Arsenal Beat Themselves

The morning after the night before has dawned and it wasn’t a nightmare. We really did lose at the Grove for the first time.

If there is anything positive to be drawn from the disaster it is that the inept and soul-less display at Anfield was replaced by what has come to be a typical Arsenal performance these days.

We dominated from start to finish, created enough opportunities to have scored a hatful, yet once again surrendered the opening goal in careless fashion, and this time didn’t convert one of the chances that followed in a second-half played almost entirely at the opposite end of the stadium to where I was sitting.

I have to confess to putting my rose-tinted’s away yesterday. I am tiring of Hleb’s complete loss of anything vaguely resembling form and the poor lad should be taken out of the firing line now. I am tiring of the defensive frailties that render us incapable of keeping clean sheets against even the least ambitious of sides. I am tiring of seeing the slow and deliberate advance up the pitch when not long ago we were used to breaking from defence to scoring opportunity in two or three passes and a matter of seconds.

Last season when we were beaten it was usually by a side that out-muscled and out-worked us. In truth West Ham did neither. They came with limited ambition and the only team that beat Arsenal yesterday was Arsenal. There is now a resounding lack of confidence that has to end soon or Champions League football may be surrendered.

Quite what Arsene can do tomorrow at Newcastle I don’t know. Hleb, I suspect is not the only one who will need a rest and we are down to the bare bones. I suspect the non-starters yesterday may step up, and that means Baptista. Am I alone in thinking that one of the youngsters, perhaps Jay Simpson, would give us more than Julio in his current poor form?

Anyway, hopefully this discontent will last as long as all my other bouts of discontent. In other words when this damn hangover has gone. Back tomorrow hopefully commenting on our fine away win in the north east.