Arsenal Grind Out Crucial Old Trafford Victory

34:09Elliot:Do you want me to talk about Gilchrist? I don't know if he's on your list or not. You know what? He is very much on my list, but I'd like to get to one other player first because I think in the running order, it was a guy I wanted to get to earlier and 32 minutes in is too late in my mind. So let's just put Gilchrist slightly behind because we have a section on him. I want to talk about Calafiore. I think this is where you should only be so Mikel-pilled, so to speak Because whatever you think Califiora needs to work on defensively If you think a thing this team needs to be able to do Is find new ways to hurt opposition and threaten opposition Then this is the medicine you've been looking for I thought some of his runs were incredible He had a run into the midfield where he played a diagonal ball to Saka Between the lines, between two defenders He creates the corner kick that leads to the goal that he scores.

34:56He had a run in behind where Martinelli has a chance, I think, to play him first time in. But he has an extra touch, plays him second time, and he's offside. But where he goes and what he does is very hard for the opposition to manage and understand. And it may leave us slightly more open. But look, we've all been saying we need to find more ways to create threat. I think he is a very, very valuable player to us. Remember how much Mikel wanted him, how important Mikel saw that signing, And we never really got to see it. He still scored some important goals last season. I think this game was largely about him and could have been more had he not gotten the yellow.

35:32I think he might have stayed on a bit longer. But in the time he was on, I think he showed the potential of what he can do to change how we attack.

35:38Elliot:Yeah, and I mean, in this game, he may have been our youngest player. I keep saying that. But he's our youngest starter, right? And what I like about him is he sort of copes with the environment. Like he belongs in it. You know, he's got a real presence about him. I just like the way he feels the game, to be honest. I don't know what's coming, but he knows what's required. And he travels in here. The problem's got to be, the coaching message is, if he's gone on wandering over the hills, that's absolutely fine. But Ben White, you can't be wandering over the hills as well at the same time. So you've got to take your position of each other.

36:18Elliot:You know, so I think that's really important. and if you see Ben White up by the corner flag helping out Saka, then maybe you don't be so narrow. Don't give yourself too much room to come back to because your strengths are very much looking forward and punching forward and following your path and seeing what's happening ahead of you. Maybe your weakness is running over your shoulder at top speed. So try to reduce the risk of that weakness by just giving yourself a couple of yards. Do you see what I mean? If someone's behind, that's the only thing I would say. i would take his weaknesses all day long for what he gives because we're lucky that we got the the best center back in the league playing just next to him all right so um and gabriel given the fact that's his first 90 since he's done his hamstring i don't know when that date was but it feels like february time i want to guess against crystal palace and he just rocked up you know an hour against uh bill bow and then old trafford next week thank you very much i'm back and not and no keep you're even on the bench just in case yeah just like no you know well mascara has jumped that cue hasn't he yeah he jumped that cue and he's a player and the club have seen it they can't hold him back you know he's in the squad right and that tells you something isn't it the hierarchy's been set already within three weeks of his arrival you know so um so yeah so so carrie just has something that he has a special special talent for football and we have to encourage it while reducing the risks around him simple as that to be honest if decking rice is on that side martin is on that side and gabrielle's near you he should be free but i'm looking at the more the right side not to critique ben white on the canes i felt a little bit naked there i'm a we're a fan right so we're looking at it and we're going oh my god we look a bit lacking in numbers but then supermendy would jump in between the center backs a lot you know so he It reduces his ability to be the first pass out because he's already in the back line.

38:15Elliot:You know, so an older guard didn't have to crash in as well, which sort of compressed us and we did it, but not really optimal for us to break out with quality and flow through the pitch. We didn't really have that quality. But hey, look, it's part of it, right? We're trying to change. I saw James Benz wrote something earlier. I don't know if you saw it, but I think we sped up our directness of passing to get into the final third, et cetera. i don't think the most direct we've been since michael arrived basically by a lot like 50 faster more direct play in terms of the time the speed with which we got the ball up the pitch yeah 50 faster than our fastest time like three seasons ago yeah and i think it's something that we all want you know to be more direct to be more vertical i i want us to do that i also want when we do have settled attack to be more penetrative regarding our movement, you know, and we have a forward to do that.

