Swansea Arsenal: all the facts you need and some you don’t

Posted on by Tony Attwood

By Bulldog Drummond

Oh how the media have loved it.  Arsenal Crisis!!!  How much they have missed being able to say this as Arsenal have rushed up the table, beaten the Greatest Team in Germany (official) and then had a couple of injuries.  So is it CRISIS.  Or even

CRISIS

or … well you get the idea

Arsène Wenger has that he will keep the defence as it is, which is a pretty good notion, and just play Joel Campbell at Swansea City –  his first Premier League start for the club.   All the other options (Bellerin or Gibbs as wide midfield) or Santi Cazorla on the right, or anything like that.

The total idiot that is Raymond Verheijen has been at it again and Mr Wenger  ‘This guy looks like he knows absolutely everything’.  A reasonable response.  The man’s work and ravings have been completely discredited, not least by a solid analysis on Untold.   He is bitter and twisted and accuses anyone within range of being less able than him.

“I can only invite you one day to see what work is done behind the scenes. We have some players who are more injury-prone than others, but we are very well organised on that front.

“We have to analyse every single case and every single exercise, but also I think you have to not over-analyse when players are injured.

“When a player is injured, they are injured, this has always happened.   We have not too many muscular injuries but it is post-international games we get all these injuries and is it linked with that? I don’t know. What I’m focused on tomorrow is to continue our run.”

It also appears that the real issue with Gnabry is Arsenal’s annoyance at typical Pulis behaviour of taking a player and then not playing him – just to mess Arsenal around.   They will, I guess, get him back.

So we are on to Campbell.   “It is now or never for him with us,” Wenger said. “You go one time out, two times out – after that, you don’t know any more if you belong to the club or not. What is important for me is the next game. Football, and life as well, is play the next game like it was your last.

“There is a challenge for the players who come in to show their quality and, at the end, you can find yourself with a bigger squad. That is what happened with Coquelin and Bellerín last season. Campbell’s attitude is absolutely outstanding.”

Mr Wenger also urged Remi Garde  to join Aston Villa as the manager. Garde wants to take the assistants Bruno Genesio and Gerald Baticle from Lyon and that has proved the stumbling block.

“Remi should just take it,” Mr Wenger said. “You do not get 20 opportunities to come to England and, at the moment in Europe, you find 250 managers who want to come to England.”

So to the teams.  We’ve got

Giroud

Alexis Ozi Campbell

Cazorla Coquelin

Monreal Kos Mert Bellerin

Cech

Which is our normal team save one.  So what is the fuss about. Maybe it is beause there is no one on the beach, but really we have some choices even there…

Macey, Debuchy, Gibbs, Chambers, Gabriel, Flamini, Iwobi, Kamara, Bennacer

Here’s the injury list with the dates of expected return.

  • Arteta (21 Nov),
  • Ospina (21 Nov),
  • Ox-Chamberlain (21 Nov),
  • Ramsey (21 Nov),
  • Walcott (Dec),
  • Wilshere (Jan),
  • Welbeck (Feb),
  • Rosicky (Feb)

Here is what Garry Monk manager of Swansea said…

“Defenders want to keep clean sheets, strikers want to score goals and midfielders wants to make assists and score goals themselves.”

So now you know.   Did you also know that Arsenal have had more shots than any other Premier League team this season.  Shame we are in a crisis.  The number is 185 in case you were interested.

Swansea did the league double over us last season so it is time to take revenge.  

Swansea however have had a five-match winless league run which ended with their victory against the almighty Aston Villa.  They have not won at home since the opening month of the season.

Here’s another good one – they have both hit bar or post six times in the league – more than any other club.

Arsenal have won four consecutive league games, and six of their last seven and are still on the 1999 goals in all competitions under Arsene Wenger.

We have only lost one of the last 11 Premier League away games.   And now here is the killer point about the INJURY CRISIS

Arsenal have used 19 players this season, the fewest in the division.  But we are awash with injuries.  Funny ol game.

