Result: Arsenal 1 – 0 Bournemouth
Competition: Premier League
Date: 6 October 2019
Venue: Emirates Stadium
Arsenal: Leno, Chambers, Sokratis, Luiz, Kolasinac, Xhaka, Guendouzi, Ceballos, Saka, Pepe, Aubameyang
Subs: Martinez, Holding, Tierney, Maitland-Niles, Torreira, Willock, Martinelli
David Luiz’s early headed goal was enough to earn Arsenal three points against a poor Bournemouth side. Arsenal were comfortable through the first half but had to stay sharp to hold back against the Cherries who fought hard in the latter stages in search of an equalizer.
The result solidifies Arsenal’s position in third place and are just a point off Manchester City who sit in second.
First Half
In a much changed line-up since the Europa League demolition of Standard Liege, only Dani Ceballos keeps his place in the heart of midfield while left back, Kieran Tierney had to settle for a spot on the bench.
Despite both teams having a reputation for attacking football, it all started very tentatively for the players – with neither of the teams being able to get into the flow with their passing and movement.
It was Aubameyang who brought a spark to the game in the fifth minute as he latched onto the ball on the left wing during a counter attack. In Henry-esque fashion, he cut in on his right foot and curled in a shot towards the far post but missed the target by mere inches.
That ignited a spell of possession which led to Arsenal’s first goal. Arsenal earned a corner, Pepe crossed it in to the box and Luiz flicked on the ball towards an unguarded back post. 1-0 Luiz.
It wasn’t until the 18th minute where Arsenal threatened Bournemouth’s goal again. Saka found a lively Pepe in the inside right channel who tried curling the ball from the edge of the box towards the far post. It was the Ivorian again who was the protagonist as he was hacked down in the box after few tricky stepovers to beat his defender. How a penalty wasn’t given after a VAR review is beyond me.
Bournemouth were surprisingly passive, tepid and slow all through the half as they struggled to play the ball out of the back and have allowed Arsenal to dominate the game. Saka, Guendouzi and even Chambers were allowed shots on goal as the Cherries can’t find a way past second gear.
The half ended 1-0 with Arsenal giving the impression of a predator playing with its prey without going for the kill. They were dominant but were never able to put a poor Bournemouth to the sword.
Second Half
Unsurprisingly, Bournemouth started the second half with more verve and industry and almost scored an equalizer on the 50th minute with two great opportunities for Callum Wilson.
The first was a driving run through the heart of the defence by Wilson only for him to square across the box for King instead of going for goal. Fortunately, Chambers was back to clear the pass and scupper a simple tap-in for King. Wilson’s second chance involved a missed header from a promising cross – all warning signs for Arsenal who haven’t seemed to match the elevated tempo.
Leno, who had been untroubled through the game, had to be sharp as the Cherries turned the screw on the 55th minute when Stacey made a darting on down the inside right from an overhit pass. Stacey’s last ditch cross swerved dangerously to loop towards the goal but the German pushed it away for a corner.
Emery’s solution to give the Gunners a shot in the arm involved hooking Pepe on the 60th minute for the in-form Martinelli. Pepe wasn’t poor (he got an assist for Luiz’s opener) but his influence was fading as the match played on. Ceballos’ midfield wizardry also gave way to Willock’s box-to-box presence soon after to protect the lead.
It became a game of attrition from both parties as none could find that final ball to threaten in the final third. Emery was happy enough to keep the game that way as Torreira came on for the promising Saka to close out the game.
Aubameyang hit the post and Bournemouth threatened with a couple of half chances as the game went into injury time.
In the end, Arsenal held out for the win. It was not the most impressive performance to date but it earned them three vital points as they climbed to third place – just 1 point behind Manchester City who lost at home to Wolves.
1 nil to the Arsenal!!! Third in the league just behind City and a decent performance! Things have progressed and there are still some class players to come into the side. So looking good!
It’s all good when we win.
But truth is if we were playing really well, we’d be closer to Liverpool right now than Man City. How an Arsenal team cannot string 5 passes together consistently in a match is a cause for big concerns.
A pretty boring second half. It’s a bit worrying we only have +2 goal difference but the 3 points are all that matters. Hopefully can keep grinding results until we start playing well.
