Graham Perry
Dear Fellow Gunners
A Blip or the Beginning of the End?
The jury is still out – we don’t know the answer but to even ask the question is to flag serious reasons as to whether we have the ability and the commitment and the tenacity to win the Title.
That is what is at stake – there can be no hiding – we have never had a better chance to win and if we blow it this time the pressure on Wenger will be too difficult to resist.
And I am one of those who wants Wenger to succeed for reasons I have stated in previous Arsenal Circulars – I like his character, his approach, his football, his example.
There are others who now come close to his model like Koeman, Pocchetino and Pellegrini but for me Wenger was the first with his combination of qualities.
He has bought us a new stadium, long term security, a great future and all this while we were a selling Club.
And yet he kept us in the top four, never mid-table, never flirting with relegation but up there at the top punching way above our weight – that was down to Wenger and he deserves the accolades.
But all of this counts for nothing if having done so well and having the money to spend and having the support of his Board he falls short and for reasons that we have seen before.
Do we have the character? – have we got the steel? – do we have the Leaders?
Now we are on the brink – now that we are tipped by most commentators – now that we are in with a real chance are we going to fumble the baton? – drop the catch? – career down the rankings?
One point in his favour is the injuries and this point was made by Danny Murphy on Match of the Day – we have lost Cazorla and Coquelin who have been the mainstay of the midfield.
Losing them both and at the same time is a big disruption – other players come in but there is a loss of momentum and continuity.
Lose one, yes you can cope. Lose two and it is like losing three.
The critics will say – you have the squad – you have the chequebook and there is something in that but not the whole story. If you lose your engine at the heart of the team it has a consequence.
That apart Koeman won and Wenger lost.
Koeman changed his approach to the game – by all accounts his build up was different – he got into the heads of his players – he gave them the strategy and the tactics and his players messed with us big time.
Maybe we underestimated a team on a losing streak – was it one point out of fifteen?
The approach is not to assume for a moment that Southampton were down and out. On the contrary you anticipate that they will fight for their lives. They will be all about commitment and intensity and running and tackling and harassing and chasing. They are a Premier team – Koeman did enough last year to show he is developing top four managerial credentials – there was bound to be a response.
The Southampton we faced was a different team from the Southampton that THFC faced seven days previously.
We did not look up to winning the one to one duels. They were on the front foot. We were just behind them but always behind them.
I do not believe the “We did not turn up” argument. We were there – we had possession and we had chances but the difference between 99% and 100% is about 10%.
They were sharper, quicker, more creative and more analytical because Koeman had sent them into battle with the tools for victory.
Yes there was an offside for the first goal and a foul by Long for the second and no corner for the third.
And these things do matter – add them up and they helped to create three goals and you cannot just shrug them off.
But the judgment is not in the bad luck – it is in the intensity of the reaction.
Go back to 1970 – to 19 September in fact. We beat WBA 6-2 at Highbury. We had played nine matches – just one defeat at Stamford Bridge and we were going well. Seven days later we lost 0-5 at Stoke. Bertie Mee said the team and management collectively vowed in the dressing room never again to be complacent or to assume victory. With McClintock as Captain they went on to do the Double.
But we had characters in the dressing room – there were captains everywhere you looked – Wilson, McNab, Graham as well as Frank.
That is why the question today is: Was the defeat to Southampton merely a Blip or the Beginning of the End?
Do we have the character? – Do we have the steely determination to win the 40/60 tussles?
There is no question we have the ability – but the character and the concentration?
I hope Arsene is stung by the questions – he has done so well for so long and now he is so close to the Big One.
How many times has the Ox gone AWOL – can you imagine what Gary Neville would say about allowing Fonte a free run for the goal from the corner - and Kevin Whitcher in his editorial comment was right to highlight Mertesacker’s feeble attempted intervention.
Everything is about the cause – about the challenge – about the title.
Every Premier coach will be examining the video of the Southampton game – they will all be desperate for points and they will want to know how Koeman did it.
The run-in begins tonight – the fight is on.
We have to keep to the game plan – we have to analyse how Long was able to create so much trouble for our centre backs – we have to have a tactical response to attempts to penetrate our back four.
Here I confess to a weakness – I have never been a coach – I have never had to set up a team – settle tactics – anticipate how the opposition are going to play.
I cannot tell whether our front three were slow to help the midfield or whether the midfield was slow to help the defence.
All this is for Wenger and Bould – but the character and the determination and the winning of the 40-60 challenges that has to be there – that is a given.
So to tonight – a big challenge – all games are big challenges but Bournemouth will see us as there for the taking. Howe’s team talk – “They are rocking, they are losing confidence. They have skill throughout the team but knock them out of their stride; get the challenges in – break up their rhythm and grab the chances when they come. We can win”
We love the key moments – tonight is one of them coming on the back of the defeat at St Mary’s.
All the best for 2016
* You can follow my tweets @arsenalcircular
