The significance of Aston Villa’s 1-0 win over Arsenal is hard to overstate, as they came out of relegation on goal difference before the last day of the season, but it also puts an end to any chance the Gunners would secure Europa League football through the Premier League It is the first time in 25 years that they will finish out of the top six.
David Trezeguet’s sublime attack in the 27th minute was just a reward for a Villa team that showed greater industry and commitment across the field, as Arsenal sported the scars of the victory battle in Saturday’s semifinal over Manchester City in the FA Cup despite Mikel Arteta’s attempt to hide them. making six changes to his starting lineup.
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No replacement replaced Wembley’s masterpiece on August 1 (watch live on ESPN + in the US), which now has enormous ramifications for the rebuilding of Arteta, given that it is much more than an opportunity for the winners 13 times to extend that record in the competition and mark the Spaniard’s debut managerial season with a trophy.
The larger picture was highlighted when a banner flew over five minutes in this game with the simple message: “Back Arteta, Kroenke Out.” The plane’s journey was collectively funded by a group of Arsenal supporters, who raised £ 1,700 to voice their point.
Stan Kroenke has been attacked in this way before, and the reason is always the same: Supporters worried about a chronic lack of investment are watching his team fight to keep up with the elite of the Premier League.
Money is tight at Arsenal. Arteta has little hidden the fact that they have devised three different transfer strategies depending on whether they qualified for the Champions League, the European League or no European football.
The club’s focus on game-day revenue has seen how the coronavirus pandemic hit them financially, so those who believe the absence of European football would give Arteta an additional focus on domestic activities are unaware of fine monetary margins. at the Emirates Stadium.
The Europa League is undoubtedly a cash-strapped cousin of the Champions League, but Arsenal won in the region of £ 34 million for reaching last year’s final. The figure will be considerably lower this year after being eliminated in the final stage of 32 by Olympiakos, but it is still estimated at around £ 19 million.
Considering the club’s latest accounts showed a pre-tax loss of £ 27.1 million and is expected to continue much worse, every penny really counts. And this loss, their tenth league loss of the season, was another reminder of the makeover this team requires.
“I have full support from the Kroenkes, the board, the sports director,” said Arteta. “We are putting together a very solid plan to try to do everything we can in the shortest period because, at the end of the day, the league table does not lie. Now we have the gap that we have to fill, and we are on board trying to do everything together.
“We need to improve in many areas. First of all, it is my responsibility to improve the team individually, the mindset, of course, too. And after that, in certain areas we need to improve because the best teams are better than us. Uncertainty is the reality. We have uncertainty because the coronavirus hit everyone hard, we don’t know how we are ending up in Europe and there is uncertainty with some players. I have to try to be honest. “
The Gunners arrived at a team threatened by relegation and failed to muster a single target shot in 90 minutes. There is palpably insufficient quality depth in this team to rotate and compete on multiple fronts.
Lucas Torreira was substituted at the break after a poor performance in midfield. Sead Kolasinac stayed but was terribly wandering as a makeshift midfielder in the second half. Cedric repeatedly wasted promising crossover positions. Nicolas Pepe failed to impact the game from the bench.
Perhaps it was inevitable that Arsenal’s intensity would drop just three days after such a grueling display to beat City, but the Gunners never leave it too long to remind everyone why they are so far from constantly challenging.
Mesut Ozil’s continued absence is believed to be based on a desire to freeze him before moving him this summer instead of paying the final year of his £ 350,000 per week contract. It may not suit Arteta’s style of play, and his performances may be inconsistent. But it feels a little counterintuitive not to at least have him as an off-bench option for the final 20 minutes of a game that Arsenal needed to win, but struggled to create despite Dani Ceballos’ best efforts.
Arteta maintains full control of the team’s selection, but finances may be influencing football. They appear to be inextricably linked. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang intends to stay at Arsenal, but the £ 250,000 per week contract, for the three years he wants, will feel more difficult without Europa League football.
Arsenal is tenth, and the highest they can now finish is eighth, regardless of where they end, it will represent their worst finish since 1995.
“[Missing out on the top six] It has to hurt, and we have to suffer because it is not good enough for this football club, “said Arteta.” Also, we have to fix it. We know that the challenge is really great. We are really excited about what lies ahead, and we need to convey this enthusiasm and passion because unfortunately there will be some ups and downs. Today is a failure, but sometimes it is also good to see reality and then go again, move on and improve. “
Watford, in the relegation zone behind Villa now, visits Arsenal on Sunday. As Villa has here, they too hope to benefit from an Arsenal team affected by the FA Cup. After all, he could make or break Arsenal’s summer.
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