I’m very happy with the three points, but we surely have to thank a really poor Bournemouth for giving us a free 45 minutes to stroll about until they decided to play football. You can see it written all over Aubameyang’s face how dismal this brand of football is that we are playing at the moment. Ultimately it is up to Emery to get the three points, and he did that, so applause, but we can’t keep playing this way and expect to stay in the top four. We’ll take it for now, but to have two shots on target… Read more »
Totally agree, just posting the exact same on the other post. They were there for the taking but the midfield (mainly Xhaka) slowing down play was criminal to watch. so pedestrian
Im pretty sure most games even against the lower teams we’d be grinding for results…maybe we might even have a repeat of last season. It’s how Unai is. He’d play the same mistakes players consistently. Look how long it took for him to finally play Chambers at RB. Remember PSG in UCL.
I think that people always say the last missing piece is the lacking of attacking creativity that unlock the defense in a very difficult way that like to park their barses so much. That position is currently filled by Pepe who is still finding his tune and that I honestly think things could have been different if put Ozil instead.
Yeah.., I can breath easier now.
I hope luiz can too after being crushed by his mates.
Are we playing well? Drawing out to this Man Utd and did you see how Callum Wilson carver us open only to not score. I bet you won’t see because the football that emery wants to play is sooo boring. Give me back my Arsenal please.
Did nobody notice the long ball tactics in second half? Lucky to be winning after that crap second half play.
Standards have fallen far if that’s a decent performance.
Scared of Bournemouth at home too?
#EmeryOut
So who do we bring in who would take us higher than 3rd in the table. 11 matches with 7 wins and 1 defeat.
I love it when people completely miss the point.
Chambers has made a telling difference to our defence since he’s started at right back over the inept Maitland Niles. Defensively solid, with a sound positioning sense and underrated attacking ability, no wonder we’ve looked less shaky at the back. Infact, we’ve conceded just one goal in all the games he’s started this season. Motm today with those two crucial match winning interceptions. Shout out to Saka who’s ability to adapt to the demands of the Premier League is just incredible for his young age. Martinelli looks fiesty and seems to have not only the ability, but also the competitive… Read more »
I agree Chambers has definitely earned a place in our team and has been contributing well. I’d like to see him at CB when bellerin and tierney come into our starting lineup.
Chambers has made a telling difference to our defence since he’s started at right back over the inept Maitland Niles. Defensively solid, with a sound positioning sense and underrated attacking ability, no wonder we’ve looked less shaky at the back. Infact, we’ve conceded just one goal in all the games he’s started this season. Motm today with those two crucial match winning interceptions. Shout out to Saka who’s ability to adapt to the demands of the Premier League is just incredible for his young age. Martinelli looks fiesty and seems to have not only the ability, but also the competitive… Read more »
Oh how the narrative would be different if Bournemouth had (deservedly) equalised in the 2nd half. Midfield did relatively well today, but once again as soon as an opposition ups the intensity even slightly, we lose control of the game.
Pains me to say it, but even Lampard is showing he’s a better coach than Emery.
Yes, a point behind Citeh — and a small matter of 16 goals. We’ve just won our 2nd PL game in the last 6, and have the worst goal difference in the top 5.
On the other hand, the win is good, of course, and a second PL clean sheet. We’re on our own in 3rd place, a point behind 2nd and a point ahead of those below us. Not all bad news.
That’s silly. won 2 in 6, but you won’t mention the other 2 games to make it 8? why just stop at 6 ? why not mention the fact that we lost only once and drew with 2 of last season’s top 6 sides?
This match, certainly the second half, reminded me of all those good results with poor performances in our long unbeaten streak at the beginning of last season. We played pretty much the same at the end of last season, but the results reflected the performance and we collapsed. This was better than at Old Trafford, but we were at home against a small club that wants to play football–a combination that should have led to a much better performance from us.
I watched Xhaka closely and all I saw was unnecessary fouls, 2 yard sideways or backwards passes and when he attempted to pass it forward it was always behind the player he was aiming for. Please Emery start using your Europa League midfield!
You forgot to mention his positional discipline to stay away from the attackers whenever the opposition attacks. It’s impressive really. His mistimed diving header was also a thing of beauty.
You guys have the new Mustafi. It looks human beings always need victims and it is sad.
It’s not sad
Agreed 100%. Just because the midfield looks less slow in buildup/counter attacks when he doesn’t play doesn’t mean he’s to blame. Also, although we can’t control matches or defend compactly I agree that it would be criminal to try a midfield without him in the league. We need to keep him in a dysfunctional system and hope it sorts itself out. This tarring and feathering should stop, people kept saying the same things about Denilson.
(1) We look slow in defense and attack with Xhaka – you say yes
(2) We can’t control matches or defend compactly – you say yes
So:
“it would be criminal to try a midfield without him in the league. We need to keep him in a dysfunctional system and hope it sorts itself out.”
