Mikel Arteta: Fighting Until The End

[AbouCuéllar]

I wanted to see Emi stay but he wanted to start. And his last few matches have really shown his weaknesses. I hate to admit it, but Leno was the correct option.

I've been on the Arteta hype train for a while, before he even went to City. All the right people in football have said he'll make a great manager one day (Xabi Alonso, Pochettino, Wenger, Pep). Not only does he want to be here, and I think we should feel lucky that he is, but I think the style of football he wants to play is the direction football is heading in the future. Moreover, I think he's a highly intelligent person, and not just in a footballing tactics and coaching sense. I think he has a knack for the public-persona-in-the-media side as well as the business and negotiations side, the side of economics and transfers like Wenger (there's a reason they've had him closely working with Edu before this new hire comes in towards the end of this season). He has a complete understanding of football and that's important with the kind of model we run at this club. In this sense, I think he has a higher ceiling than somebody like Pep. He doesn't need a massive transfer kitty to succeed. I mean, he's already won us an FA Cup.


Not trying to make things up. But fair enough.

I do think Arteta would've had better technical players to work with at Chelsea compared to Arsenal, especially in the final third. And I've already responded to the European money point.

As far as metrics: our defending is much, much better from what I've seen. This is the main reason why I think we still have a chance in the EL. This mid-table talk is misleading if we had a few matches go our way. Think we'll finish strong and make top 8 due to our defending, so it's all mute to me.

But there are a lot of things that metrics wont show. Since December, we move the ball quicker, we're better at passing in tight spaces, our build-up play is great, especially out from the back. There's passes that the players make we would've never dreamed of making under Emery, especially from the backline and in midfield. Our pressing has gotten even better, particularly as a team. Even City had issues against it today. It's coming together, it's just been slow this season and I believe part of that is the pandemic with no proper preseason. We have a lot to work on in the final third, and unlike most, I've thought that's where we've needed the most investment for years even going back to Wenger.

Pep failed in his first season at City in implementing his system, including yelling his ass off on the sidelines every match. It took time (and a massive investment, which Arteta doesn't have access to so it'll take a bit longer for us but as I said above I don't think he needs that kind of investment to succeed). But as I repeat, if the KSE American franchises are anything to go by, Arteta wont be going anywhere any time soon. I'm of the belief that Arteta is getting a pass this season regardless. And if I'm wrong, I'm wrong.

Oh, and patience. Can't forget that.

Top post! Sums up perfectly the reasons I've wanted Arteta as the manager since he left the club to go learn the trade more with Pep, too.

 

[Lidl_Reed]

I was glad we didn't get Jose because he divides fanbases. Arteta doing the same with 0 pedigree

 

[Red London]

Why would you give him another summer, he's on £5m a year and he's shown no sign of getting a team to score goals. We were 8th last year and there's no evidence in February that'll he do any better this year.

I already explained man

 

[Lidl_Reed]

I wanted Arteta, despite the lack of managerial experience as I felt he had a style of football that would be learned from Pep and Wenger. A change was needed after the stultifying play under Emery.

And then Mikel came along. At the start, we played sort of the way we all imagined. Yes, we parked the bus against the big teams, but this was sensible, pragmatic and understandable.

Come this season, we didn't register Özil, and didn't start Smith Rowe. We got rid of Guendouzi who for all his faults, drove the ball forward. We got rid of Torreira who even at his worst is a damn sight better than Elneny.

And thus Arteta nailed his own coffin. Elneny can not pass forward. It doesn't matter if Pep is manager or Arteta or Jose.

Now @Taylor Gang Gunners and @al-Ustaadh argue that he's getting the best out of the available players. This may be true but......

Are you really telling me that he couldn't have kept Guendouzi? Are you sure that we had to send out Willock on loan who is even at his worst still better than Elneny?

Elneny is the biggest reason why our football is so dreadful, even more than the manager. And managers before him were not starting him for precisely that reason. Why did Arteta back this guy?

