- Top PL players: are Tottenham really the equal of Arsenal?
- Running a football club isn’t easy, and sometimes it can go horribly wrong
By Tony Attwood
So after our one week off, in which for once Arsenal did not have to play two games in seven days, we are back to the old routine. Having played a league game on Sunday, we are now into a league game on Wednesday. I’ve not looked up the records to see if there has ever been a season like this with two games a week over so many weeks, and I am not sure there has. And it certainly feels different.
This forthcoming game is on TNT if you can’t get there, and kick off is at 7.30pm at the Amex Stadium. Which, in case you are going for the first time, is not actually in Brighton or even Hove, despite the club’s name. But it is in fact in Falmer, which by chance (and really of no significance) is where I studied for three years after leaving school. Hence, I have a vague idea of where it is.
So what of Brighton and Hove of late? Here’s the last six games table that I regularly quote at this point, and I’m going a little bit beyond the positioning of the two clubs playing each other this time, as it does seem to me to contain a point or two of interest…
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Man City | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 4 | +8 | 16 |
| 2 | Man Utd | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 6 | +6 | 16 |
| 3 | Arsenal | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 16 | 5 | +11 | 14 |
| 12 | Brighton | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 7 |
| 19 | Newcastle | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 8 | 15 | -7 | 3 |
| 20 | Tottenham | 6 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 14 | -7 | 2 |
Arsenal, as we can see, are unbeaten in the last six but sitting only third in the table. Brighton are just below halfway with more defeats than wins and ten fewer goals scored than Arsenal. And then moving onwards, then down the foot of the table we have two well-known names – Newcastle United and, in bottom position, the somewhat poorly named Tottenham Hotspur.
And I do find that Tottenham’s position interesting in that I am not sure it has been mentioned much in the media that here we are seeing a team that has the worst current record in the Premier League. Although maybe it does get mentioned, and I missed it.
Of course, to be fair, Tottenham do not have the worst record in terms of scoring and conceding goals in the last six games, but their goal difference over that run at -7 is pretty poor.
But back to Brighton, whom we play tomorrow – they too are struggling with the goals, as only Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest and Wolverhampton Wands are doing worse in terms of putting the ball in the net in the last half dozen.
We have in the past, from time to time, also noted the table based on the last ten games, and looking at that table, we have Arsenal second behind ManC, with Brighton in tenth and Tottenham once again at the foot of the table. So no excuses concerning either tomorrow’s opposition or the noisy neighbours can be set out. Brighton are mid-table, Tottenham are bottom, and Arsenal are very close to the top.
Arsenal are unbeaten in the last six leaguegames, and have one defeat in the last 14 league games. Brighton however, have only two wins in the last eight league games – these being in the last two matches played, where they have beaten Brentford away (0-2) and Nottingham Forest at home (2-1). But the run before those two games of three draws and three defeats has certainly affected their league position.
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arsenal | 29 | 19 | 7 | 3 | 58 | 22 | 36 | 64 |
| 11 | Brighton and Hove Albion | 28 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 38 | 35 | 3 | 37 |
Taking into account home and away games, we have a much closer match where Arsenal have a better record in every metric (points, wins, goals scored, goals conceded), but only just, and we have to take into account that Arsenal have played one more awaygame than Brighton have played at home.
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | Brighton and Hove Albion home | 14 | 6 | 6 | 2 | 22 | 15 | 7 | 24 |
| 1 | Arsenal away | 15 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 25 | 13 | 12 | 29 |
This final table does suggest it might be a little trickier than earlier data suggests, although that “last six games” table does bring some extra hope in that view.
More thoughts on the game, later today.
I take it you’ve all seen the nonsense on the BBC website.
The day after posting a story declaring Liverpool as “set piece kings”, Arsenal scored two from corners so they posted a story, “How can football’s lawmakers fix the corner chaos?”. Apparently it’s ok if Liverpool do it but not if we do.
