Back to the future as free-flowing football the key to Arsenal prosperity

By Avenell Dave

Regardlessof the abomination against Bradford, I don't think the result against Reading was ever in doubt.

The Royals tend to lose against us as they did when they previously came up a few years ago - they always tend to play expansive, adventurous football which would suit them if they had decent defenders.

Without anyone to stifle them, our midfield had, well, a field day, and putting Theo Walcott upfront gave us the pacy outlet that tested the home side time and again.

It's hard to see the wood for the trees when you're so entrenched in a situation but if Arsene Wenger thinks back to when his side was most successful, it had superb wingers and plenty of pace.

Despite his fine showing last night, the jury is still out for me where Lukas Podolski is concerned and we all know Gervinho has his shortcomings.

Given that Walcott was so threatning in a central position, it gives rise to the argument once again that we should revert to a 4-4-2 to allow Theo to play off Olivier Giroud and give us two striking outlets.

Of course, all this depends on us replacing or securing Theo whose contract wrangle looks nowhere near being sorted out.

He was good last night but not mesmerising. That may come with a run of games but his miss when clean through suggested he needs to be more clinical if he's to be the finisher we need.

Thierry Henry would never have missed in that position and even Michu against us a couple of weeks ago never looked like missing when clean through.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is going to develop but I still think we need another, pacey winger who can trick his way past players in the way we hoped Andrey Arshavin would do.

Passing the ball quickly, with confidence high, makes us such a different proposition and, in truth, almost unplayable at times.

We have to get back to that way of playing more regularly and that means Santi Cazorla, the star of the show, alongside Jack Wilshere having the freedom to play.

Not every side is going to be as generous in defence and midfield and the key will be to work hard when the side don't have the ball.

It shows how fragile the team is that they got complacent and let Reading back in the game when it looked won and dusted last night.

We simply have to become more ruthless, more unforgiving while at the same time enjoying our football.

We have a decent bunch of players, even if a few crocks and squad members are not up to it.

What we have to do is get through December and then strengthen - and I'm confident we'll get one or two new signings in.

But what Wenger will have seen last night is that letting the enjoy themselves without losing the discipline required when we don't have the ball is going to be the difference between success and failure this season, in whatever form that takes.

Albeit a depressing defeat against Swansea, we've only lost one Premier League game in six and if we can start turning draws into wins, we'll be ok this season.

BAD-Ford underlines Arsenal problems that cannot be solved overnight

By Avenell Dave

I've been trying to make sense of last night's debacle, trying to bring some sanity to the Arsenal world and it's hard to do.

When Arsenal were reigning champions in 1992, we ended up losing to the bottom placed club, Wrexham. With our legendary back four playing.

Years later, albeit when they were a struggling Premier League club, Bradford beat us when we had Bergkamp and Henry in our ranks.

We lost to Swindon and York in cup ties.

Shock results happen. 

Someone who is becoming somewhat frustrated by Arsenal at present said to me this morning that there were plenty of knee-jerk reactions last night and that was indeed the case.

Twitter is an awful place to be when we lose.

But, while I sometimes get the feeling that the glory hunters, the naysayers and the plastic fan spokesmen revel in our demise and the misery defeats create more than they enjoy the good times, last night's result actually wasn't as big a shock as it might have been.

Arsenal are emotionally fragile.

We do not have enough winners, enough leaders, in the team.

We have players who are not good enough. 

You look at the side last night and actually, Gervinho stands out as a player who is simply not worthy of wearing the shirt.

I've given him the benefit of the doubt, just as I have with others in the past - and I still believe that Aaron Ramsey is a fine player even if he is not on top form at present - but Gervinho has been a waste of money.

And that is where Arsene Wenger's problems lie.

In Gervinho, Abou Diaby, Maroune Chamakh, Park, Sebastien Squillaci and Nik Bendtner, not to mention Andrey Arshavin, we have a glut of players who bring nothing to the team or the squad and who have been brought in on big money.

We can argue the rights and wrongs - Chamakh was a free so his wages will be higher, Squillaci came at the end of the transfer window when we were desperate, Diaby could turn into van Per$ie is we let him go.