Keep doing the same thing over and over and hope it magically starts working…I hope this is satire otherwise it’s a great comment Unai!
Dave you’re very short sighted, fans kept calling for Denilson’s head saying Cesc needed a better midfield partner. Look at where he is now. We need to support our players and bottle our opinions.
Where is he now? I genuinely have no idea
Ok, so it was satire…(i think…)
Isn’t that supposed to be a definition of insanity; doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result?
well, I laughed
oh yeah and by coincidence in all games he hasnt played, we played nice and scored more
Or…maybe, just maybe, based off evidence, Xhaka is actually a weak link. Absurd, right? I really hate this narrative that Arsenal fans need to have a mustafi like target to blame. It is repetitive, weak and fails to take into consideration many other things. Is our midfield slower with xhaka? Yes. Doe we get bypassed more often with xhaka in our side? Yes. Does Xhaka make mistakes that put us under pressure, yes. So what exactly do you want fans to say? Not comment about it? The reason why Xhaka gets a lot of stick is because his style of… Read more »
Only Mustafi can go full Mustafi. Credit to Xhaka for trying though.
Mustafi 3 clean sheets. You can’t have your cake and eat it. We win in those games with him and keep a clean sheet, focus is on well we attack well but no mention of the defending. Same with Granit. Did not see too many problems with Granit. On e bad pass otherwise shielded us well. Same numpties will turn a blind eye to Torreira or Cebellos giveaways. I believe our goal against united was a direct result of granit intercepting and playing the ball quickly forward. But some people prefer to concentrate and mention only the things Xhaka does… Read more »
His biggest contribution was pushing Luiz over in the celebration.
I watched him closely today too. A few things to note: – when he is stuck and has too many players around him, he blindly whips a long ball forward which ends up finding one of our players. Still dunno how he does that – his first preference of a short pass is not even sideways (let alone forward), but a back pass. – due to his height he wins headers more often than not and possesses decent physical strength but while an opposition team is counter attacking, Xhaka is like an autistic cat on an autobahn. He can’t defend… Read more »
*instead of
I think this is pretty fair; his excellent long passing seems to be what managers (not just Emery) like so much about him.
Yes, he sort of wins headers but the majority seem to skim onto the back of his head and the ball goes the wrong way, right into the path of the opposition. Noticed this happened on several occasions.
“when he is stuck and has too many players around him, he blindly whips a long ball forward which ends up finding one of our players. Still dunno how he does that” That was my best trait too haha, just a kinda guess where your fast players will be. But im not a professional so shouldn’t he be better than that?
Not really. As mentioned, he was responsible for the United goal on the breask with quick intercept.
He does that a lot for us breaking up play.
he also switches the ball quickly forward with long passes.
there is a very good reason he starts ahead of say Torreira.
he also adds height and intercepts the ball in the middle of the park with his head. Practically he is that third Cback.
I don’t think you understand what you are watching.;)
I hope Emery stops playing our second choice midfield in the League matches. Using your better midfield just in the cup games makes no sense to anyone.
I seriously cannot wait to see Torreira (DM) behind Guendouzi and Willock. Everytime Willock sets foot on the pitch we have someone with added drive and he is exuding confidence. I feel like Torreira holding the fort will free Guendouzi from his Xhakles and let him be the true box-to-box midfielder he is… Guendouzi was really impressive again today. Chambers really good, and credit to Sokratis and Luiz who were really impressive at the back. Xhaka was fine without doing anything else, but this game actually suited him (especially 1st half) when Bournemouth mainly played slow and tried to keep… Read more »
I think you will have to be patient, and wait for him to get suspended.
Also he annoying stands still with his arms behind his back in an “attempt” to block
He started doing it after the Sp*rs game he two footed Son in. It’s like his parents told him they’d give his brother the house keys if he gives away another penalty.
Maybe you should watch other players closely too. Most of them did some less than glorious thing today. But I guess you find a perverse pleasure in putting Xhaka under the microscope. Is he the reason why had only 2 shots on goal?
Yes he is the reason
Don’t be daft. The stick that Xhaka gets is ludicrous. He still has one of the best passing ranges of any player in the country. He’s not the best but to scapegoat him all the time is sickening.
The issue is that playing Xhaka excludes other choices which would change the balance. Torreira, Gendouzi and Willock/Ceballos please.
We are playing with one less midfielder with him in the team, so yes he’s part of the reason we were so abject going forward. He plays as a false DM, a role he created for himself apparently. It’s fine if we pick up 3 points like today, but what worries me is if we can keep winning playing like this. We played without Xhaka in EL and look how we did?
