no secret that defensive midfield has represented a problem position for Arsenal ever since Patrick Vieira's departure to Juventus in 2005.
The latest incumbent Xhaka was signed for £35million in the summer of 2016 but appears unsure of what his responsibilities are in central midfield.
Defensively, the Switzerland international offers no protection to Arsenal's backline. Xhaka lacks the dynamism to stifle opposition midfielders and the anticipation to intercept their passes. The 25-year-old is left chasing shadows far too often which results in him conceding fouls in costly positions.
Even Xhaka's passing has been poor this season and his inability to find another Arsenal shirt has an unerring knack of leading to his side conceding a goal. Rather than progressing as players used to under Wenger, Xhaka has gone backwards.
Whether it's down to a lack of instructions given to their midfielders or the club's failure to identity the correct player for the role, Arsenal have yet to discover the right formula in the middle of the park and it continues to cost them.
Gunners not entertaining
For years the knock on Arsenal was always that they played entertaining football but lacked the fortitude to get the results. They no longer have that to hang their hat on.
Up against Guardiola's great entertainers, Arsenal struggled to create barely anything in the way of clear-cut chances and their passes lacked incision.
It was poor to see from a side featuring Ozil, Ramsey and Jack Wilshere but Arsenal have lost their identity and fail to play the sort of attractive football that they became known during the early part of Wenger's reign.
source-dailymail
No comments:
Post a Comment