39:13Elliot:But this forward is 50 % fit at the moment, right? So, so yeah, I think we have to be careful that we're playing to somebody or some, a form of football which suits somebody that's not at his optimal game yet. Do you see what I mean? And that's where we're getting caught. Yes. And here's the other thing though, if you're going to let, you know, Calafiore rampage up the pitch a little bit more or whatever, and, and you're occasionally going to lose the ball when he's up there. Your counter-pressing has to be really, really good and really effective. And this is a bridge to the Yolkres conversation because Mikel called out Yolkres' pressing not in a positive way.

39:51And I think there's something that I want to discuss there about Yolkres, the good and then the things he has to work on. So this is a good opportunity to quickly hit NordVPN because then we can get right into Yolkres' conversation and talk a little bit about the forward line. So Very, very simple. NordVPN app. Put it on your phone. You can watch everything. One of the things that drives me nuts is when someone's like, oh, you got this. This is a great quote from Macau or you got to see this goal video or you have to see. And I click on it. It says not available in your area. It's like the most annoying thing.

40:18But with Nord, I just click, tap there. Boom. It's available in my area. When I go over to England, when I'm lucky enough to go to the Emirates, I still want to be able to watch 3 p.m. kickoffs while I can because I Nord back here and I watch my streaming service here. You can even watch. So there's a show my wife and I were watching, but the new season was out not in the US for another year, I think it was. So we just Nord over there and watch it. So really, really easy. It's an app you put on your device. It also has threat protection. So if you're on a link streaming something that maybe, you know, put some stuff on your computer, now you don't have to worry about that as well.

40:47And you get a huge discount off your Nord plan plus four months on top and it's got a 30-day risk-free trial. So NordVPN.com slash ArsenalVision. NordVPN.com slash ArsenalVision. NordVPN.com slash ArsenalVision. It's done with it. Indeed. No, okay. kid yokers uh so let me hit you with a couple of mikhail quotes so first of all uh to the nbc crew he said uh we had to manage things especially in the way we press a little different to him and you could sense that especially the amount of time we were giving to the opposition in the first half. And then he said again on Jokras' debut, he did a lot of very good things.

41:31You can tell, especially in our high pressing, the rhythm that we demand, especially in the first half, we're giving a bit too much time. It's something that we have to work on, especially there. And then in the finalizing situation, he didn't have that many chances to do it because, as I said on the previous action, we had to play that last ball. The line was standing still with 40 meters behind. We managed to put the ball through to exploit his quality. But overall, coming away to Manchester United winning your first game, it's a good start. I think it's interesting that both in his main press conference and in the interview he gave to NBC, both times he made a point to talk about the pressing rhythm not being good enough.

42:03And if a team wants to hit you long early and you give them time to measure that pass, these are Premier League players who are going to find accurate long balls. So if you're going to do this, you better get your press right. And I do have to agree with Mikel that it was visibly noticeable that we weren't getting pressure on the ball in the first action of our press. And it sounds like he thinks that's something jokerous needs to is to figure out yeah and again i didn't get the game

42:28Elliot:i expected right because the last game i saw it was um you know maybe saka a little bit higher up in the press you know odegaard a bit deeper we seem to go back to odegaard being a little bit higher and then he meant to work all the way back in for for the second ball i didn't quite like our our pressing shame i didn't quite understand it i always say this to you this is not something that I look at religiously when I do my football stuff, I tend to look at things like the length of the pitch felt long to me. Would you agree? The pitch, we didn't look as compact. And from our shape and our lack of compactness, things then happen from there, right?

43:07The distances were not the usual that I expect.

43:10Elliot:You know, I've got a big TV and I couldn't see all the players on it. I told you the pitch was bigger, right? So when the pitch is bigger, we're now being asked to do different things. and we have to win those duels we have to win those seconds we have to fold in and i i felt we got kidding into their game a little bit and we were just about better than them at doing it on the occure side of things there are different things there earlier so in this game that developed away at ot 76 000 people there million degrees under a bit of pressure i flip the ball up to him. Bosh gets me a foul straight away, goes down the side, delits, cheating in the dirt, eating grass from a shoulder to shoulder.