We played with him in Germany and won, but that doesn’t fit your narrative does it. I actually wouldn’t mind playing without Xhaka, but the way you lot are singling him out week after week is simply ridiculous.
Did we play and attack well in Germany? How about vs Standard? See a pattern there?
I see a different opposition level way before I start seeing patterns. Liege didn’t test us at any level.
I see a similar opposition today with Bournemouth, particularly in the first half. But did you see our captain really impose himself in the game? Dictate the tempo of the match? Or defend particularly well? We were passing slow with no rhythm and slowly inviting them to come back to the game. Didn’t see that vs Liege.
To be clear, I hold Emery accountable for this team struggling for confidence at home against Bournemouth
At least someone’s watching, I don’t really like xhaka but he was literally pointing to his mf partners where to receive the ball. If he’s the pivot the others need to be available and probable take a few less touches. I love guendouzi but he needs to sharpen up on the positional aspect of his game and that’ll take time.
he shows so much promise that it’s easy to forget how young he is & fact he’s still learning the positional aspects of the game
It’s clear to me that Xhaka is playing it safe on the pitch. He used to make line-braking passes into the opponents half. Now he goes backwards, never taking the risky option. Maybe all this criticism is getting to his head. As that’s his one major skillset and he isn’t even doing that now, I can’t see what he offers to this team.
Or its just the game Emery wants him to play. All his throughball game as gone since Emery came along.
For greater good of this team and talented players I want us to loose 5 matches in row and boot out this clueless manager. Saying this is painful but thinking of emery staying longer would be a killer blow to this talented squad minus Xhaxa.
Let’s blame everything wrong with our football on Xhaka, so simple isn’t it? He is slow and can be a liability defensively, but he always has been good passer. We had a many great to watch games with him in the midfield under Wenger and first half of last season under Emery (particularly against teams like Bournemouth, with shittier squad than we have now). If you think we suddenly play bad football, question the manager and his current tactics, rather than creating new scapegoats every year. Last year all of our defensive problems were down to mustafi, and this year… Read more »
Everyone going on about xhaka being a good passer. I am curious to know, for a midfielder who is a good passer, how many assists does he have? Does he make our attack more fluid with his good passing?
How many assists a deep-lying midfielder should have in your opinion?
Yes, with the right partner Xhaka could make our attacks fluid (at least better than we see these days). In my opinion (not that it counts), Emery should play a proper CDM (Torreira) with Xhaka or Guendouzi. Xhaka/Guendouzi CM partnership is neither solid nor progressive especially without a specialist AM.
So he does not make assists(fair enough, not his work) but also does not make our attack more fluid. So what is his good passing for exactly? Face it guys, he is a square peg in a round goal. He may be as good as some people believe but he does not work in our system. Why should we accomodate him?
since xhaka joined we have become a europa league team. and will continue to be as long as he is in there. we dont deserve more.
He wasn’t great but I don’t think Xhaka was THE problem today. I think one of the things that will help our midfield is when Tierney and Bellerin start playing in the Premier League. The danger they provide on the wings should open space up for our central midfield and help us look more fluid. With that said I’d prefer to see torreira in that role but I think we shouldn’t get carried away with the Xhaka hate just because we’re frustrated with a stodgy team performance.
Another dire performance. 2 shots on target at home? It’s not good enough.
Nothing exciting about our game at the moment even though we won. Started watching at around 50th minute and not a single clear-cut goal scoring opportunity created till 90th minute. And to think a chance creating machine is not even in squad..? Even on his worst day, Ozil could create chances. Accept that the Ceballoses and Guendouzis do so much of running around but neither of them are anywhere near the vision and intelligence Ozil possesses. I am a fan of Ozil but I am not saying we should pick him because he is Ozil. All I am saying is… Read more »
It’s clear that it’s not Emerys decision alone on this. Edu, Raul & the Kroenkes all want him out. He has always been pathetic in trainings, throws a a fit every now and then.
Oh, how could i watch the trainings, mate? I’d love to see Özil at training as you obviously do!
Have you witnessed these fits or have an input to what happens in training?
Where does this knowledge come from? Not a hint from real journalists (like Ornstein or Amy Lawrence), nothing that you could interpret that way from his teammates, and in the very few times we have seen him this year, he looks energetic and eager to play.
You missed a first half where we were totally in control and were pressing all over the pitch. Bournemouth defenders are just too smart to try dribbling round all the time but the short passes worked better.
