Arsenal Avoid Conference League Football Next Season (Europa That Is!)

Arsenal 2 Brighton 0  
Premier League  
Sunday 23rd May 2021 4pm  

And so this fag end of a season concludes for Arsenal. 10,000 fans were allowed to attend, and in spite of a wet, chilly late May afternoon – which is not my memory of the weather normally for the final home game of the season – it has to be said that the atmosphere was much better than a normal 50,000 crowd (the days of a 60,000 full house are no longer a thing with the number of no-shows). But as someone pointed out to me – no tourists at this game. 

Getting into the stadium was an ‘interesting’ experience, especially in the spells when it bucketed down. The initial security lines would only let you through if you had a match ticket. Then there was a second line with a steward who attempted to read your ticket with a hand-held device – which often didn't work, especially when the ticket was on a smartphone. You could get very wet queuing at this point. The other aspect of this was the ID check. Some season ticket holders had been issued seats in a ballot that was entered back at the start of the season, but could not make the game – for example if they were abroad. There was no ticket transfer option offered for yesterday, however, the online track and trace form allowed the name of the actual ticket user to be registered with the club. Except when it came to the ID check with the steward, the reader gave them the name of the season ticket holder, not the physical attendee. I think this happened a lot – so as long as a track and trace form had been filled in, they let you through. As it turns out, the actual attendee could have filled in his name as Mickey Mouse, but someone, somewhere at the club had not thought this through. Take a bow stadium management, the people who failed to foresee that soap dispensers in the stadium toilets would be in greater demand when COVID was on the rise in the spring of 2020. Whoever has lost their jobs in that department, there are still plenty of clowns in post, as yesterday established.

A third line was a security check – not just your normal bag search but an airport style hand-held metallic scanner run over everyone’s body. Now I’ve seen these used randomly at turnstiles before, but not as policy for everyone. It had nothing to do with COVID, but one suspects this may well be the future for events with large attendances, and hell, it beats the previous body search. Then you walked to your turnstiles, and with the way fans were filtered in, and the fact there were only 10,000 of us, no queue of any description after the 15 minutes to get through the initial ticket scan with the faulty readers and (pointless) ID check. 

If this is the shape of things to come, the days of turning up at the stadium 15 minutes before kick off and seeing the start of the game will become a distant memory. Already, a lot of people pass on evening matches because of getting to the ground after work, and the lateness of their arrival home afterwards. Arsenal are going to have to make this process a lot smoother if they want bums on seats. Personally, I can tolerate this degree of inconvenience / control for a one-off concert or a major football match (it's the norm at World Cups now) but 25 times a season for often meaningless matches at a half-empty Emirates? I’d be picking and choosing with a definite bias towards Saturday 3pm games with time for social stuff before and after. Maybe I am getting old, maybe I am losing interest with the loss of identity at the club, maybe the predictability of Arsenal’s seasons no longer excites me. But I can honestly think of more enjoyable ways to spend the two hours before a game and the hour after, and catch the 90 minutes on TV.

I attended yesterday for a few reasons – to help distribute the AST’s ‘Kroenke Out, Fans In’ banners – got very wet doing that, but needs must. There were no clear instructions printed on the banner about when to actually hold them up in unison, although another protestor had organized Kroenke Out black balloons to be released on the 49th minute which worked well. I also went along to actually experience a game with 10,000 fans – which was more enjoyable than I’d anticipated in terms of atmosphere and the freedom to move around. If the club had actually made the Europa Conference League next season, this might have been repeated a few times in the coming months. Attendances for that would have been on the low side to say the least. More on that later. I also went along just so I could say I had seen Arsenal play in the flesh once during the 2020/21 season – and a good number of season ticket holders did not get that opportunity.