Willian is another signing that shouldn't have been made at all. Again, happened under Arteta. You can say he's getting the best out of the squad but players who could have, nay, would have improved us are out on loan. Because Arteta loaned them out.

Are you telling me Saliba who was starting in the French league is so bad he couldn't get into the team over the worst defenders we have? I don't believe you, not at all.

Arteta has made many mistakes that a more experienced manager would not make. I don't think the City game told us anything, even a 2-0 win wouldn't have changed anything.

I think Arteta may turn it around, he definitely says the right thing. I just have lost faith that he's the man to do the things he says, but the things he says, as you point out, are spot on and he is trying to transition us towards modern football. I just don't think he's the man to do it.

 

[AbouCuéllar]

I was glad we didn't get Jose because he divides fanbases. Arteta doing the same with 0 pedigree

Kinda a strange reason to not want Jose.

I didn't want him because he's not good.

 

[al-Ustaadh]

I wanted Arteta, despite the lack of managerial experience as I felt he had a style of football that would be learned from Pep and Wenger. A change was needed after the stultifying play under Emery.

And then Mikel came along. At the start, we played sort of the way we all imagined. Yes, we parked the bus against the big teams, but this was sensible, pragmatic and understandable.

Come this season, we didn't register Özil, and didn't start Smith Rowe. We got rid of Guendouzi who for all his faults, drove the ball forward. We got rid of Torreira who even at his worst is a damn sight better than Elneny.

And thus Arteta nailed his own coffin. Elneny can not pass forward. It doesn't matter if Pep is manager or Arteta or Jose.

Now @Taylor Gang Gunners and @al-Ustaadh argue that he's getting the best out of the available players. This may be true but......

Are you really telling me that he couldn't have kept Guendouzi? Are you sure that we had to send out Willock on loan who is even at his worst still better than Elneny?

Elneny is the biggest reason why our football is so dreadful, even more than the manager. And managers before him were not starting him for precisely that reason. Why did Arteta back this guy?

Willian is another signing that shouldn't have been made at all. Again, happened under Arteta. You can say he's getting the best out of the squad but players who could have, nay, would have improved us are out on loan. Because Arteta loaned them out.

Are you telling me Saliba who was starting in the French league is so bad he couldn't get into the team over the worst defenders we have? I don't believe you, not at all.

Arteta has made many mistakes that a more experienced manager would not make. I don't think the City game told us anything, even a 2-0 win wouldn't have changed anything.

I think Arteta may turn it around, he definitely says the right thing. I just have lost faith that he's the man to do the things he says, but the things he says, as you point out, are spot on and he is trying to transition us towards modern football. I just don't think he's the man to do it.

My personal reading of the Guendouzi and Saliba situations are attitude issues. But that's just my reading. Guendouzi is obvious since that's what's been reported but I think it's the same with Saliba, whose behavior off the pitch, especially in how he approaches the media, justifies that reading for me.

And that relates to Arteta's non-negotiables that everybody wants to make fun of.

 

[Lidl_Reed]

Kinda a strange reason to not want Jose.

I didn't want him because he's not good.

Nah, I thought he wasn't good enough too, but unlike Arteta, he'd have more on his side with the, "We can't get better" take

 

[Melquiades]

I wanted to see Emi stay but he wanted to start. And his last few matches have really shown his weaknesses. I hate to admit it, but Leno was the correct option.

I've been on the Arteta hype train for a while, before he even went to City. All the right people in football have said he'll make a great manager one day (Xabi Alonso, Pochettino, Wenger, Pep). Not only does he want to be here, and I think we should feel lucky that he is, but I think the style of football he wants to play is the direction football is heading in the future. Moreover, I think he's a highly intelligent person, and not just in a footballing tactics and coaching sense. I think he has a knack for the public-persona-in-the-media side as well as the business and negotiations side, the side of economics and transfers like Wenger (there's a reason they've had him closely working with Edu before this new hire comes in towards the end of this season). He has a complete understanding of football and that's important with the kind of model we run at this club. In this sense, I think he has a higher ceiling than somebody like Pep. He doesn't need a massive transfer kitty to succeed. I mean, he's already won us an FA Cup.