From the time you switched on though we switched off. No pressing, shocking passing, not winning tackles. Not sure about substitutions either, didn’t really change anything.
Agreed, I’m not happy with us sitting back after 50 mins T home to Brighton…the tactics are so negative.
I enjoyed the first half. The second half, not so much. Encouraging that we could hold on for the win. A lot of teams are finding it tough right now whom many would have thought would have an easy ride, so let’s not sniff at a 1-0 win.
Though it’s not an isolated game is it. We haven’t put in a convincing league performance since March.
How many teams are putting in consistently convincing league performances this season? One.
Seriously, the expectations of Arsenal right now are ludicrous. It’s a tough league. The likes of Bournemouth can and will beat a lot of good sides this season, just as they did last.
Are you saying it’s unreasonable to expect more than one shot on target from open play at home?
No, just that we won the game, and that we’re not the only supposed top six team in England struggling in what is a very competitive league.
The point , for me, is that we created next to nothing while Bournemouth looked the better more fluid team for most of the 2nd half. Given respective budgets, players and home advantage that really shouldn’t be the case. And, no, I was not entertained
‘the expectations of Arsenal right now are ludicrous.’ Really? 2 shots on target? You think that’s ludicrous
I think it’s ludicrous that fans expect Arsenal to be Liverpool right now. This is what it is, unfortunately. I know you and others will find nothing positive from anything Emery/Arsenal do right now, and that’s unrealistic and toxic.
It is not ludicrous to expect your team to play better than the opposition at home – especially when that opposition is a really dysfunctional and blunt Bournemouth. No one expects Arsenal to win the league this season, and therefore no one expects us to be Liverpool — not even close. Fans are concerned with our performances and our lack of attacking prowess; if you listened to Aubameyang’s interview after the United match and watched his face today, it is readily apparent that the fans aren’t the only ones concerned with our inability to turn possession into opportunity. It is… Read more »
Chelsea smashed it today. So you don’t have to be Liverpool or City to look convincing, and we haven’t yet, which is a worry
Total strawman mate. Our league play is awful to watch right now, Utd game and now this one. We don’t seem capable of putting together a performance for longer than 45 mins. We’re right to be worried and questioning the performance and judgement of the manager.
Bit nervy in the end, but thought we pressed them really well. Thought Chambers were good again. So was Saka and Luiz. Up to third.
Good win, would still like to see a little more progressive football but I’ll take third in the league and one point behind city!
It was an unbearable scrappy and chaotic match again, just needed someone with some quality and imagination. There was a Ozil shaped hole in there. It’s almost his perfect game, should have been starting.
This is the point, I think. If you don’t start Ozil in this match, don’t even have him on the bench, it cannot be for, as Wenger called it, “sporting reasons.” It is to force him to leave in order to slash the payroll.
@God is a Gooner I understand your point but even Ozil wouldn’t have been able to do much in the 2nd half yesterday, because the manager set us up to simply play the match out – from the 45th bloody minute… He had absolutely no intention of us scoring another goal and he’s happy with that!
2nd in the Leagueeeee, only 1 loss. Good going so far
3rd
Does anyone think we are only 1 point worse than Man City? Does anyone think that is how the table will look next April?
Hey our centre backs didn’t make any stupid mistakes today! Anyone else worried we are the kings of the half-hearted press.
i know we won but my god that was so boring to watch
I not sure which was worse, my train home being cancelled so I could t watch the game on TV, or reading the live blog (that bit was good) and reading how boring, tame and shite Arsenal were. At least we won.
How can our opponents just walk past our central defense and create chances?
Why did xhaka not get substituted?
Why does Guendouzi only take game by the scuff of the neck when we are trailing?
Why couldn’t we provide auba with any chances?
How many chances did we actually create?
What more does Chambers has to do to play in central defense?
How many more games before our board decides Emery is just not good enough?
Because we lack any defesnive structure or a coach which will provide one.
Xhaka wasn’t subbed because Emery holds him high.
Douzi did fairly well.
Beacause it’d funnier to see him create them him self. And not much creativity in team.
Not many, at least not many big chances.
Chambers probably needs to get another first team coach to get to play CB.
If we keep winning and avoiding defeats he probably won’t get sacked at all, and he might even get a new contract.
Why on earth would the board sack a manager who’s team is 3rd in the table with only 1 defeat in 11 matches. Played 11 W7 D3 L1
Last year same time we were in a similar run and we know how that ended. Also other teams around us are shitting their pants.
