You really are an Arteta sceptic aren’t you haha? For the record I share some of those scepticisms but still think he’s the best man for the job. It’s holding two things in my mind at the same time: that he can be overly cautious but also absolutely knows what he’s doing. We shall see eh? Interestingly he largely did as you wanted for that Palace game and we were all over them in the 1st half but for their goalie heroics…the Nwaneri question is a whole other thing though…
Interestingly, I think that Arteta’s principles that brought us to where we are now, might be hurting us when it comes to winning big titles.
For PL defense-first team is rarely successful. “Defenses win titles” is a myth started by MU defender. In reality, the team that can consistently score goals is most likely to win. And we are not doing that.
Defensive approach can be quite good for cups, where only “not losing” can go a long way. At the same time, top level cups, as CL is often won by outstanding individual performances, where a player does something above all the odds. (Last Cup we won when Auba was in top form). However, Arteta always prioritizes the system over setting up the team that makes specific individuals shine. And that might stop us from going all the way.
Hmmm well I sincerely hope you’re wrong. And I mean that in the right way. Let us see. Be interested to see that post where you explore this. Have you always been a sceptic?
22/23 really turned my belief. The new vibrant attacking team that creates plenty of chances. Of course, we lacked depth and experience. 23/24 also gave some hope.
But since 24/25 I see the repetition of same hurtful patterns - trust only in the narrow group of players, overplaying some of them, prioritizing defensive work over creativity, digging deep for the final minutes to protect a one goal lead. And I don’t see Arteta turning the corner on any of those this season unfortunately.
Fair. I think if you really want to lean in that direction it can feel like that but I’m still a believer. My sense is that it’s a bit more nuanced than that with Arteta and just as I’m leaning into that worldview he surprises me. So I’m willing to keep the faith for a little while yet
You really are an Arteta sceptic aren’t you haha? For the record I share some of those scepticisms but still think he’s the best man for the job. It’s holding two things in my mind at the same time: that he can be overly cautious but also absolutely knows what he’s doing. We shall see eh? Interestingly he largely did as you wanted for that Palace game and we were all over them in the 1st half but for their goalie heroics…the Nwaneri question is a whole other thing though…
Interestingly, I think that Arteta’s principles that brought us to where we are now, might be hurting us when it comes to winning big titles.
For PL defense-first team is rarely successful. “Defenses win titles” is a myth started by MU defender. In reality, the team that can consistently score goals is most likely to win. And we are not doing that.
Defensive approach can be quite good for cups, where only “not losing” can go a long way. At the same time, top level cups, as CL is often won by outstanding individual performances, where a player does something above all the odds. (Last Cup we won when Auba was in top form). However, Arteta always prioritizes the system over setting up the team that makes specific individuals shine. And that might stop us from going all the way.
Wanted to touch more on this in one of the posts.
Hmmm well I sincerely hope you’re wrong. And I mean that in the right way. Let us see. Be interested to see that post where you explore this. Have you always been a sceptic?
Arteta’s or in general?
22/23 really turned my belief. The new vibrant attacking team that creates plenty of chances. Of course, we lacked depth and experience. 23/24 also gave some hope.
But since 24/25 I see the repetition of same hurtful patterns - trust only in the narrow group of players, overplaying some of them, prioritizing defensive work over creativity, digging deep for the final minutes to protect a one goal lead. And I don’t see Arteta turning the corner on any of those this season unfortunately.
Fair. I think if you really want to lean in that direction it can feel like that but I’m still a believer. My sense is that it’s a bit more nuanced than that with Arteta and just as I’m leaning into that worldview he surprises me. So I’m willing to keep the faith for a little while yet