Not trying to make things up. But fair enough.

I do think Arteta would've had better technical players to work with at Chelsea compared to Arsenal, especially in the final third. And I've already responded to the European money point.

As far as metrics: our defending is much, much better from what I've seen. This is the main reason why I think we still have a chance in the EL. This mid-table talk is misleading if we had a few matches go our way. Think we'll finish strong and make top 8 due to our defending, so it's all mute to me.

But there are a lot of things that metrics wont show. Since December, we move the ball quicker, we're better at passing in tight spaces, our build-up play is great, especially out from the back. There's passes that the players make we would've never dreamed of making under Emery, especially from the backline and in midfield. Our pressing has gotten even better, particularly as a team. Even City had issues against it today. It's coming together, it's just been slow this season and I believe part of that is the pandemic with no proper preseason. We have a lot to work on in the final third, and unlike most, I've thought that's where we've needed the most investment for years even going back to Wenger.

Pep failed in his first season at City in implementing his system, including yelling his ass off on the sidelines every match. It took time (and a massive investment, which Arteta doesn't have access to so it'll take a bit longer for us but as I said above I don't think he needs that kind of investment to succeed). But as I repeat, if the KSE American franchises are anything to go by, Arteta wont be going anywhere any time soon. I'm of the belief that Arteta is getting a pass this season regardless. And if I'm wrong, I'm wrong.

Oh, and patience. Can't forget that.

I was very close to being fully Arteta Out in December when it seemed like absolutely everything was going wrong, but I've pulled back considerably on that view since then.

He's made positive changes to the squad which have had the desired results and we've played very well since - our pace since Christmas would have us 4th in the table despite missing Partey for most of it and despite the horribly unlucky result in the Wolves game.

I hate manager merry-go-rounds. I think it's absolutely stupid and self-defeating to bring in a guy with a new system who wants new/different players every year when you have a run of poor play, and it never leads anywhere good unless you're spending to a level that success is basically guaranteed. I don't think you change a manager unless the situation is untenable and the players have quit, or if a series of terrible signings have bottomed the team out in the standings. Neither is true here.

I think there is a lot to like about Arteta, as you say. I also still have some significant questions about him. I'm not sure if he's flexible enough and hands-off enough to allow a dominant offensive team to flourish under him. I think he's still a bit too reluctant to give looks to younger players, although the ESR change speaks to improvement there. And things like the Saliba situation seem very poorly handled. And then there's the Willian signing and his role in that.

But I think that things have righted enough and you can see enough of where this team is going that you want to give him a clean offseason to put his plan into effect with a fresh slate next year. And if we're in 10th on January 1 2022, absolutely, at that point you look at a manager change. But I have a feeling we won't be.

 

[hydrofluoric acid]

I think we can't afford to sack Arteta.

Which would make an exciting case for me to see what manager can do if they are backed with some real-time, years, not year. But the structure around Arteta, Kia, and Edu gives me zero hope there will be any improvements over the summer.

 

[Tree Points]

The only reason United play half decent football is because your manager bought Bruno

I’m not in denial though. I accept we’re average under Ole.

You actually believe Arteta is a good manager

 

[Lidl_Reed]

Anyway, Arteta aside, this is going to be the most important summer.

What I think we should do is sell Saka if there are takers, but it make it so expensive that we can get 2-3 good players in.

 

[Tree Points]

Scored 4 goals in our last league game​

Many teams score loads of goals against Leeds. You’re using one-off results as a barometer to measure Arteta’s quality as a manager.

How about looking at the style of football, the poor management of players, the poor subs, the negative tactics and being 9th in the league after playing over half a season.