43:52Elliot:That stuff is the stuff that gets the players high fiving you. You know, because when I was in the trenches and I needed you to give me a rest, I needed you to give me a break. I needed you to show me something, not stand there and look at me. I'm on the ball. Don't look at me. I need you to move. So we've got an exit pass. Goes down the side shoulders the man off turns around lays it back to us i'm thinking yes mate you'll do for me because you can do that at ot there's only a couple more places to go we need to to show yourself like that you know so big tick for him never when he's fitter he'll run down the side and run past and and get the shot off right but he's not there yet but i'm really encouraged about what he could be and i was worried earlier for most of you you look at some of the portuguese stuff he's pushing he's pushing aside children right and are tremendous of this world right about 38 i'm wondering if he's going to be able to go shoulder to shoulder with the heavyweight premier league defenders well there's not much heavier than dilett you know and um and he did it so that's a really good sign that physically he can cope you know definitely cope i've seen my own eyes he's quick he's sharp he feels like a bit of a lone pressing ranger do you know i mean at the moment just goes what he senses he's not working in the team constructs at the moment obviously fitness is a big part of his game repeat sprint ability and he's not there yet but it will come and i i'm really convinced he's going to be a really big player for us if i could do my pre-season predictions again i'd be edging a lot closer to where you were with him because i think he's got something he really has and he's he's learning really quickly he's a player whose ability to have the season we want him to have depends a lot on what his teammates do for him now you could say that's true for every striker i actually don't think that's true for every striker so first of all i think you can have a striker like kai havertz who his tackling and his passing and his setting up of other teammates and his link play and his focal point his pressing can all give him a successful season i think yoker has to have the season that we want from him needs to run early, often in behind a lot, whether that's from deep or from, from, you know, even settled possession and our teammates, his teammates have to understand how to find him with that ball.

46:11And Mikel referenced that there were chances and we didn't. I think we will get better at that. Picking the spots when to do that and when to play through the thirds is going to be important because if you get too eager to try to do it and you just stop playing through the thirds, you get a basketball game, you get broken play. And I think we are a team, Clive, that's better. To your point, I could hear your voice ringing in my ears when there were a few times where we would give the ball away. It's like, just get to five passes. Just get to five passes. I could hear your voice ringing in my ear.

46:39And I think in this game, we did get into basketball at times. We did get into going direct and then they go direct. And I think we are a team that sometimes needs our foot on the ball a bit and needs to, you can hate the horseshoe of death all you want. There are times I think we need to be in it a little bit to set our press, to set our positioning to get our distances right. And in this game, we very rarely got to those five passes. So that's going to be a tension all season, isn't it? How to release Yokores is running, how to release him into those dangerous spaces. But for the people that watched him step over the ball in the 51st minute or hack and cross out for a throw, you know what?

47:13If you think this is a guy who can't get the last action right, I am here to tell you, I think you're going to be surprised. He will get the last action right. I think the bigger question is, will we find the right connection with him do you do you think these comments about his his need to work on his pressing do you think these comments suggest that Mikel might I don't want to run out of patience is too loaded but might go back to the safety blanket of Kai right away in the next game or do you think Mikel's going to have the patience to just let him figure it out as our starting

47:42Elliot:striker for a little while yeah he needs to he's come to a new team and we have a different way of playing and different principles and different pressing instructions he's been here two minutes right and so when a coach says that they say in a way where these are development opportunities and these are things that i need to work on the player with because i could see that he didn't quite get it that doesn't mean he's having a go at the player he's just highlighting something that he wants from that position that's his job right and he'll get that and we are known as the best off the ball team in the world we didn't really look at in this game you know we didn't you know and that's okay to say that and he'll fix that we've seen us do it everywhere right so it's not like we can't do it we were just a little bit off in a couple positions i don't put that just on jokeres by the way let's be honest right our our both our wide men were at it neither at it you know that's as poor as i've seen both of them play but within that they still did the the base job the principles by which michael operates they know what to do in this game state they've been here for many years so this is not no this is easy for them jokeres hasn't got that base information he hasn't got that knowledge in his head about being like he's even played old traffic before right maybe maybe so so this is a big game right a big day so um so yeah i'm not i'm not in fact i have zero worries about him i was going to ask you a question do you think this was more of a the way it planned out or panned out sorry more of a kai game or more of a jokeres game well it's tough i i think it's more of a jokeres game to be honest because Because it did get stretched and he did have room to run into.

49:18I think as the video shows when you rewatch it, and as Mikel said, there were seven, eight times when the execution was wrong, but the opportunity was right. You know, I mean, this is process versus outcome analysis, right? Was the process right? Yeah, Yokoz is running behind in space. We're running in behind 3v4 or 4v3 or 5v2 or whatever it is. If you execute that, to your point, there's a 3-1 game or a 4-1 game. We didn't execute it. time and time and time again. So I'm going to say process-wise, yeah, it's right. We created the scenarios to score transition goals, but we simply didn't execute them.

