23 Feb 2025 19:26:26
Just read the very interesting and long thread below, you all have good points and very hard to disagree with any of you, SY is frustrated like all of us we have a big and long term injury list and we still didn't/ couldn't find a CF when we are pushing for the title and we paid a bigger price when we pretty much lost all our first starters.
Happy to be second absolutely No, but this season our lack of squad depth and losing our best players put us in a very bad position.
I think the players are losing.

1.) 23 Feb 2025
23 Feb 2025 19:50:01
Hi Moe mate, we are all different and all have different feelings and attitudes to life. I love a trier and people who give the best they have to give, even when what they have to give isn't always enough.

For me personally to see our player's giving 100% and wanting to be the best again even when they fail is a beautiful thing compared to the years when this wasn't always the case so my gauge of success is very different to many other people's personal gauages.

Personally I believe fans have the right to be demand 100% effort from the players and manager but no fans anywhere are entitled to see their team win the league. As we are all different people who just happen support the same club and it's only natural we should all see things at least slightly different to each other.

2.) 23 Feb 2025
23 Feb 2025 20:20:47
This weekend has absolutely broke me!

3.) 23 Feb 2025
23 Feb 2025 22:06:50
Yes 62 - the players give 80% but the manager has to ensure the right players give 100% in the right positions applying tactics to win.

Then it’s Arteta whs the problem as you are happy with the team.

This isn’t about effort - they are on over 100k per week and wear the cannon. The cannon is heavy - if it’s too heavy. Leave. Did Freddie just put effort in or was it effort with purpose, or Pires, or DB10, or Paddy or Cole, or Adams or Keown…they fought.

Effort should be a given however I haven’t seen them putting effort in to follow the West Ham man back yesterday, or to play the ball forward or to push forward. Is walking and sideways passing 100% effort exerted to win a game? Or coasting to not lose…I don’t think they have put enough into their games. Look against Everton - we turned it on for 15 mins. Against Villa at home?

I like Rice but he was lazy yesterday for that goal. Jogged back and lost his man who had a simple header at waist height… is that 100% effort? I can pick many moments like that and there's the difference between us and Liverpool.

How lazy or goal shy has Kai been when he should have got into the box to score or get into dangerous positions. Ode is playing at 70% …

Plenty other teams get 5 against 3 with us while we attach 2 against 5. Plenty other teams put effort in. Brentford put effort in, Hammers did, why is that enough? The manager and the club must equip the team to win. Yes there’s been injuries but we’ve been poor this season when injuries weren’t our concern.

Efforts not enough to win the league mate.

Arteta cleared out the non-effort brigade although they put effort in before him. That’s gone. He can’t eat off that forever.

I don’t buy this effort eg they put 100% in or effort alone is enough. Effort with purpose and a team with purpose is required - managed by a manager with purpose….

4.) 23 Feb 2025
23 Feb 2025 22:08:30
O’Leary - is that Kieran?

5.) 23 Feb 2025
23 Feb 2025 23:00:38
Hi Sy, I stopped reading your post at the players giving 80%.

We are chalk and cheese in the way we see things and I honestly can't be bothered to even try and find common ground anymore. Your a nice bloke but our differences are to great to bridge

Take care mate I genuinely wish you well.

6.) 24 Feb 2025
23 Feb 2025 23:19:49
Fair enough mate = I am moaning too much. I enjoy reading your posts and will continue. I will try to limit my posts and frustrations as it’s probably getting a bit much. ?.

7.) 24 Feb 2025
23 Feb 2025 23:32:40
I think our players giving 100% but the system failed with the injuries we have. You can blame Arteta for his tactics but that's what he havs in his disposal. Sterling is a massive disappointment when he worked his magic last week and his sub won us the game it was a master class, he tried it again using him the target man. To be honest I would rather he plays ben white up front instead of sterling.
Also, what makes so sure that arteta didn't want to buy a striker or add to the squad in January.

I think we are short in numbers and that will be addressed in the winter and we go again. Yes not satisfied with 2nd but I think we are going through rough period with those absentees.
And do you really belive had Liverpool lost salah and 2 more of there forwards they will be in this position or they even have a replacement to put them where they are now?

I think sometimes we need to look at the situation we are in before throwing anyone under the bus.
And just a reminder arteta's ball brought us back competing so I would at least give him another year to have a go.