Oh yes, and Olivier Giroud has scored in four of his last five appearances for Arsenal in all competitions.  Mesut Ozil has provided a league-high seven goal assists this season.

 

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60 Replies to “Swansea Arsenal: all the facts you need and some you don’t”

  1. If we’ve played the fewest number of players in the division it suggests that we are overplaying some of them and it’s no surprise that all bar one of our injuries so far are muscular or strains.

  2. We have played the fewest players so far this season, but we still are yet to play one match in ‘our’ cup competition- the FA cup. The EPL is only 10 matches old and the CL has 3 more matches to go to the group stages. Too early to think we are overplaying anybody. Injuries will come when they will come. Ask a certain gk from Chelsea.

    From what Bulldog showed in the injury update, we are just a matter of a couple of weeks from getting almost all the boys back. The internationals will take a few days off, so we will be okay. No need to press any panic buttons yet. We will get through this in one piece.

  3. Only one Arsenal player has scored more than one goal against Swansea since their return to the top tier (Poldi scored one in the league and one in the cup).

    Nacho Monreal scored his first goal in this fixture two-and-half years ago – the opener in 2:0 victory.

    Swansea haven’t beaten anyone at home since 30th August (Manure 2:1). It coincides with the last goal of Bafetimbi Gomis.

  5. According to Arsenal.com

    Midfielder Daniel Crowley is returning to Arsenal from his youth loan spell with first division Barnsley.

    Crowley made 13 appearances for the Tykes after joining them at the start of the season. The 18-year-old scored his first goal in professional football against Premier League side Everton in the Capital One Cup in August.

    Crowley, who featured in Arsenal’s pre-season tour to Singapore and was recently called up for the England U19 squad, returns to the club having benefitted significantly from the experience of competitive league action.

  6. Arsenal team to play Swansea:

    Cech, Bellerin, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Monreal, Coquelin, Cazorla, Campbell, Ozil, Alexis, Giroud.

    Were we right or were we right?

    Substitutes: Macey, Chambers, Debuchy, Flamini, Gibbs, Gabriel, Iwobi.

  7. did anyone see Costa’s kick out at Skrtel? should have been a red. nothing given though.

  9. Chelsea 1 Liverpool 2

    And the Chelsea manager is behaving like a drunken hedgehog on heat.

    It makes our refusal to sign Fabregas again look a rather good decision.

  12. Don’t do it Roman, don’t you dare pull the conductor off the train before the train wreck! This is the most entertaining Chelsea has been in a while!

    @Bulldog, Tony, Walter, and the Untold contributors, excellent job calling the lineup for today’s game!

  13. We have 3 games to get through without Rambo and The Ox, 6 games without Theo.
    After Spuds game we have lower level opposition (though Zagreb and Olympiacos games are v. important) until we face Man City (h) on 21/12 and Southampton (a) on 26/12.

    So we need to play best XI for these next 3 games – wishing Joel Campbell all the best to succeed – and do some rotation after the interlull.

    We need a kind interlull, with no injuries for our players in France, Spain, Germany friendlies – though the BIG worry is the effect of games v Colombia and Uruguay on Alexis, who will no doubt play 2 x 90 minutes.
    COYG

  14. So besides the wonderful sight of another dismal Chelsea defeat, I would like to recommend this article on Nacho Monreal https://uk.sports.yahoo.com/news/analysed-monreal-broke-outside-nail-192647613.html. Clever tactical observations, good insight on his technique, and extremely complimentary of his decision-making. A very satisfying read, that even states plainly that Arsene Wenger´s squad is currently excellent! Not your typical journalistic hack job, in a word.

