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Arsenal … where do you start?
There are so many problems with Mikel Arteta’s team that it is difficult to know where to start.
His current situation is a crescendo of problems both within and outside of Arteta’s control. Bad luck in some parts? Maybe. Architects of their own downfall? Definitely. Tactically insecure, stripped of leadership, and fighting out of place? Yes, yes and yes.
But at the most basic level, Arsenal’s staff are not only falling behind the best traditional teams in the Premier League, they are far behind the rest just below. Your equipment is simply not good enough.
“They don’t have enough good players, it doesn’t matter who the coach is,” Graeme Souness said, even before Arsenal began their latest disappointment.
Even if Arsenal recover, string together a few performances and finish in the middle of the table, it is not acceptable at all. On Saturday, they looked like 11 moving parts, desperately trying not to be the scapegoat.
Arteta assures us that his team is still struggling, or in other words, no tools have been thrown at him and left the dilapidated construction site. But in current form, things are likely to get worse before they get better. Next up is Manchester City in the Carabao Cup, then Chelsea in the Emirates. Nobody expects Arsenal to get something positive.
It is the next two games, in Brighton and West Brom, that seem terribly important.
Brand Gerard
Calvert-Lewin sums up Ancelotti’s reign
A year into his tenure, much has been said about the progress Everton has made with Carlo Ancelotti.
But one of his greatest achievements has been the transformation of Dominic Calvert-Lewin. His improvement sums up Ancelotti’s new Everton.
The Calvert-Lewin delay game allows Everton to sit back, dive in and play the fast break, particularly without players like James Rodriguez. There are Harry Kane nuances in the way Calvert-Lewin intelligently holds the ball, and yes, holding the ball is more of a cognitive skill than you might think. It’s not just about throwing your weight down.
The timing of his jumps, barges and even when he wants to win a foul, are of the highest level. His touch, and more importantly, the weighted direction of his touch, takes defenders out of the game, even when they are hanging from his back. And that is even before his quality of shot and aerial threat in front of the goal.
It’s cute and effective, and that’s what Everton is now. On Saturday he was low ranked in his football performances this season, but that was necessary for all three points. Previously, that game management and intelligence was absent.
They did their dirty work, and in this season of all seasons, that means more than a flashy performance.
Brand Gerard
Liverpool finally shows its ruthless advantage
“I thought it would come because in recent weeks we have not been as ruthless in front of goal as we would have liked.”
Jordan Henderson knows that Liverpool have not been as clinical as we expected in recent games. Although Liverpool are unbeaten in nine, there have been 1-1 draws at Brighton and Fulham on the road, plus a lack of forward in a dominant first half against Tottenham midweek.
But like a volcano, the pressure of the lava finally exploded in Selhurst Park as Liverpool escaped to a spectacular 7-0 victory. As Jurgen Klopp put it, his team “obviously all wore their spike boots,” which was his explanation for the emphatic scoreboard.
Liverpool made 50 percent of the shots they had (7/14), compared to just two of the 17 they created against Tottenham. They were by no means perfect though, guilty of some sloppy passing in the first half when Crystal Palace had its best spell of the game. But Sadio Mane’s goal of doubling his lead seemed to refocus their minds as they mercilessly hunted for goals.
From then on, they ebbed and flowed like the Liverpool we have come to admire, taking advantage of the counterattack to devastate an already injured Crystal Palace, especially by Roberto Firmino’s first. He and Mohamed Salah scored twice and assisted, Salah did so from the bench, while Takumi Minamino opened things up with his first Premier League goal. A mention also for a wonderful curly bang from Henderson.
That too was another delicious aside from Liverpool’s performance. Each of the seven goals was finished in an excellent way and all assisted by different players: Mane, Firmino, Andy Robertson, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Salah, Joel Matip and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, which is the first time in the history of the Premier League that seven different players have. assisted a goal for a team in a match.