8.) 24 Feb 2025
24 Feb 2025 00:04:57
Sy, you said in livechat that you didn't watch the game yesterday, shall i assume from this post you watched the full 90minute replay?

9.) 24 Feb 2025
24 Feb 2025 04:05:35
I have to say that I disagree with SY4 about the players not putting in effort because effort was the one thing that was very evident in the West Ham game. The passing was good, the effort was amazing, and the players were obviously fired up, especially after we drew against Villa in the midweek. The only things missing was someone who could play the final pass and someone who could put it in the back of the net. And with four attackers out right now, that's quite understandable. You lot were unlucky with injuries this season with all of it concentrated in one area of the field. If not for that, I'd imagine the gap would be much closer. We aren't pulling up any trees this season tbh and we are lucky that City fell off the way they did this season.

10.) 24 Feb 2025
24 Feb 2025 07:49:42
Got to say I'm slightly concerned if that was our players giving 100%. We really are capable a lot better and the tracking back from rice and cala for the goal was very half arsed. However think thr blame lies with the manager. He needs to step it up a bit and stop over complicating every single decision he makes. All season we've had players out of position in areas due to over thinking and lack of trust.

If course if we really want to get into it whoever thought we'd be okay without a cf needs to hold there hands up and leave asap.

11.) 24 Feb 2025
24 Feb 2025 09:18:42
Sy4 Keiran?

12.) 24 Feb 2025
24 Feb 2025 11:03:30
Lots of interesting points of view in this thread.

Regarding Arteta switching things up, surely he needs to do that to see who could cover certain positions in case of injury? Playing our best 11 week in and week out is not doable. Yes he could try out switches during training but that's a million miles away from a high pressure PL or CL game.

I'm resigned to top 4 this year so am not suffering as much as some posters.
I don't think the players are slacking, overuse of the same players and the mental realisation you probably won't achieve your dream (again) is a hard pill to swallow and I really don't think wages has anything to do with it.
Our current front line is nowhere good enough to deal with a back 5 and this is the reality we find ourselves in. All teams know this and take advantage of our situation.

Think, City without Harlaand's goals, Liverpool without Salah's, Villa without Watkins, Newcastle without Isak so its pretty obvious what we need. I'm not sure it was Arteta's decision not to go in hard for a striker, why would that make sense?

I am not a defeatist but in our current situation I am a realist so let's do our best to get behind our boys this year, regroup, recruit and release well in the summer and I can't wait for next year! :)

13.) 24 Feb 2025
24 Feb 2025 14:43:16
The boot lies with the owners. If they are not happy with coming second and have been duped by Arteta to sign Sterling and in some cases Havertz (i Like him and appreciate his contribution) than let's look elsewhere and bring on a new manager. However if the owners have restricted his ability to buy then its with the owners. With Edu leaving still no replacement feels like ground hog day if we leave the recrutiment to Arteta too.

When Arteta took over his contract would have been to make us competitive. With the squad he had and the envirnoment that he came in he needed to get the deadwood out and bring in players that would work for him and the club. Also needed to get the fans back. IN my opinion he achieved that. Second contract would be to bring in the trophies. The players he bought or kept on may not be enough to bring in the trophies so he needs to reset. He has an excellent core of players, starting 11 no striker needed. HOwever we need depth as we can't keep playing the same 11 week in week out. WIth that depth we need a striker. I remember Wenger saying to be competitive on all fronts you need to have atleast three different teams plus have youth team. We are still some way away from that

The media keeps mentioning bringing up how much we have spent in the last 5 years look at how much kronkes have spent acroos their tenure of arsenal and factor in the value of average player and you will see how far behind we are in spending. When we had Wenger we were not spending anything isntead we were simply asset stripping everything they could get their hands on. In the last few years we have spent an enormous amount, but overall this is nothing compared to what others have spent and we need more investment rather than throw out what we have that works.

That saying don't cut your nose off to spite your face, don't throw away Arteta that is simply providing what his owners are looking for but replace the pwners that are not demanding bigger things.

14.) 24 Feb 2025
24 Feb 2025 20:30:13
It is soooooo competitive at the top of the table g4e, we are just one club on the verge of the big prize. It's never going to be easy with the likes of Liverpool, City etc etc.
Hopefully our time will come soon :)