They won’t sack him whilst he getting results. I’m not particularly convinced by emery either but we are currently 3rd in the league.
Our midfield system is shit.
Our midweek midfield is a better line up…
Glad for the win, but don’t make me watch this match ever again. We looked utterly porous through the midfield. That’s the most consistent thing about this Arsenal team under Emery as of late.
2nd half was dross, but 1st was good.
We get 3 points, sit 3rd in table 1 point behind city. Results-wise this positive.
But we need to play better.
Even the first half wasn’t good mate. It’s just that Bournemouth were nervy.
Can’t call a whole 45 minutes good where their keeper didn’t have to make a save. The goal was a result of poor defending.
Basic corner defense positioning requires a player at the far post. They didn’t have one.
Winning is good, but we need to get more convincing. We give away too many chances, and we don’t create enough. This is a game we should win comfortably. Didn’t understand why Pepe was subbed, he did fairly well. Chambers perhaps motm.
Was actually torn between Chambers and Douzi. But Chambers was immerse today. Our games have been really painful to watch lately, I might add. The EL and and league cup matches are much fun to watch than the epl setup.
Pepe was subbed to give Martinelli much deserved minutes in pl.
I’m happy to see Martineli get minutes, but I think he could have subbed Saka or Auba instead.
Good idea to sub our best striker who in fact was unlucky not score just before the end
We were leading, seems to be safer to sub Auba then – not to risk any injury. Of course he is our best striker, and probably our best player so far this campaign, so losing him out on a injury will leave us in a huge headache.
Saka had a better game than Pepe
I don’t agree. However Saka is probably high on self confidence atm, and Pepe is in need out boosting his. Getting Pepe on track seems very important for te team imo.
The EPL games have been painful yes. I wonder if the difference between Frankfurt and Bournemouth is that big in quality or if Emery is using the wrong team. The guy is watching them train every day, so he should know who’s best, but it’s so hard to make any sense out of this.
The nail bitey endings are a bit too often but happy with the win.
Xhaka is the unfit piece in our puzzle. So difficult to watch him with the sideway passing, and ridiculous fouling. Anyway 1-0 to the Arsenal, who would’ve thought after 8 games we’d be just 1 points behind the Champions! ?
And nobody would have thought the champions would be 8 point behind the leaders too..
Satire, ever heard it before?
yep..but it is not when you have to write again to tell it was ..
Same boring shit.
Three points and into the third spot, just a point behind City. That’s definitely great. Sorry for being like this, but the performance was just… uninspiring. I don’t remember a chance created from an open play that wasn’t down to individual effort. We lost control of the game the second B’mouth realized we’re not that big of a threat. That being said, I liked both our fullbacks + Guendouzi. Tierney’s presence has a good influence on Kolasinac. Interlull comes at a right time. We go into it with a win, there’s a chance to build a bit more of a… Read more »
I hope we’re not looking to count on goal difference this season ?
Look at Table and you’ll see that only top 2, Chelski and Leicester have better. It’s that sort of season – so far!
You gotta hand it to Emery. He’s managed to suck the life out of Arsenal. He’s made us great at passing backwards. And he’s turned pepe into a hack, has kicked ozil off the team, got rid of Ramsey, sucking away all our creativity.
And we are one point behind city.
Pepe playing piss poor persistently plays proactively on Pepe
#papoose
Thought Pepe had a pretty decent game, he looked much sharper, should have had a penalty (how that wasn’t given is beyond me – isn’t that why we got VAR?!). And he put in a shift on defense too.
He improved today and is getting better all the time. Like Henry and Bergkamp after a few matches he will surely come good
He has our 2nd XI humming!!
You don’t want to moan after a win, but… that 2nd half, JFC AFC.
Big improvement needed but this win is a confidence booster for sure. Chambers, Kola, Saka and Luiz solid
I think, that this kind of win is more ‘a confidence boster’ for a team, that is desperately looking for a win (e.g. a team, that hasn’t won for several matches), not for the AFC, but still good for an atmosphere before interlul. As a player I can tell, I would not be happy with this kind of win. I would take it as an obligatory win, but definitely not the confidence boost, more likely I would feel an incongruousness.
One point ahead of City after a very Unai Benitez performance. Guess you can’t complain!
Behind
Sigh, I can only dream…
Was that really Arsenal playing? We kept a clean sheet, Aubameyang didn’t score and Xhaka didn’t pick up the obligatory yellow card
“Xhaka didn’t pick up the obligatory yellow card” he was very unlucky not to though, he did everything he could to get one…Atkinson just wouldn’t oblige him today.
