Questions about Arteta’s tactics as 10 man Fulham deny Arsenal two points

 

Arsenal 2 Fulham 2   
Premier League   
Saturday 26th August 2023 3pm   

Much as Arsenal shot themselves in the foot at the start of this match, at 2-1 up, with Fulham down to ten men and seven minutes of normal time left, they threw away two points by allowing their opponents to equalise. It could have been worse, but Ramsdale made a late save to at least salvage a point for his side. 

 

Last season, defence was certainly not the team’s strongpoint. Not necessarily because there are poor defenders in the squad, but because of the tactics the team employ. Hence when Bukayo Saka played a misplaced pass back to… well, one assumes Ben White was the intended recipient, the team were in no position to cover the attempt on goal that followed. High up the pitch, the presumed safety net of a sweeper keeper didn’t work. Ramsdale backtracked furiously, but without a challenge, Pereira picked his spot. It’s apparently the third time the side have conceded a goal in the opening minute in the last six months. Although I can’t vouch for this statistic, let’s say it hardly surprises me. 

 

With Zinchenko not yet match fit, Kiwior came in at left back, as Partey retained his place at right back to continue playing the inverted full back role. Up front, Eddie Nketiah was dropped in favour of Trossard. Granted, Eddie had missed a couple of decent chances last Monday night at Selhurst Park, but he did win the penalty. This felt a bit harsh, and subsequently, the decision to bring Nketiah on at the start of the second half tells you all you need to know about Trossard’s efforts in the 45 odd minutes he was on the pitch. Kai Havertz also started and was subbed himself in the 56^th minute. Arsenal certainly enjoyed more possession in this game, but those chances that were fashioned weren’t being converted. The best in the first half came when Saka failed to convert a point blank header with just the keeper, former Gunner Bernd Leno, to beat. 

 

The rain started coming down with a vengeance, after a first half of sunshine, and the introduction of Zinchenko and Fabio Vieira seemed to improve the balance of the side. In time, the goals finally came. The first was the result of a foul on Vieira in the box, which saw Arsenal rewarded a penalty. Martin Odegaard had relieved Saka of penalty duties at Crystal Palace, presumably due to Saka’s inconsistency from 12 yards. Given Odegaard had converted on Monday evening, it was a surprise to see Saka handed the ball by his captain, but he beat Leno to level the scores with 70 minutes gone. Vieira’s influence continued to grow, as at last he looked like a player worth the price tag invested in him little over a year ago. The contrast with Havertz, who he replaced, was marked.

 

He played a sweet ball across the face of the goal two minutes later that Nketiah finished well and things were looking good for maximum points from the opening three fixtures. They looked even better when Fulham were reduced to 10 men after Bassey blocked off Nketiah’s solo break to receive a second yellow with less than 10 minutes to go.

 

Easy street, right? Just play the game out and keep the ball. However, Zinchenko lost it cheaply when a pass was blocked and Fulham won a corner from the resulting attack. This was in the 87^th minute, and Paulinha scored from said corner. The marking for it left a lot to be desired, Declan Rice perhaps the main culprit. 

 

Both sides could have scored in what remained of the game, including nine minutes of injury time. It finished without further goals though and on the balance of play, it was a freak result, when you consider how few attempts on goal the visitors had. But therein lies a danger, sometimes it seems you don’t need too many chances to score against the Gunners. 

 

They’ve lost plenty of points at home since Arteta took over in December 2019, and were eliminated in Europe three seasons running under Mikel, failing to win second leg matches on their own turf. Yes, when things are going well the Emirates can feel like a fortress, but that doesn’t happen quite enough – so we get costly results like yesterday’s and the 3-3 with Southampton back in April. 

 

So while the side is a joy to watch, at times the football is a little too Russian Roulette. The defending from the set piece is one thing – that happens and can be ironed out. What can’t be is the vulnerability of a team that takes chances in possession with a huge gap between their backline and keeper. I hope I am proved wrong, it’s only two points dropped after all, but my gut feeling is that Arsenal will not be as close to Manchester City this season. For one reason – they have good defenders, but the tactics leave them too exposed.

Finally, just to express my thoughts for the family and friends of Steve Powell, who we learned today has sadly passed away. Steve was heavily involved, along with Paul Matz, with the campaign in 2000 to help the club get planning permission to build the Emirates from Islington Council, which led to the formation of AISA. He was also a founder member of the AST in 2003. He'd been in a wheelchair for about a decade, but seemed full of life when I spoke to him at the AST 20th Anniversary evening at the start of August, and told me about his plans to visit the USA and Mexico for the 2026 World Cup Finals. For a couple of years in the late 1990s, he also helped sell The Gooner at the time I was distributing it. He might not have been the most mobile of sellers, but shifted a good number of copies for myself and Mike Francis. He was a good guy, whose campaigning work touched the lives of many Arsenal fans who had never even heard of him. In that respect, he leaves behind a legacy and I am sure the club will pay him an appropriate tribute at the next home match. RIP Steve.

 
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