Hello Gooners near and far. I feel like I have spent all night drinking in my local bar but there is no time, I have a journey to make in my girlfriends car and this poem is so bad it is almost funny, har har.
Anyhoo, Squid Boy is back with an almighty bang and has offered his musings for the day.
One of my favourite phrases in all aspects of life is this:
“To be number one, you must train like you are number two”
In Arsenal’s case, I could paraphrase it thus:
“To finish 3rd, you must fight like you are 5th”
Football is a game of clichés. How many times have you heard someone utter the words: “let’s take each match as it comes”? I’m willing to bet you’ve heard it on numerous occasions. I’m also willing to bet the phrase has popped up during our recent run of form.
But there’s always a sense it could be a soundbite; that it is only said because it is the “right” thing to say. Is it being uttered to mask an inner sense of arrogance and belief that we have already achieved something? Lest we forget there is still a quarter of the campaign left. Any sense of arrogance and achievement must be outlawed if we are to realise our ultimate goal of finishing third.
Simply put, if we are to remain in third then we need to replicate the attitude which has got us there in the first place, not divert from it. And by “we”, I mean players and fans alike.
On the pitch
One of my favourite Arsenal performances of recent years does not comprise champagne football and a hatful of goals. It is the 2-0 win at Celtic Park in the Champions League qualifying round in August 2009 – a ground which had not seen English opposition emerge victorious since 1983.
Why have I picked that game? Because it was typified by the very atypical Arsenal quality of pressing. Both goals were scrappy, but the workrate was an absolute joy to behold. Three days beforehand we also executed the same tactic and were more handsomely rewarded with a 6-1 opening day victory at Everton.
Since then however, performances where pressing was deployed have been few and far between. One which springs immediately to mind is putting Chelsea to the sword in December 2010 at the Emirates. That night, two of our three goals came from forcing the Blues into making a mistake in their own half and swiftly capitalising.
The great thing about a team such as Arsenal applying the press is that we only ever need to use it in short bursts, given our tendency to control possession. And, crucially, we have enough attacking talent to exploit our endeavours.
Pressing pays dividends. Therefore it remains a mystery – and sometimes infuriating – as to why we have not adopted it on a more consistent basis…until now. Kieran Gibbs stated the following on the official website recently:
“Kieran Gibbs believes Arsenal’s successful use of the pressing game is behind their recent resurgence in the Premier League.
Gibbs says the way the team are approaching their defensive duties in each match is making life difficult for their opponents.
‘There are a lot of players putting a lot of effort in, especially off the ball, and that is great to see,’ he told Arsenal Player.
‘When we put pressure on teams high up the pitch and early on in the game, it is difficult for them to play and we can control the game a lot easier.
‘We are enjoying doing that at the minute and we have to enjoy defending as well. It’s alright just having the ball, we know what we can do to create chances and score goals. That [the defensive side] is the big improvement we have made over the last few weeks.’”
Very refreshing to hear that the players are enjoying it. In any walk of life, if you enjoy what you do, you’ll do it better.
So why now has it actively been implemented now, all of a sudden? Why not throughout the entire season or in previous years? The answer again lies with Gibbs:
“Kieran Gibbs says a proper rest between games will allow Arsenal to maintain the intensity in their performances from now until the end of the campaign.
‘It is a relief to have a break until the next game and it was important for us to get that because we have played quite a lot recently in a short space of time,’ he told Arsenal Player.
‘We should have players coming back from injury now so we should be getting some fresh legs looking to go for the rest of the season strongly.’”
From his words, one deduces that the press has not been consistently applied due to potential fatigue and/or lack of personnel. For the rest of the season, these factors should not be an issue. Everyone bar Per Mertesacker and Emmanuel Frimpong is expected to return from injury, and following the win against Villa our remaining eight games span a period of 50 days. On average that is a game every six days, which should be plenty of time for the lads to rest, recuperate and refuel. And if it isn’t, then Arsene can be more confident in resorting to rotating.
