Sheff Utd (A) PL 21/10 @ 20:00

[nut flush gooner]

Unless ozil is taking a shit in the middle of the pitch in training, how is he less effective than xhaka and willock combined today .

I would like to see what he and Dani can do , with dozer or torreria

Why do people compare/align the ozil situation with the continual selection of xhaka ? Neither c,unt should NEVER EVER be near the team again, so instead of complaining about xhaka starting ahead of ozil, talk about him starting ahead of torreira. For the life of me I cannot understand why people keep bringing up ozil's name - he is a yesterday man (and by yesterday I mean a few seasons ago) and isn't the solution to this mess

Agreed, so kneejerk to say Ozil would be the solution to our problems away from home. Ozil has shown during his time at Arsenal games like last night is exactly what he doesn't like and completely goes missing.

Emery had at his disposal a squad that was perfectly capable of turning Sheff Utd over.

Yet his stubbornness with ball-playing from Leno to defenders that don't have much skill, inviting and encouraging the opposition to press high up the pitch then continually giving the ball away. As a result of this, the crowd who are up for the game anyway only get louder and our snowflakes fold.

Now that Bellerin is fit, I want to see a defence of Bellerin, Holding, Luiz and Tierney. Xhaka can fuck off as our DM even more so as captain, Chambers has shown his versatility for both Arsenal and the clubs he has been sent out on loan to. It's about time Emery thought outside the box and put Chambers in as DM. Someone who will properly shield the defence rather than continually put them under pressure with his shit distribution or needless fouls.

When asked why Arsenal put out a poor performance, Xhaka said "I don't know". What a fucking bell end, why wasn't he honest and say the team were shit including himself.

[Redarmy]

Fucking awful. Was like watching any of a hundred such away games under Wenger over the last decade. Aimless tippy tappy passing, no chances created, no penetration, headless clown-like defending..... just awful.

The point augie people are making about Ozil is valid. He is long past his best but he is still the ONLY truly creative midfielder we have. And last night the thing we were so sorely and so obviously missing was someone with the ability to open up an (at times) 11 man defence with a decent weighted pass. Willock cannot do that. Dozer for all his work cannot do that. Xhakatard is a useless cùnt and can't even think about doing that. Forget this one dimensional media rubbish of "he doesn't run around enough". He doesnt suit Emery's required work rate or the pressing game? What bollocks. We don't have a pressing game and most of our players were strolling around last night. At least Ozil might create something. Until we can replace him with a cheaper and/or better player then he should start, get 60 minutes to create and, then if necessary, get hooked.

More importantly though why no Torreira? Was he injured? How the fuck can Xhakatard start ahead of Torreira? Madness.

We were poor all round but a couple of players were total shit. Boomerang was simply terrible just all over the place with no touch and no idea where and when to run. Willock is a child in a child's body and looks lost as fuck out there. Chambers was utter gash going forward. Loads of effort, loads of running.... whoopy fucking doo... his final ball is practically non existent.

Pepe is a 5 aside player. Lovely close control and some good tricks but ultimately cannot deliver the final product on a full pitch. He is my mate Barry! His fucking shameful miss from 6 yards was like a child opting to use his favourite foot ffs. All he had to do was contact the ball with the instep of his right foot and it was in. His final ball and his attempts at goal are abysmal.

Make no mistake that blades side are proper shit and will be relegated in May and we were well out fought and at times out played by them. Abysmal.

Emery starting pepe and Xhakatard instead of Ozil and particularly Torreira is making a serious rod for his own back.

Fucking Ozil, he would have disappeared in that game...they needed Toreira and Ceballos from the start
and of course some basic organisation of that shambles of a defence

[augie]

Unless ozil is taking a shit in the middle of the pitch in training, how is he less effective than xhaka and willock combined today .

I would like to see what he and Dani can do , with dozer or torreria

Why do people compare/align the ozil situation with the continual selection of xhaka ? Neither c,unt should NEVER EVER be near the team again, so instead of complaining about xhaka starting ahead of ozil, talk about him starting ahead of torreira. For the life of me I cannot understand why people keep bringing up ozil's name - he is a yesterday man (and by yesterday I mean a few seasons ago) and isn't the solution to this mess

Good creative midfielder, with one of the best chance created per minute in the game, even in recent times.

But yeah xhaka starting ahead of anyone at this point is hard to understand, he took him off today , and we looked instantly faster.

Can somebody please put up his chances created stat from last season please ? It was up here in the last couple of weeks, and I'm almost certain that it said that he created 2 or 3 goals in total last season - clearly the guy that some of ye yearn for is a mythical creature from a previous lifetime cos he sure as shit isn't the player that has stunk the place out for the past couple of seasons

Torreira should have started. Tierney should have started. Ceballos should have started. Laca could have started. These are all proper solutions to our problems, and would do more to help the team than ozil would

[Gunner Rob]

first 11 going forward needs to be

Leno
Bellerin
Holding
Sokratis
Tierney
Guendozi
Xhaka
Torreira
Pepe
Lacazette
Aubamayang

[Bob Bayliss]

The decision to select Xhaka over Torreira for a game such as yesterday was arguably the worst single piece of selection we have witnessed from Emery. Quite apart from the fact that the diminuative Uruguayan is a far superior ball-winner and battler, he also offers more threat going forward, leaving aside the occasional thirty-five yard 'hail Mary' that Xhaka can produce. It was a no-brainer.