49:56Now, if you told me going into the game, our players weren't going to be able to make a simple slid three-yard pass to play a teammate in behind, I'd say, get Kai in there. I guess, well, I'll go back on my point in this respect. It could have been a Kai game in the sense that had we played Kai, we might have gotten more control of the game. It would have been less basketball, and that might have given us more comfort. But I think that's being wise after the fact a little bit because I know we didn't execute in transition. If you told me, Clive, going into that game yesterday, we're going to have seven or eight transition opportunities where we have a numerical advantage and we're running at their back line, and they don't have enough players to cover back and say, whew, this could get ugly for United.

50:40So we created those moments. We didn't execute them.

50:42Elliot:Yeah, and it's been a problem for us for a while. I mean, it's the day it's been out there really, isn't it, about the amount of high turnovers that we create and the amount of goals we score, let alone the amount of shots that we've scored. It's just not high enough, right? And as watching supporters, we know all this. We just want to see more goals go in. And we work very hard to create them, particularly with our dual winning and the territory we normally own. And we don't get enough reward for the team that we are. So we don't get enough credit for the team that we are. Then we have to revert to a set piece that breaks the game open.

51:14Elliot:And people have that memory of another set piece goal, whereas we really have a big chance this game. So apart from the goal we scored, but we all know as Arsenal people that we can do better after big chances that we create, particularly in turnovers. That's something we need to do, right? We need to execute. I think, I'm hoping that the next signing is a little bit more intelligent, shall we say, around the edge of the box. That's really, that's their DNA. That's what they want to do. That's what they're judged on. that composure in that situation I think we lacked a little bit of that it's first game it's game one of 60 so I'm cool with it mate because I've got the points and I've got all my Manchester United mates not in my WhatsApp this morning so I'm really happy with it but within that context I think there are a few things to work on and this is one of them for sure Speaking of Kai I will just say something is up with him you know I don't know it's funny I used to work out quite a bit And I think there's this thing when your muscles get a little bit bigger, you're like, I got some muscles.

52:14I want to go use some of these muscles. You ever see that guy who's just all muscle-bound and you just know he's looking for a chance to show it? I don't know if Kai just wants to throw his muscles around more or whatever, but he's been very chippy all preseason. And again, in this game, he wants the physical contact. He's going in on, sliding in on people and pushing people around. And there's definitely a chip on his shoulder. There's an edge to him. When he came on, you could see it again. I don't think he influenced the game much, but that's just one to keep an eye on. Clive, he seems very aggressive now.

52:47Elliot:I thought I knew this player until, remember Newcastle away that day when he just sort of let the beast out? And that's what's in there. He's a competitive animal, right? And yeah, he's committed himself to be far more robust and far more stronger and be far more of an alpha player. and I thought he came into his game at the right time, just about. And I thought he settled my nerves down a little bit. And he worked into gaps really, really nicely. And what I'd like to see is, I don't mind if Kai does that, if he does drop in, but we must retain pace in the outside areas. Do you know what I mean?

53:24Elliot:So we can transition. And we're asshole people and we're friends here. But Saka Leighton game, I don't want to see him sprinting 50, 60 yards down the side. I want him out. I want that changed. Do you see what I mean? I want that changed. i don't know who that's going to be right so um my record came on he was able to dovetail with second that one chance towards the end i quite liked his impact really it was a group win right it was a group win for the for the five subs the finishers and the starters everyone played their role you know in mid-august when we're not tipped up that's exactly what's required and we were able to do that and maybe the story of the day is not just what we did with the fifth year with the five of substitutes with the 16 players involved but it may be the five or six that didn't actually make the squad maybe that's that's realization of what we are what our dna or what we're known for we are a really strong group at the moment and we ended last season with three or four kids on the bench we ended last season before with three or four kids on the bench that are never liked to play for arsenal and that's not where you want to be right so it got us the point saka had the Salah game and you might be saying, Elliot, that's one of the dumber things you've ever said.

54:34And it's a long list. No, hear me out. I sure I can bring you over to my point here. If you watch the Liverpool game and we're going to finish the pod with just a little quick overview of what we thought of the weekend of fixtures overall. But Salah sort of ghosted in that game a bit. And then towards the end, it's still a contest. No, it's not because he does something sensational and he scores a goal and puts the game away. This game, not much Saka. Not much Saka. Wasn't getting the ball much. Wasn't executing. Wasn't doing things. And then late in the game, at one no when it's still nervy, pops up on the left, reverse turn, kills two players dead, puts the perfect ball through to the box, and Nani Meduake is right there to tap it in, but it just gets, I think, the tiniest deflection away.