But we have too many passengers and the management and scouting network all have to take responsibility for the quality of the players we have brought in over the past few years compared to those we let go.

Look at the team we put out last night. It wouldn't look out of place in the Champions League and yet it lost to Bradford and deservedly so.

Other than the obvious absence of a fast and freescoring striker, what we really lack is width - the great Arsenal sides had Marwood, Limpar, Overmars, Parlous, Reyes, Ljungberg, Pires all capable of scoring goals and making goals.

All of which makes the failure to secure Theo Walcott on a new contract, despite him being hot and cold himself, all the more foolhardy.

Apart from Gervinho, Lukas Podolski also looks disinterested most of the time. Despite his reputation, there's a reason why he failed at Bayern Munich - because he is not cut out for being a medium sized fish in a big pond where you have to take responsibility every single game. He is anonymous more than he is impactful.

So what to do?

We can slate Stan Kroenke for his silence and refusal to back the team or give assurances that he will not take dividends.

We can question whether the team is playing for Wenger anymore, whether the game has moved on or whether he is simply too stubborn or obstinate to objectively manage the club any more.

We can yearn from proper signings to replace some of the passengers in January and then again in the summer. 

But there are criticial problems at Arsenal, despite all the crowing that we're on the cusp of becoming one of EUrope's powerhouses. These issues will not be addressed if we simply rest on our laurels and at times it feels as if 'getting away with it' is good enough for some at the club.

The AST are meeting Ivan Gazidis tonight, and should the CEO turn up, that in itself will be a credit to him and the club. Fans will give him a hard time and rightly so.

We ALL need to stick together. Many of us have experienced this sort of malaise in the 70s and 80s and it's horrible.

There are few reasons to be positive. The overhaul to get us back to a competitive side seems a long way away.

But there will always be an Arsenal.

How seriously should Arsene Wenger take the League Cup tie tonight?

By Avenell Dave

It's inevitable in these days of the Champions League that the League Cup gets less attention than it used to.

With so much money at stake in Europe, the League Cup can be nothing more than a distraction that can hamper the team's progress on other fronts.

I recall when Arsenal first got to the final under Arsene Wenger and we ended up with Adebaywhore and Kolo Toure bothl getting sent off, which ahd an impact on our Premier League ambitions, sucha s they were.

The League Cup has, of course, given us the chance to blood young players but for me, it is worth taking seriously, especially at this stage of the season.

Chelsea and Swansea still remain, and we know both can beat us but other than that, we have a great chance of getting to Wembley at least and winning a trophy wold make such a difference to the club.

It would remove the trophy monkey from our backs, it would remind players what it means to win something and it would boost morale for the rest of the season.

I remember when we played T*tt*nh*m in 1987 and then Liverpool in the final. It was the first time we'd won anything since 1979 and set the cub on an era where we won things regularly.

Did we cheer any less when we won the League Cup and FA Cup double in 1993 when Paul Merson won the League Cup and Steve Morrow was dropped by Tony Adams? I don't think so.

Of course, there's a real balancing act to be done tonight. Bradford should be put to the sword with ease but football doesn't work like that.

They may have fallen on hard times since getting to the Premier League and beating Liverpool on the final day of the season to stay up, but on a cold December night, we have to be completely professional.

I don't think we'll play too much of a scratch team, but I expect there will be a few changes.

We know that Bacary Sagna is out and I suspect Thomas Eisfeld may get a game alongside Aaron Ramsey and Tomas Rosicky.

I can't see many changes at the back - perhaps Meade coming in for another start and Andrey Arshavin starting out wide and Maroune Chamakh in attack. Olivier Giroud was injured in the first half against WBA and I'm not surprised he's not in the squad.

Nothing less than a win is acceptable tomorrow. Hopefully by a few goals in normal time.

But many of us will remember Swindon, York and Wrexham and we simply cannot let that happen again.

Addict XI

Szczesny

Jenkinson Vermaelen Squillaci Meade

Ramsey Eisfeld Rosicky

Gervinho Chamakh Arshavin