Arsenal fans wanted Emery out but not Arteta - what’s the difference?

 

[benjamin86]

I’m not in denial though. I accept we’re average under Ole.

You actually believe Arteta is a good manager

Better than Ole but that's a low bar.

 

[Macho]

I don’t think Arteta has any chat for Ole personally.

 

[Tree Points]

Better than Ole but that's a low bar.

He’s not better than Ole though. Again, you have zero evidence for this. Winning a game of football against us doesn’t qualify Arteta for this argument. You won an FA Cup. And? Roberto Martinez and Harry Redknapp recently won FA Cups as well.

Arteta has done nothing to suggest he’s a better manager than any Premier League opposition coach.

 

[Rasmi]

I wanted Arteta, despite the lack of managerial experience as I felt he had a style of football that would be learned from Pep and Wenger. A change was needed after the stultifying play under Emery.

And then Mikel came along. At the start, we played sort of the way we all imagined. Yes, we parked the bus against the big teams, but this was sensible, pragmatic and understandable.

Come this season, we didn't register Özil, and didn't start Smith Rowe. We got rid of Guendouzi who for all his faults, drove the ball forward. We got rid of Torreira who even at his worst is a damn sight better than Elneny.

And thus Arteta nailed his own coffin. Elneny can not pass forward. It doesn't matter if Pep is manager or Arteta or Jose.

Now @Taylor Gang Gunners and @al-Ustaadh argue that he's getting the best out of the available players. This may be true but......

Are you really telling me that he couldn't have kept Guendouzi? Are you sure that we had to send out Willock on loan who is even at his worst still better than Elneny?

Elneny is the biggest reason why our football is so dreadful, even more than the manager. And managers before him were not starting him for precisely that reason. Why did Arteta back this guy?

Willian is another signing that shouldn't have been made at all. Again, happened under Arteta. You can say he's getting the best out of the squad but players who could have, nay, would have improved us are out on loan. Because Arteta loaned them out.

Are you telling me Saliba who was starting in the French league is so bad he couldn't get into the team over the worst defenders we have? I don't believe you, not at all.

Arteta has made many mistakes that a more experienced manager would not make. I don't think the City game told us anything, even a 2-0 win wouldn't have changed anything.

I think Arteta may turn it around, he definitely says the right thing. I just have lost faith that he's the man to do the things he says, but the things he says, as you point out, are spot on and he is trying to transition us towards modern football. I just don't think he's the man to do it.

I like that you mentioned Guardiola. When Arteta was linked with us. The only argument for him was he was working with the best manager in the world and we thought he was a guardiola lite. After 18 months we can all agree he is no guardiola light. Can you imagine guardiola building his whole attack on fullback putting in crosses? It was style and philosophy over experience. Arteta was gonna entertain us with beautiful football. The results would be p and down, but we were told expect to excitement. A manager who understands Arsenal unlike Emery and his boring football. Instead we get the worst football and results in decades and are told be patient

 

[benjamin86]

He’s not better than Ole though. Again, you have zero evidence for this. Winning a game of football against us doesn’t qualify Arteta for this argument. You won an FA Cup. And? Roberto Martinez and Harry Redknapp recently won FA Cups as well.

Arteta has done nothing to suggest he’s a better manager than any Premier League opposition coach.

What has Ole done?

 

[Big Poppa]

Anyway, Arteta aside, this is going to be the most important summer.

What I think we should do is sell Saka if there are takers, but it make it so expensive that we can get 2-3 good players in.

 

[AbouCuéllar]

Can you imagine guardiola building his whole attack on fullback putting in crosses?

Have you been watching us at all in the past couple months?

 

[Legend14]

Anyway, Arteta aside, this is going to be the most important summer.

What I think we should do is sell Saka if there are takers, but it make it so expensive that we can get 2-3 good players in.

Sell Saka? Absolutely not.