As we're unlikely to see terraces again at football, this is the virtual equivalent where you can chat to your hearts content about all football matters and, obviously, Arsenal in particular. This forum encourages all Gooners to visit and contribute so please keep it respectful, clean and topical.
augie wrote:IF bouldie is the man calling the shots defensively this season, as most seem to believe, then why are we still playing the zonal defensive system when the opposition have set pieces near our penalty area ? This isn't the system that bouldie was used to under GG so isn't a system that he can be that familiar with surely ? I know every system has it's weaknesses but I totally dislike the zonal system and even though it was mannone's fcuk up that cost us the goal today, I still don't trust the system
i agree. it seems weird. maybe its a stop gap ?
i remember when the scousers experimented with it - it worked in Europe but was hopeless in the PL.
I hate it. zones don't score goals, players do.
Vito dropped a rickett coming off his line (which he didn't do again...) but he didn't give away a free header, that was the zonal defenders...
TBH it all started with the conceding of the corner thru lack of communication, gibbs headed it out for a corner cos he thought there was a man city player near him.
Zone defence requires players with more intelligence than ours have and against the towering giants of city is bound to fail ,
This being said the Goalkeeper cost us the Goal,you cannot win anything in football if u ship a goal a week due to the goalkeeper .
Wenger should not have kept Vito ,Chez needs to learn his craft but hes still a better keeper !
There is absolutely no doubt that it is working defensively. Bould has got hold of our defence in a way not seen since GG's day. The way the players are talking about it reminds of reading the likes of Kenny Sansom's accounts of how well drilled the defence used to be.
Djourou in last night's programme:
"I think there has been a big change and we have to give a lot of credit to Steve Bould. He approaches the game in a way I haven't seen before. You can see how much he loves doing what he does, and even if we have to repeat a drill every day in training he will do it because he wants perfection. You can see the change in the players' body positions - he puts in your mind that your body position is what's going to make you stop the opponent or not. Little details like getting your body ready for individual situations are what make a big difference. Its a privilege to work with him and you have to say that it shows in the games..."
At last - a coach that will truly work on defending, GG style. Its been missing for years. Unfortunately the Self Harmer couldn't possibly be content with sorting out one issue and removing the downstream pain in the Spring months, without creating another so we sold our best striker, when the jigsaw was almost complete.
We never started this season with zonal marking, which has no place in the game at all imo, it wouldn't surprise me if it was Mr Knows decision to start with it as he probably hated being upstaged by Bould and all the questions about how much the defence had seemingly improved, until now of course.
Dunno how many of you read Football365 but it's worth logging on there and reading their Winners and Losers column.
The writer makes it quite clear that Wenger's post match barbs are clearly aimed directly at Steve Bould.
It must really irk Wenger that Bould is getting all this praise, just as it pissed him off that Keown was getting the CL plaudits.
What an egotistical twat. It's quite clear to anyone that Arsene's ego takes precedence over the best for the club, I found his comments thoroughly unprofessional. Yet when we shipped 8 at OT last season who was to blame then? Ref? The pitch? Helium?
I think it's glaringly obvious that Wenger hates not getting praise when things, eventually, seem like they're going right. He also has previous for getting the hump when praise isn't coming his way, take Keown for example, he also didn't last too much longer despite doing great things for our defence in 2006.
It may also explain why Rice stuck around far too much longer that he should have done, and didn't Wenger even then try and talk him out of retiring last season? Wenger is far too arrogant and stubborn for his own good.
Have often thought that perhaps we should use 3 centre-backs (with one playing the 'sweeper' role behind the other 2, as opposed to a tradition DM in front of them), and 2 wing backs as it might make up for Wenger's refusal to strengthen the obvious defensive weakness at left back and play more to the strengths of the other defenders available. The only thing that stopped me suggesting it was the realisation that it would only take an injury to one of them to bring Djourou into the team. At least with a back four it would need at least 2 of the centre halves to be injured before that clown got a place back in the side.
This isn't the system that bouldie was used to under GG so isn't a system that he can be that familiar with surely ? I know every system has it's weaknesses but I totally dislike the zonal system and even though it was mannone's fcuk up that cost us the goal today, I still don't trust the system
At least with a back four it would need at least 2 of the centre halves to be injured before that clown got a place back in the side. 