55:15Then, a few minutes later, still nervy, only a little bit of time left, little clipped in ball and a perfect run that he makes with a little one-two action on Odegaard, and he's going to slam it into the roof of the net and DeLitt, honestly, credit to DeLitt. That is a sensational bit of covering over. But he's got an assist and a goal in this game, you know, if it weren't for the tiniest bit of intervention there. And so I think it's just a reminder that the reason you leave your elite players out there is because they can go 89 minutes of not influencing a game, and in two minutes, they can have two of the most important actions in the game.

55:49I'm not worried about Saka at all. I think we should touch on Nani Meduake. I mean, the left-hand side, gosh, is anybody else bored of talking about the left-hand side? It wasn't a great Martinelli game, and that's fine. I don't know that Nani did much else. I mean, he could have had a goal there if that ball isn't taken right away from him. But, Clive, the two things I'll say is it's all there for Nani Meduake to take that position because nobody else is stepping up to do it. But I also still believe that the window is open And that's a position where if we really want to push the boat out, there's room to improve on that side for sure.

56:24Yeah.

56:24Elliot:If I'm the club executive, I'm recruitment people, I'm thinking, okay, we need to sell some people. We know the names. You can choose who you want to go. But we need to add another wide forward into this group. It's clear. And that forward needs to have a bit of movement, a bit of intelligence, and can score some goals. Right? So this is somebody that adds something. for me it's just somebody that speeds us up not slows us down if I'm honest with you but on another day I might want something to slow us down and be a bit more if we're playing against a low block and be a bit more calm so but we need somebody happy in the wider spaces and whether that's somebody that's right and left and you don't mind which side they play or somebody that's pure left side and so Noni-Motorweke goes into being more of a right side take out rather than a left side first pick right so um if that's the case then i'm not sure that's that's where we want it to end up we need to get another wide player in which lists the quality of the overall wide player group that's the that's the truth the rest of the league is probably looking at our wide left options and thinking i'm not sure they scare me you know and and i i i like those players but do they scared your position enough you know and i don't think they do at this moment in time so i'm thinking a new addition would would work there we may need to upgrade i'm looking at other teams just getting rid of players and everyone seems to be selling better than us and we know there's they're gonna they're building themselves they're building their cash for a massive upgrade and we seem to be sitting there unable to sell not allowing us to upgrade and um but this is the this is the sporting director job isn't it and he had to do this job now to give us that opportunity because i think almost every arsehole fan wants that extra one that extra one player we say right we go to war with this lot we're happy what we've done but we need one more and that's what we need to do any quick thoughts on nani's performance i thought he was good but the game context was set right he was playing wide defender tried to help just get out a couple of times he looks a bit untidy on occasions he doesn't look like a smooth athlete but then found himself in the right corner of the area to be there for soccer where did that come from you know so he could smell it and see it and got himself into area and probably deserved the goal you know it's great defending from there so this game this game state was set so we can't judge him as a killer white man per se because he was being part of the unit and i'll be honest here when you when you first mentioned this link to me i didn't think he could do this job do you see what i mean i didn't this is not i knew he was a flashy winger that wants to take people one-on-one and get loads of shots and some shots go into the crowd and some shots go towards the goal i knew that but i didn't know he could do this you know so um so i'm again i walk away pleased again because we've seen a side of him he's part of the group people said he he's off the ball plays not great well he did an off the ball job you know so that tells you that he joined the group and he's he's willing to do what they all do which is real positive um one of the one of the players that we haven't talked about yet and it's sort of a shame because the man of the match is david raya and i think there are things you can learn about in pre-season that matter Then there are things you see in preseason that you just over-index, and it turns out they're not as important as you may think.

59:58I know Matt Giant-Gunner, for example, thinks nobody should watch preseason at all, and I disagree with him. But one of the things that I'd have to say is that I think Raya had an uneven preseason. It didn't fill a lot of people with a ton of confidence. In this game, to be fair, he does make one near error and almost gives away a penalty on Cunha, but he's also the reason we wind up with the points. Two moments that stand out. save on Cunha down to his left from the byline shot. Unreal. A punch from a free kick. It was a free kick near the corner that he's in a crowd scene and he does what Bayandere isn't able to do.