In conclusion, if we aren’t to keep up the pressing which has served us so well, the only logical reason is complacency. And that must be guarded against.
It may be blasphemous, but our recent renaissance started when we were underdogs against Spurs. That underdog spirit yielded the right result and it is vital the players maintain that mentality.
“It’s not about the size of the dog in the fight, but about the size of the fight in the dog”
When you’re a big dog like Arsenal, if you match your opponent’s fight, you will tend to succeed.
In the stands
Has our recent upturn in fortunes been made sweeter by Chelsea’s and Spurs’ travails? Yes.
Did I partake in the chants of “5-2, we beat the Scum 5-2…” and “are you watching Tottenham?” this past Saturday at the Emirates? Yes.
However, one chant made me decidedly uncomfortable: “10 points…and you f*cked it up.” There’s a long way to go before their poor run of results can be viewed as the beginning of a collapse or a mere blip on the horizon.
Things chanted at our neighbours in the heat of the moment is one thing. Understandable, excusable, and at times downright fun. The key is to not let this sense of superiority impinge on the general level of support in the stands. Seven wins on the spin hasn’t suddenly transformed the players into Supermen who will perform at the drop of a hat. They still need us.
If I could define the Emirates era in one word, it would be “entitlement”. Not from all fans, but some.
Until this season.
Following the summer from hell and a nightmare start to the campaign, expectations were lowered and this has now led to a more tangible bond between players and fans on matchday. We are all pulling in the same direction. Gone are the days of sitting on our hands and waiting to be entertained, followed by the inevitable moans and groans when their efforts don’t bear fruition.
The symbiosis between players and fans is a two-way street. Positive results play a big part in more vocal support as they give fans something to cheer. But even moreso, it is the aforementioned workrate and pressing that really endear players to fans.
Take a look at the Liverpool game in August. We may have lost but the atmosphere at the end was more appreciative than many would expect after a defeat, purely because of the heart shown by the players that day. That same heart is now being shown week-in, week-out. And it is our duty to keep encouraging it and not merely expecting it.
In this respect, it is a bonus that two of our remaining four home games are against Chelsea and Man City. The visit of a rival team tends to guarantee a red-hot atmosphere. But it is vital we replicate this against Norwich and Wigan as well. Just as the players can’t afford to rest on their laurels, neither can we.
Away from the stadium
This aspect is probably the least important. What you say online or to your mates doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things, for it has no bearing on our performance on the pitch.
After the taunts from Spurs fans over the past few months, I appreciate it may be difficult to resist retaliating. I’m not normally one to gloat, but even I’ve had my moments. The other day I purposely stood next to a Spud on a train platform so he was literally in my shadow. I did however suppress my urge to tell him to mind the gap.
So why do I advocate trying to retain our humility? Simply for the sake of good karma.
“Keep your words soft and sweet, for you may have to eat them”
Us Gooners know that things can change in an instant. From a 30-match unbeaten run in 2002 that was followed by four defeats; to the end of the Invincibles’ which gave rise to a string of results that ultimately cost us the title; to last season and the negative effect of losing in the Carling Cup final. Not to mention title challenges that have fallen by the wayside in recent years as the going got tough.
Glance across the Seven Sisters Road at our neighbours. They had been giving it large for a long time, but look at them now. Do we want to sink to their level? Or do we want to conducts ourselves in a classier manner?
“He who laughs last, laughs loudest”
Me personally, I’ve had my brief moments of fun in the aftermath of beating them 5-2 and overtaking them in the league table. I have now taken a vow of utter silence and if it means missing out on the cheap thrill of (premature) gloating for a few months, so be it. Anything to do my bit in hopefully ensuring a St. Totteringham’s Day this year.
There are eight games left. 24 points to play for. Let us all – players and fans – continue our recent good habits.
Squid Boy – https://twitter.com/#!/TheSquidBoyLike
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