Not that Liverpool needed much, but it will give them a pre-Christmas boost heading into an unprecedented eight-day break before their next game against West Brom. The Baggies have the worst defensive record in the Premier League and could be another happy hunting ground for Liverpool.
Charlotte Marsh
Striking was nothing more than a great victory for Man City
This felt like a great moment in Manchester City’s season.
When the first ball was kicked at St Mary’s, Manchester City were 10 points behind league leaders Liverpool, who had just sent a title shout out at Crystal Palace.
Anything other than three points was not an option for Pep Guardiola, and his team played that way. As soon as they got their noses out front, it was risk-averse football played in a very controlled manner with many men behind the ball at every opportunity. It was far from the swashbuckling City performance we have come to expect under Guardiola, a rather hard-working one that was built around defensive unity. That’s now six clean sheets in their last seven games with the John Stones and Ruben Dias hub continuing to impress as City advanced to the 23-point mark, eight behind leader Liverpool.
Looking ahead, once again it was the influence of Kevin De Bruyne that made City tick.
A touch more forward than usual with no strikers selected by Guardiola, De Bruyne was the instigator of every promising attack created by the visitors.
When asked to produce the perfect final ball, he found it, providing Raheem Sterling with a typically fierce pass that Guardiola will have been relieved to see was actually clinically finished after the rebellion in front of goal in the draw with West Brom. .
No player made more key passes than De Bruyne (4), whose drive, energy and clever passing played a significant role in keeping Southampton at bay in the later stages.
If City win their game in hand, it takes them to second place. The Premier League table would suddenly have a familiar feel.
Lewis jones
Jan is the man from Southampton
Ralph Hasenhuttl has many qualities. But what makes him a manager who goes places is his ability to take players to the next level. Players seem to grow up under his watch.
Jannik Vestergaard is a perfect case example.
The Denmark defender signed with the Saints in 2018 for £ 18 million and held steady, if unspectacular, for much of Hasenhuttl’s initial tenure, with the coach admitting he was tempted to bring in reinforcements to secure a bottom line with leaks. However, Vestergaard looks like a new signing, catapulting his performances to levels that should make him one of the best center-backs in the Premier League.
Vestergaard was once again superb at the back in the loss to Manchester City, showing great quality on the ball. No player made more successful passes on the court than he did, and his taste for a 60-yard game change with Kyle Walker-Peters was a joy to behold. He’s also a major threat on offense, threatening two header from the James Ward-Prowse corners, a combination that has led to a three-goal comeback for the defender this season.
With him at the heart of their defense, there’s no question the Saints will keep going this season.
Lewis jones
Crystal Palace can bounce back from ‘humiliation’
It was an afternoon to forget for Crystal Palace. Roy Hodgson said he and his players were “humiliated” and couldn’t get any positives out of the performance. In fact, it is the first time Crystal Palace has conceded seven goals in a home game in its history.
Although understandably disappointed with a 7-0 hammering when speaking after the game, Hodgson had things to cheer on. Despite conceding in all three minutes, Crystal Palace was the better team for the next half hour and created some good starts.
What disappointed them was timing: Jordan Ayew simply missed a Wilfried Zaha cross to the back post, aided by a Joel Matip intervention, before the roles were reversed when Zaha got too far ahead of an Ayew cut. But they both did well when Palace was on the rise, and Jeffrey Schlupp also looked upbeat on his return to XI.
It cannot even be said that Crystal Palace defended particularly poorly, Vicente Guaita barely had a save to make, but they faced a table-top Liverpool who finally found their ruthless advantage. They were just overwhelmed.
While it may seem like a shame at the moment, Crystal Palace has already reached a good position in the table, so you don’t have to worry about a relegation battle. Let’s face it: if Southampton can bounce back from a 9-0 loss at Leicester last year, Crystal Palace certainly has the heart and determination to do the same.
Charlotte Marsh
Source: m.allfootballapp.com
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