1:00:29Just be strong and command your area and punch it out. And that is one of the things he does really, really well. I don't know if I think Riot is the best keeper in the world, but I do think I believe that Riot is the quality of keeper that you can win a title with. And this is another game where we have three points instead of one point. in part because of him so i i think it's worth getting your thoughts on the first actual competitive view of david raya versus what we saw in preseason yeah he looks sharp again doesn't he straight away i think he the performance of him and this type of goalkeeper is one of the biggest tactical step forwards in the game you know to have someone you can always go back to

1:01:09Elliot:you're gonna have to accept that every now and again he's gonna someone's gonna drop it on his left side, he's going to try to, his first touch, he's trying to bring it back to his right side. We instead narrate the angle because the guy's read him and then he kicks it or doesn't quite get it right. Do you know what I mean? We're going to have to accept that. We're going back to him a lot. Right? So, like you said, he had more touches than Rice did. So we're going back to him. He's a football player. Right? So the problem is when he makes a mistake, we all flip and our hearts stop. Right? So it's a difference.

1:01:40Elliot:If Odegaard loses the ball in the centre pitch, we remember it, but our hearts don't stop because we've got other players to get around it, right? When he does it last night of the defense, we all get worried, right? What could happen, what the outcomes could be. But yeah, he's critical to us. Absolutely critical to getting that first pass out, creating the plus one at the back there. The players use him just like they would use a fullback, right? So we have to recognize that there's a risk and reward to this. But I also remember, and something I got wrong during our analysis around Ramsdale was that sometimes he would go long when under pressure because that was a safe option and it created a bit of to and fro.

1:02:23Elliot:You spotted it earlier and I thought, well, yeah, maybe on this day we needed that because of the ground we were at. But in general, the principle is right. When Raya goes long, he's targeting somebody, not just clearing his lines. And that's the difference. And I think it's a big part of who we are. when your defensive team and you know that the opposition goalkeeper can hit anybody he likes on the pitch like an arrow you are stressed you are stressed trust me I've been there I've seen it myself you are stressed and he's a very important player to us we just have to accept if now and again he's going to step on it but that's the truth but what I would like sometimes is to say okay I need to pick it up and just calm this stuff down a little bit do you know what I mean yeah And then that's what I'd like to see, but it's easy from the city, right?

1:03:10Elliot:He's in the fire, isn't he? We did get a free kick in a dangerous area on the 81st minute after Maguire fouled Kai. The ball was given right to him. So he has to take him out. And one thing that could be a thing is that's a position where for the last three seasons I've seen Martin Odegaard take the free kicks. And Declan Rice took the free kick. I thought it was well struck actually. Just takes a little nick and hits a side netting. Otherwise, maybe it sneaks into the near corner, bottom corner. But do you think basically because of what happened against Real Madrid that now we're going to see Rice take more of these free kicks?

1:03:51I am not someone who is down on Martin Odegaard by any means. But I do think Declan Rice should take our corners now that I've seen him stick two top bins against Real Madrid. And he took this one and I thought it was well struck.

1:04:02Elliot:So maybe something there to carry away for the rest of the season? No, I just thought, you know what? It's a strange one, because that's the angle from the TV was showing it. I'm thinking, well, we all went back to Madrid, that wall, didn't we? Our eyes went back to that. I hope Rice takes this. Well, I was thinking that anyway. And then he took it, and he got a little nick, went around the corner. When they did the replay, and they showed the wall, from the down angle, there was no gap there. Do you know what I mean? It looked like there was a massive gap there. And so, yeah, it just looked strange from the TV angle.

