Restart.
That’s the right word for where we are now. Literally and figuratively. The team, along with their families, is in Dubai to train in warm weather. A chance to escape, get some vitamin D, which is clearly what we’re lacking in front of goal (although that doesn’t explain why Ben White doesn’t score 4 every game), and come back better than us. have been in the last few weeks.
Seriously, it’s a good time for this. Everyone knows we have a problem right now, there are a lot of opinions on how to fix it, ranging from completely unrealistic to completely mental to ‘Oh, that could work I guess’, but the reality is that whatever happens or not, happens in the transfer market, we still need the players we have to do better. There is no way to escape that.
Let’s lay bare some of our problems.
In their last 14 combined Premier League games, Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka have just 3 goals between them, essentially 3 goals in 28 appearances. Overall Saka has 6 goals and 7 assists in the league, this time last season he had 6 and 6, so statistically he is achieving more or less the same pace. However, your eyes tell you that there is a tiredness about him right now that I don’t remember worrying about before.
As for Martinelli, at the same time last season, he had 7 goals and 2 assists. This time, it’s 2 goals and 2 assists, a significant drop in goal scoring. That is worrying, and 3 of those last 7 minutes were the first goal of the game, scored in the 20th, 1st and 5th minutes respectively. Those early goals that were such a characteristic feature of our game last time, and which can have such an impact on the state of the game, have more or less deserted us this time.
Eddie Nketiah has scored in just 4 of his 28 appearances in all competitions this season. 60% of his 5 Premier League goals came with that hat-trick he scored against Sheffield United. Which does not take anything away from what he did that day, his finishing was excellent, but he went against the worst team in the league, and it has been difficult for him to replicate against other teams. His other goals came against Nottingham Forest and Fulham. In my opinion, for a “second striker”, his inability to execute off the bench remains a considerable problem.
Kai Havertz has 3 goals in his last 7 Premier League games, added to his extra penalty against Bournemouth, and 1 assist in total. 5 goal involvements in 19 games is, I’m sure, below what Mikel Arteta would have wanted from an expensive and experienced signing, and although doubts remain about him, you can see how he could have contributed more. For example, when a corner is perfect for your 6’4 centre-forward, don’t deflect it from 6 yards away. Simple.
Leandro Trossard seems to me to be a player who becomes more peripheral as the season progresses. He has done well, with 3 goals and 1 assist in 16 Premier League appearances, but he has only started 6 times and on 3 occasions he has not even come off the bench. In total, since his arrival last season, he has scored 7 goals in 46 games, although with 12 assists. I don’t know if his scoring record suggests that he will do much to solve the problems we currently have.
That’s 4 goals and 4 assists in 17 Premier League games for captain Martin Odegaard. At the same stage last season he was 7 and 5. Not far away. Odegaard’s problem, at least for me, is that those ahead of him are not capitalizing on what he is creating. According to fbref, his shot creation actions per 90 have increased from 4.69 to 6.10 this season, but so has the number of touches he takes in the attacking box and in the opponent’s penalty area. This could be a consequence of facing crowded, deep-blocking defenses, but perhaps it also suggests that we need to move the ball a little faster (although he’s not the worst offender in that regard).
As for Gabriel Jesús, despite injury problems this season he has played in 21 of Arsenal’s 29 games. Only 4 goal involvements (3 goals, 1 assist) in 15 appearances in the Premier League must be taken into account. He is a very talented player who adds a lot to our attacking play, but if you are the de facto starting centre-forward of a team like Arsenal, you have to offer more than that. For me that is indisputable.
Reiss Nelson: 9 Premier League appearances, 0 goals, 0 assists. Emile Smith Rowe: 6 Premier League games, 1 assist. Between them they have played a total of 216 minutes. Aaron Ramsdale, who has been on the bench since David Raya’s arrival, has more than double that. If these guys are so peripheral to the manager’s plans – and it’s what he does with them, rather than what he says about them, that says where he stands – surely there are decisions to be made. It might hurt to let someone like Smith Rowe go, and I don’t fully understand why he’s so hamstrung, but that pain would be greatly eased by another player who could contribute with goals and assists, whether off the bench or as a player. start.
Anyway, if this all sounds a little bleak, it’s actually an illustration of how a small uptick in form, finishing and creating could have a big impact on this team and the results. We’re not talking about the need for a massive, seismic improvement, but a couple of goals here and there, and maybe we’ll leave Villa Park with at least a point, beat West Ham comfortably at home and are in the fourth round of the cup. Buts and buts, of course, but it’s still true.
However, it is impossible to underestimate the importance of that improvement. Maybe we can sell to buy in January, but beyond that happening, I don’t expect any significant business this month. Therefore, the responsibility falls on getting more out of the players who I firmly believe are capable of doing so, although some much more than others.
Sometimes it’s helpful to step back, take stock, and have a little time to think. Not only in football, but in many areas of life. Mikel Arteta and his players have a lot to do over these next 10 days, and let’s hope that when we face Crystal Palace, we will see the benefits.
See you tomorrow.