  15. I really like that nice touch by the Liverpool fans in singing that ,” You’ll never walk alone !” , song for Moanin’inho at the end – at least I think that they we singing it for him!
    They are right you know , he will soon be followed out of Chelsea with the rest of his elite corpses ,…sorry I think that should be corps ! Hang on a minute …

    Karma they say is a bitch . And when calling a fine woman that , it sometimes comes back to kick you in the teeth , and in the nuts and in the pockets !
    Dear Dr.Eva , hope your wine today is sweet ,just as your vindication as well as all the due payback we have witness over the last few weeks !

    Whoever said that good guys or gals never win , ought to learn a lesson here .
    Now the question would be where do the Moaning one and the club go from here ? Hell?

  18. costa would be better off in the arena doing kick boxing, in other news………..oh it’s no longer news, a state of emergency has been declared in chelsea.

  19. So far Swansea have the majority of the ball with Arsenal content to sit back and win it back in the final third. They had a couple of dangerousish crosses but nothing too bad. And most recently they have started to put in some harsh tackles…all they get is a talking to…no yellows…just waiting for the first tackle that Coquelin puts in…yellow for sure.

  21. another…”Let’s calm her down boys…no more of that”…how about a yellow, ref? That must be the 4th or 5th talking to that’s been aimed at Swansea.

  22. Rotational fouls…. For all the ‘we play beautiful football’ talks. When it comes to playing against us…..rotational fouling is all you do.

  27. Swansea had the one great chance of the half when Gomis was all alone on Cech and was indecisive. Bellerin came back to clear. Man he has pace. Giroud had a good, not great chance at the other end.

  28. Campbell plays well. He is a real fighter. I like the kid, too bad neither of his shots hit the net.

    Bellerin has had two excellent defensive actions. What a gem. It’s so exciting to see him in Arsenal shirt.

    Giroud should have scored from his chance though. He won’t too much of those today.

    Our passing doesn’t look well at the moment. Is it down to pitch or…?

    Commentators claim that Mertesacker got away with a handball after Sigurdsson’s free-kick.

  29. Absolutely awful first half performance. I wonder will the players actually try in the second half?

  30. Mertesacker got away with a handball. Thing is, it would have struck a teammate so it wasn’t even necessary.

  31. We were opened up too easily with the long balls…the dangerous passes for the most part were on the ground and on our right side.

  38. 56th minute and Swansea get their first yellow…so now we know…half dozen warnings before a yellow.

  39. The notion that the Arsenal have not been trying is, to my mind, ludicrous. I’ve never been a pro footballer, but I earn my living through my performances – in my case as a writer.

    And I can tell you that there are some days when for whatever reason, my work as a professional writer is under my normal standard. And there is nothing I can do about it. Since the work has to be done, I plod on.

    Sometimes it picks up, but often not, and I have to hope for better tomorrow.

    That’s life – the players are not machines, nor are they slackers. They know that if they don’t perform they’ll lose their place, and ultimately their job. But it isn’t just a matter of trying. To me that is just silly.

  40. Friend coming to Swansea’s aid; Shelvey slipped with no contact whatsoever and Sanchez was in, only for Friend to blow for an imaginary foul.

  41. Arsenal looking much more dangerous on the break…hey look! Another talking to the Swansea defenders!!

  48. Man U drawing, WHU losing, only Arsenal and Man C at the top winning. We’re pulling away.

  50. You can see that Campbell is gaining confidence as the match is progressing…

  52. What a difference – either excellent game management to let Swansea tire themselves out in the first half or Wenger actually put a foot up their back sides at half time. Chalk and cheese.

  58. Nice to see Jayramidontknowfootball commenting. Wenger does not do tactics nor does he hair dry! The team plays simple & smart.

  59. Sorry Jayramfootball, the result has spoilt your draft comment on today’s game. Try harder next time.

  60. This injury … One should not call it a crisis yet although it could be with injury to one or two “key players”.

    One spot can still be carried and the win just show that there are still reserve who can help out.

    Don’t forget, injuries were FAR WORSE before compare to this year. I am certain Wenger is used to coping with such issues. Although, at some point, these injuries will start to cause a problem but which team does not suffer?

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