Inside, fans were given a free programme and an extra souvenir of the 1970/71 double season which was a nice touch, so fair play to the club there. Once in our seats, we had a tour by stewards telling all the lapsers to put their face masks on, although in fairness after that, they left us alone. We were socially distanced and in the open air. No need for face masks under these circumstances really. Josh Kroenke was in attendance in the directors’ box, which presumably means he arrived in the UK at least eleven days ago, so as to satisfy quarantine requirements. He sat next to Vinai Venkatesham and it reminded you of how little football knowledge there is in the executive structure and boardroom at the club. Richard Garlick will join them soon, but I am not certain that will be enough. Edu is tainted by his relationship with Kia Joorabchian and also inexperienced outside of Brazil. The words rudderless ship come to mind, and it has been suggested that Arsene Wenger should be invited to join the board. Having had his contract terminated ahead of time by the Kroenkes, I don’t see it. Additionally, Wenger would need a David Dein-style figure to work alongside. Not certain that Richard Garlick is quite at the level of Dein’s when it comes to swimming in the shark-infested waters of modern-day transfer negotiations. And DD himself has been out of the frame for 14 years now, so he’s not an option.

I’ve written 1000 words and not got to an actual football match that happened yesterday. But we can wait a while longer, because the competing wishes of Arsenal fans need to be discussed here.

Did they want to finish above Spurs – yes.

Did they want to finish above Spurs if it meant qualification for the European Conference League – for a number, no, they’d take the hit. Ideal scenario there was Everton beating Man City at the Etihad, Spurs failing to win at Leicester, and Arsenal finishing eighth.

Let’s move to the board. Did they want European Conference League Qualification? Hell, yes. Two reasons – firstly, income. It may be a pittance compared to the Champions League, but I am guessing there may be £20 million to be made from participation and a run to the semi-finals, which they managed in three of the last four seasons in the Europa League. The club are not in any position to turn their noses up at that kind of money. The second reason, also related to income, is the price they can charge for season tickets. Historically, there are seven home cup games on the season tickets. If they make the semi-finals in Europe, that eats up seven credits, with any home FA Cup games taking the number over and leading to season ticket holders owing the club money. 

Now that sure isn’t going to happen. Would the club have the nerve to add Carabao Cup matches to the cup credits? Do not put it past them. Honestly. The great thing about the cup credits for the club is that they get the money for seats the holders have zero intention of using, hence the announcement of 60,000 attendances on chilly Thursday nights against some no-marks from a far flung corner of Europe when 20 odd thousand troop along and where you can pretty much pick where you sit. That is why Europe matters so much to the club. 

As it was, Everton were hammered by Man City, and Leicester went ahead twice v Spurs, who needed to win. So it was looking like European football was going to happen next season after all. To explain – in case not obvious – why a good number of Gooners did not want Europa Conference League. Think Chelsea 2015-16. Fell off the rails after winning the title the season before under Jose Mourinho. Sacked Jose halfway through the season and failed to qualify for Europe. Next season Antonio Conte took over, and with no European distraction, was able to focus on domestic matters, won the league, and were only prevented from winning a domestic double by Arsene Wenger’s final silverware for Arsenal – a third FA Cup in four seasons. When Leicester won the title the season before, they were not involved in Europe – having only just survived relegation in 2015 before Nigel Pearson was sacked due to the behavior of some of his players at an end of season tour in Thailand. So the thought is that with more time to prepare for weekend games, and less being asked of the players, the Gunners can make a concerted effort to make the top four next season. What is interesting about Spurs’ comeback against Leicester is that it had the knock-on effect of giving Chelsea Champions League qualification, even though they conspired to lose away to Aston Villa. That means that all of the ‘big four’ (Man City, Man United, Liverpool and Chelsea) are in the CL next season – and will not be able to rest their players so often. This on the back of a summer with the Euros and a Copa America for those who play for their countries. 