That obligatory Yellow would have been his fifth, so he’s probably playing as nice as he can, to delay a ban as long as possible
Good first half for me but emery must develop a more definitive style to develop the consistency and control games . The arsenal should not be under
So much pressure in second half against Bournemouth . We must Also work on our Defensive form without the ball. However, the table doesn’t look too bad 😉
Arsenal did well to get… ah, who am I kidding ? That was a snoozefest. I legit cannot remember the last Arsenal game I watched that caused me to feel happiness or some excitement. Was it really as far back as Spurs 4 – 2 game?
Serious question: Is this an upgrade on Wenger ? Really? I feel like we got Emery at a car boot sale.
Maybe it was the previous game that they won 4-0? Or the game they won 5-0?
Not even Thursday night? I was very happy seeing what we have in store in bring out. Just think, we’re 3rd without playing well, in Carabao QF, virtually through in EL.
Have we already beaten Liverpool?
Let’s field Messi for that game & get fined £100,000, seems fair to me.
I guess you haven’t been watching Europa League or cup matches.
4-0 over SL this past Thursday was best game I’ve seen us play in a year or two.
I don’t know if there is anything termed as a Boring Win, but that surely was pretty boring. With all the Talents we have in the squad its pretty sad to see football just being played like they do at the training ground. There is no creativity or no one wants to even create a moment of magic. Too slow too passive. Guendouzi last season was producing more through balls than he has been doing this year, i know it might sound stupid but somehow the players who have not been part of first team play better and with a… Read more »
Emery will continue to suck the life out of The Arsenal
Big win given the other teams results, but we are playing poorly in the league. Emery is playing lethargic, unambitious football. Xhaka is everyone’s scapegoat, but rightly so and he did nothing to change that today. He gives away free kick because he can’t keep up with the play, granted Guendouzi and Ceballos today left him on his own, but then maybe he needs to reduce that distance when we’re pressing. He inevitably doesn’t. Pepe has came off twice now after limited performances, I think Emery may start trying out Nelson or Martinelli soon. This is fair because ultimately if… Read more »
It feels like the ‘Ozil’ factor was missing when attacking
What does Xhaka offer to this team? Kolasinac?
Who is our creator of goals and where is our creativity and invention?
Looking at Lampard who lost Hazard and are under a transfer ban — sitting 1pt behind us in 4th.
We can’t keep scrapping by these games. So unconvincing!
Fucking Arsenal fans always looking at the negative. Why not look at it as sitting in 3rd 1 point behind City having got 2 difficult away games out of the way.
Spot on mate.
We look at the negatives because there are way too many of them. And sooner or later its going to reflect in our results just like last year. Scrappy performance doesnot give players much confidence either even of its a win.
WE ARE THIRD!
“And sooner or later its going to reflect in our results just like last year.”
EXACTLY
Everything is shit yeah? I pity you lot and your poor outlook on life.
I am really please we won and kept a clean sheet obviously but it was not the most convincing performance was it and there were a couple of moments in the second half were Bournemouth could have sneaked a draw and it would have served us right! You would have thought after watching the youngsters wallop Standard Liege that some of the first team would have tried a lot harder than today. You also feel that if that had been the youngsters they may well have put 3/4 past Bournemouth because they were so bad in the first half. Hilariously… Read more »
We won and that’s a plus, have to celebrate that. BUT, yet again a toothless display, we can’t create chances, and we can’t defend too well, and our midfield (not pointing at anyone) is struggling right now. My question is, have we really developed and improved? or are we stalled? watching some games from the team, I believe we have a lot of potential, but I go with option B and say we’re stalled, and I’m not sure if is because of our players, the manager tactics or poor team selection, but isn’t fun to watch us play unless is… Read more »
The front three are asked to do too much. It seems that our wide players don’t have too many options when attacking. For me, I haven’t seen a big improvement. A better Bournemouth would have won this game. Chambers and Guendouzi with last ditch interceptions that stopped a shit Bournemouth from scoring against us.
When asked why Ozil is not in the squad, Emery said it is because other players deserve to play. Why is Xhaka then playing? Where was Nelson? Why isn’t Holding starting?
VAR is pointless is your just going to stick with the infield decision.
Comparing the foul on Pepe to Mane is pretty god damn obvious which one is worse & yet their dive is given & we get squadouche.
The foul on Pépé in the first half was definitely a pen but it was wrongly not given, while Sadio’s was also a foul and the pen was awarded. There were no dives anywhere
Why do many thumbs down for a truthful comment?