There are so many other weaknesses in the team he is currently selecting, including Pillock, Chambers of Horrors, Pepe Groves......but why he continues to choose Xhaka over Torreira (arguably, other than Auba, our best player last season) is astonishing.

[Redarmy]

The decision to select Xhaka over Torreira for a game such as yesterday was arguably the worst single piece of selection we have witnessed from Emery. Quite apart from the fact that the diminuative Uruguayan is a far superior ball-winner and battler, he also offers more threat going forward, leaving aside the occasional thirty-five yard 'hail Mary' that Xhaka can produce. It was a no-brainer.

There are so many other weaknesses in the team he is currently selecting, including Pillock, Chambers of Horrors, Pepe Groves......but why he continues to choose Xhaka over Torreira (arguably, other than Auba, our best player last season) is astonishing.

agreed Bob, it is astonishing

[Eboue-Why?]

On a train back from Sheffield. Naturally fucked off but what’s new? Just listened to his press conference. I understood about 10% of what he said so presumably the players must experience the same? I have little or no confidence in this manager. The team selection last night was baffling. If he persists with Xhaka over Torriera then he is self harming and no Tierney? At half time he was on the pitch, knocking balls around for fun, very pacey, a real threat but yep let’s play Kolasinac instead. The Centre Back pairing are poor, end of.
It costs a lot of time and money to follow your team and we have no entitlement to win every game but the least you can expect is that your manager sends out your best team in the right frame of mind. Neither happened last night.
Onwards....

[Ray C]

I’m with everyone on Emery out, but it breaks my heart to see (so-called) players in that away shirt turn in performances like that. No heart, no bravery, no desire and no fuckin clue. We are rotten from top to bottom. And nothing will change. Get used to this shit for the rest of the season.

Good summery for this pathetic game.

[nut flush gooner]

first 11 going forward needs to be

Leno
Bellerin
Holding
Sokratis
Tierney
Guendozi
Xhaka
Torreira
Pepe
Lacazette
Aubamayang

Xhaka

[Gunner Rob]

first 11 going forward needs to be

Leno
Bellerin
Holding
Sokratis
Tierney
Guendozi
Xhaka
Torreira
Pepe
Lacazette
Aubamayang

Xhaka

can't leave the Captain out

[mcdowell42]

PL guidance on shirt pulling: refs look for tug to create a triangle shape. Laws prevent holding in box but not shirt pulls. VAR ruled Egan didn’t have enough of Sokratis shirt or tug long enough to overturn. Subjective call. If pen given, unlikely to have been overturned #SHUARS

[Redarmy]

PL guidance on shirt pulling: refs look for tug to create a triangle shape. Laws prevent holding in box but not shirt pulls. VAR ruled Egan didn’t have enough of Sokratis shirt or tug long enough to overturn. Subjective call. If pen given, unlikely to have been overturned #SHUARS

With Dean as referee thats not very likely, thought the booking of Saka was very harsh as well

[Bradywasking]

PL guidance on shirt pulling: refs look for tug to create a triangle shape. Laws prevent holding in box but not shirt pulls. VAR ruled Egan didn’t have enough of Sokratis shirt or tug long enough to overturn. Subjective call. If pen given, unlikely to have been overturned #SHUARS

With Dean as referee thats not very likely, thought the booking of Saka was very harsh as well

I looked up FIFA website..rules of the game there is no reference I can see to shirt pulling but the reference to holding shows pictures that are clearly shirt pulling...If you go by the letter of that law as quoted it was a penalty for Sokratis last night...If Liverpool needed a goal to get back into a game and such an incident occurred then it would be a penalty, no doubt..VAR will end up working for the few not the many.

[GoonerMuzz]

I have the strong feeling Emery is throwing all his eggs in the basket of winning the Europa League this season, because otherwise i can see no reason for him to be holding back from putting in Bellerin and Tierney. This smacks of pure stubborness in yet another Arsenal manager. We have nothing to loose from playing these players in the league its not really like we can be any worse away from home.

I've completely had it with UE, we got rid of one stubborn old fool only for him to be replaced by another egotistical megalomaniac. As i've said before my mate who supports PSG warned me of this, we didn't really see all the issues reported in the French press at the time but he had the exact same problem in his second season there and lets be honest other than his admittedly good record in the Europa at Sevilla his league record is nowhere near as good at any club.

I guess the warning signs were there, his own admittance of admiration of OGL, his statement about rather win 4-3 than 1-0 and the reported breakdown in the dressing room at PSG prior to his departure but i think the euphoria of getting rid of the other idiot may have blinded us to what was to come.

So who else is available, Allegri and not many others at the moment, unfortunately even if things end similarly this season i can't see upstairs having the balls not to extend his contract and the longer it goes on the deeper we sink into the post Wenger mire that the old *word censored* left us in.

[OneBardGooner]

I think this just about sums it up:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrbtBgc1SuU