It created much furore with people banging on about how Liverpool played good football and we can’t score from open play. Then somebody actually pointed out that prior to the weekend, Liverpool had scored their last seven goals from set pieces whilst Arsenal had scored their last 17 (in six games) from open play. They still wasn’t good enough for some readers.
I have to admit, I don’t like all the grappling and shirt pulling but the idea that only one club does it is patently absurd. Every club does it and the only people who can stop it are those perennial failures, the PGMO.
Still, I damned sure if we scored our next 100 goals from open play we’d get criticised for not being any good at set pieces. That’s life as a Gooner!
how are arsenal doing?
they’re cheating in every match whilst the officials smirk and let them get away with it,whilst simultaneously falling down and getting fouls awarded for nothing.
that’s how they’re doing…
Brighton a good day are a decent team and a strong opponent. We will need to be on top form to beat them.
Richard that is a very interesting set of allegations, and indeed it is of a type that we have seen here before.
But after each time we publish such a comment I do write in and say, ok please give us some evidence.
As yet no one has done so, so if you could write back with something to back up your statement, you would be the first such person to make such allegations and have some evidence. I leave it with you.
Mikey
Funny how the mainstream media are lobbying fot a law change but completely ignored IFAVB’s changes to the shirt pulling in your own penalty area laws in 2016 after Messrs Morgan and Huth got away with numerous offences for Leicester, which TO THIS DAY is almost never implemented by PGMOL!
As for tomorrow, we have a fourth referee in a row away from home who has overseen minimum 50 per cent home wins, a certain Chris Kavanagh…
Richard Gilbert
I challenge you to point at one foul committed by an Arsenal player when we scored our 2 goals against Chelsea.
On our first goal absolutely nobody close to the keeper. If you look at the replay from behind the line you can clearly see Saliba AND Gyokeres being man handled from behind. Both technically fouls, but not the usually enough to be given in the box. There was absolutely no fouls by ANY of the Arsenal players.
On our second goal the only piece of holding was a mutual piece of grappling between Saliba and a Chelsea defender. 6 of 1 half a dozen of the other as they say. So no foul there. On the other hand I can point at Gyokeres clearly being man handled and shirt being pulled of his back. A clear foul this one. A clear penalty. But as we scored nothing said. But never the less it was a foul ON AN ARSENAL PLAYER and a penalty under different circumstances.
Your premediated opinion, without a shred of evidence, shows a clear bias on your part, almost certainly fuelled by this media narrative, actually started by guess who? Our closest rivals 115 City when they started this crap about the dark arts a while back. Just when we became a threat actually. well I never.
Okay yes, I believe Chelsea should of had a penalty for the holding by Rice, not the hand ball. Funney how a lot said about that, even though that didn’t matter either as Chelsea scored from the resultant corner. And there’s more. Zubamendi was also holding a Chelsea player. BUT, here’s the thing. A Chelsea player was holding Raya and a Chelsea player was holding Timber. 4 Fouls, at one corner. Yes it irks, but don’t pretend this is just Arsenal. But it appears you do, as the only one you want to see is the Rice foul and fouls by Arsenal in general, even when there clearly isn’t one. But don’t worry you are not alone as it appears the entire footballing World are choosing to only see the fouls Arsenal commit.
So go and have a proper look, rather than believing what Talkshite, the BBC and SKY say, and try to have an honest opinion of your own instead of parroting nonsense.
So, we hear nothing from Richard.
Now, we all know that is because he simply cannot find what I have asked him to find because it is not there to be found. And he cannot back up what he has said.
We also all know, because he hasn’t had the decency to come back and, not even apologise, but just debate, that he still believes what he said is true. There’s no evidence to support it, but none the less he will still believe what he said, because that is what sheep like Richard do.
They believe a narrative because that is WHAT THEY WANT TO believe, and no matter what, they will continue to believe it.
Very sad and actually quit pathetic really.