Did you say VAR was pointless after Aubameyang goal was ruled on side. VAR didn’t make the decision to rule out the penalty it was the referee. By the way the decision on Mane was correct as he was clearly fouled
We won and another clean sheet. After the break we will have one hell of a squad to choose from. Rejoice please all at @Iwannabemanagerverse? 🙂
But that would go against the narrative of wanting Emery out & making Ozil Player/manager.
I hope after the interlull Lacazette is back and that Bellerin, Holding and Tierney are ready for the first team
True. But will that solve the problems we have in midfield even though we have outstanding players there.
Perhaps Emery could try Chambers or Maitland-Niles in place of Xhaka.
(He’s going to have to do something when Xhaka gets suspended.)
Remember, this is a squad still in transition. It could be we’re just one Fernandinho or Kante away from much better days.
It won’t solve the midfield problems but the only way Xhaka is going to get dropped is if he breaks something
No need, a pivot of Torreira and Guendouzi should work well, with Willock or Ceballos starting.
Xhaka is simply useless and brings us down.
Pepe is shit!
Xhaka is shittier!!
Emery is the shittiest!!!
Ozil we love you!!!
#COYG! 3 points and still countinq!!!
And yet if you combined all that shittyness they still wouldn’t be as shit as Tottenham
I thought that while Bournemouth’s attack was quite tame today, our back four defended really. Callum Chambers again was pick of the bunch but it was nice to also see some fantastic crunching tackles by Luiz and Sokratis late in the game.
By no means a perfect display, but defensively much, much better.
Really well*
We literally didn’t create any chances. These lucky wins are unsustainable.
What a fabulous win! After winning greatly against the allmighty Aston Villa, defying the odds and our scare to get a fabulous draw at Watford, drawing at United against one of the best teams they’ve ever had, drawing AT HOME ! GUYS, AT HOME against Spurs who blow everybody away in CL (ask Bayern!)… I am lost for words! UE and his daring, his team selection, his “We are NEVER scared” captain! Give UE another contract!
2 shots on goal at the Emirates. Emeryball in full action.
https://imgflip.com/i/3ciznc
Never going to be unhappy at 3 points, but bloody hell what is this system? It seems to stifle all of our players strengths to the point that we – the Arsenal – can’t pass a football, at home vs a poor Bournemouth team. If we keep struggling to create from open play, this sort of result won’t be consistently possible.
Happy today, but worried we havent progressed, and instead seem to have gone backwards, in the last year, year and half. Keep getting the results but please, urgently, start fixing the way our team is coached.
I miss the era where we used to make 10 chances each half, miss them all and then lose to a breakaway goal from Swansea/Southampton/Blackburne etc.
Emery has me genuinely confused.
I actually felt this was a small positive step forward which isn’t even saying much at all against the opponent and their slow first half. But really just want more of the first half intent with 3 changes. 1)LT for GX 2)RH for either DL or SP and 3)KT for SK. Again I thought those players weren’t even that poor and are no doubt playing with some pressure from the suggested interchanges. It’s a good thing but I really want to see this built upon and i think that requires alternatives are given their chance. To UE credit he has… Read more »
Nice to see us thrashing the mighty Bournemouth. With all that creativity and exciting footie on show today, it is clear that Mesut will never be good enough for that team.
So painful to watch
After the game ended, I got in my car and was driving and I saw a man in the other direction driving towards me, realized he was in the wrong lane (he’d have to take a left and did not want to) and he was stuck behind another car so he put it in reverse, barely missed another car, but got into the correct lane. Everyone is fine, but the driver did not seem to know what he was doing, didn’t know which direction he should be going, and while it worked out today, it could have easily been a… Read more »
I’ve worked it out. After a winning game all the happy fans go and have a beer or something? So what we are left with here is people that are never happier than when they are moaning or telling professional players or managers what to do. I expect thumbs down in this moment. 🙂
Crumbs did I miss something? Slept through that one!!! Still can’t believe Emery refuses to play his best team – frustrating!!!
I think what’s upset Auba the most is that he sees a team full of talent and excellent players denied to play good fotball by an overcautious coach who pick wrong team and wrong tactics.
Look, the performance wasn’t great, disjointed, lacking in composure and a decent plan, however… listening to the whinging and whining amongst the fans is almost worse than that 2nd half! Come on, it’s a good result to go into the interlull, Spuds are imploding and Man Shitty are only a point ahead. I know Emery is starting to grate with his apparent inability to put out a team that functions in the league, but let’s at least look at the positives too.