The question is whether Mikel Arteta is the man to get Arsenal back amongst the big boys again. There are two schools of thought here.
1) No improvement from last season. Arsenal finished eighth in 2019/20 and did the same this time around, although they did gain five extra points in making 61 (that would have given them sixth place in the previous campaign). However, eighth is not good enough – clubs with significantly smaller budgets (West Ham, Leicester) finished above Arteta’s squad.
2) The last half of the season, apparently, has the club second only to Manchester City in the results table. Which indicates, in spite of European distraction, progress. Could just be they had easier fixtures though.

It’s a decision the board and executive team will make, but the noises are they are going to stick with their man and give him another transfer window. The feeling is that the moving on of negative influences in the dressing room – Ozil, Kolasinac and Mustafi – has led to a more united squad. Arteta referred to this directly in the press conference ahead of yesterday’s game. 

In the disappointment over elimination to Villarreal in the Europa League semi-final, I suggested that Arteta would be gone by the end of the calendar year if he were retained. Of course, if he does keep his job, I hope I am wrong. Not making Europe will certainly help him. There is just a feeling that the tactics remain a little too predictable, and that the attacking on the flanks is all well and good, but the frequent lack of numbers in the centre hamper this. What the club seem to lack right now is an Aaron Ramsey type central midfielder who will bust a gut to get on the end of moves, as well as Aubameyang and Lacazette either being too deep or too isolated to get on the end of crosses when the team break – as happened more than once in the first half against Brighton yesterday.

The opening 45 minutes did see Gabriel head onto the crossbar, and a Holding goal disallowed for offside. Aside from that, not too much in the way of excitement, although some decent defending when Brighton did break. The second half, things picked up, with Pepe settling the game by the hour mark thanks to two decent finishes – one with his right foot. There is still hope for the club’s record signing, and he’s apparently notched up 16 goals this season, although six of those were in Europe. He does seem to be improving though. 

There was no announcement of a lap of appreciation, so I made my exit, only to hear that the team came out again to the centre circle as some kind of farewell gesture to David Luiz, but not a lap around the stands – half the crowd had joined me in making their way out by that time anyway. It was a bit of a disorganized effort, symbolic of the club these days in a lot of ways. Martin Odegaard made the most of the opportunity to say farewell and that loan signing has by and large worked well. He’s a quality player, although beyond Arsenal’s budget I suspect. I don’t see Dani Ceballos being purchased either, and in truth, the club need better than him in terms of discipline and decision-making. Technically good, but failed to really convince in his two seasons. Talking of decisions, one needs to be made about Joe Willock, who has certainly benefited from his own loan spell and will be sorely missed by Newcastle. Can he reproduce that kind of form back in London? With finances being what they are, I can see the club accepting a bid of £25 million for him. They were offered £15 million for Ainsley Maitland-Niles by Wolves at the start of the season. I suspect they wish they’d accepted that now, as his value won’t have been enhanced playing at a relegated West Brom.

With the game comfortably in the bag, news filtered through of Spurs’ revival and the reality that there was to be no St Totteringham’s Day for the fifth season running. Kasper Schmeichel and Gareth Bale combined to give the noisy neighbours the potentially poisoned chalice of the Conference League. I’m ambivalent – there could have been some great away trips. And you always want to finish above your local rivals. However, it could be a blessing in disguise. Next season, we go again. Maybe with everyone allowed to attend and hopefully with a more streamlined method of getting people into the stadium with machines that actually read tickets first time if they are going to persist with this ID check nonsense. 

Football sure ain’t what it used to be, and Arsenal are currently a bit like they used to be back in the early 1980s. But the game moves in cycles. Just a matter of how long we wait for an upturn. With the existing decision makers, I’ll be honest. I’m not holding my breath.

Not certain what I am going to do with this blog over the summer. Not attending any Euros matches (pre-COVID I had trips to Bilbao and St Petersburg booked, but that's out of the window now), but might pen something about the tournament if the muse takes me. For the most part though, I suspect that will be me until August. More likely to tweet occasionally than anything else. Enjoy the summer everyone, hoping the weather picks up a bit as yesterday felt like February more than late May.

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