1:04:31Elliot:But, yeah, that's fine. know we want him to take the ones that suit him you know and that sort of curling to the right to that near post seems to suit him you know that righty that curls across it yeah and that's it so you want him taking it and there'll be others that suit other guard and maybe a bit closer to goal a bit more of a dinks required you know i mean and the fact you've got a left and a right facing up to the gut to the free kick means the goalkeeper's not sure what's going to happen so he has to be conservative maybe so yeah just let that roll i'm comfortable with it one other thing about just game management i think there was something that really bothered me hallmark of a champion they say sometimes is winning ugly i think the hallmark of champions being the best team in the league personally but you'll take winning ugly you have to do it across the season you've got to get some hard points one ugly and we're going to talk about performance versus result momentarily then quickly wrap up on the uh the weekend overall but there was there was a I want to say a corner kick late and I think it was one yeah we took this incredibly bad poor short corner that winds up with Miles and Miles lets the ball roll under his foot and then he has to foul and that's the stuff that has me screaming at my television because either keep it in the corner or you know have some settled possession but it was just such poor awareness in game management it leads to us being under the cosh having to defend a free kick and a yellow card for our fullback so did that bother you like it did me or am i just was i just too high strung in the late stages of the game probably we're all we're all in that state at the end of the game weren't we so um so when the commentator said that gabrielle and steve didn't go forward i'm thinking okay we're just trying to play out the last few minutes right so um so by keeping the ball moving just keeping possession was the right thing to do so he went short then went back and it should go should be back and around that's what should happen go back and around around to the left hand side and maybe think across into the back post but we don't really care because we're taking a minute off the clock right does that mean but then to go back miles have a heavy touch then plays it back but his follow-through takes a man out because it's miles the other card i mean i i it's one of those i don't really care now and then so we have an event again around the halfway line that results in a card and they can stick haye mcguire into our box of a long diagonal free kick how we got here just i mean it feels like that you know um but that's the game right so we managed to defend that and and it's all part of the experience right but they decided not to go for which is fine because what happens if you cross it from a corner and you don't get the the first contact and don't keep it in an area you get counted on without our best two defenders back there.

1:07:13Elliot:So I understand when I went short, but just look after it better, really. That's it. Yeah. Yep. So I want to just quickly have a bit of a chat about performance versus result. In the 38th game, in the 37th game, in the 36th game, all that matters is a result. Because at that point, it doesn't matter if you're a good team, a bad team, or anything in between. you get the points, the season ends you lift a trophy, no one cares early in the season I think performances matter the most because they are indicative of whether you have the quality and capability to be the kind of team that can go win enough games to be a champion this is the difficult thing, nobody wants to be told after winning at Old Trafford, a place where we never play well and rarely win, that there's anything wrong at all, people want to hear a celebration and we should celebrate, it's a fantastic fantastic win that we desperately needed and it's just a place that has a hoodoo over us that has an aura that we we struggle with we've just always struggled there whether they're good they're bad or indifferent we struggle they're up for it and they were up for it again and we came away with the win the reason i think the performance does matter is that obviously and i don't think anyone would disagree with this if we are going to play the way we played in this game a lot this season that will be a problem.

1:08:32Now, I think most of us would say we don't expect that. But that's not a performance that's indicative of a team that's going to go dominate teams and win the game. Now, again, I want to be clear. I don't think that's how we'll play. But Clive, can you just sort of touch on the balance of being thrilled about the result but not hand-waving the things in the game that would concern you and led the manager himself to say, there are a lot of things we need to fix and the players aren't happy. There's got to be a way to balance that and reflect on the ways in which we probably didn't achieve our tactical and performance-oriented goals in this game.

1:09:13Elliot:Every game you played, there's something you could do better. Every single one. Right, so... A lot of mistakes. And just every single game, there's something you could do better. There's something you could have managed better. There's a training you could have managed better. There's something you could have done differently, whether you were in 5-1 or 1-0. it doesn't matter and that's the game if you're not looking to continuously improve then you shouldn't be at this level right so so so for me I was really happy with what we did while recognising that performance wasn't quite there but I don't think we're going to play in the next 60 games like this I don't so one of my one of the things that I'm looking for really is us to get to the 2-0 a bit quicker you know and if we can do that then we can play as we like you know and so I did feel a little bit edgy at 1-0 but I credit the opposition they fought back really hard and aggressively at 1-0 and didn't allow us to get into that post-goal rhythm where you dominate and then maybe get the second big chance and score I never felt that I didn't feel that I just felt we were sort of playing off the scraps that's down to what they did on the day to rock into Old Trafford on their first home game when they don't want to lose and they've had real optimism around the ground I read in the Aflade that they were the most optimistic fans of the Premier League clubs before the season started.

1:10:31Elliot:So there's been a lot of change, a lot of good feelings around there. And we were chucked into the Lions den and we got out of dodge in time with the three points. I don't think we're going to play like this. But you know what? The first 20 minutes against Bilbao, I didn't, or half hour against Bilbao, I didn't think we were going to play that well then. You know? And so I'm learning this new group. I'm learning about its new powers. I'm learning about his change of play. And the players seem to be learning too. I can't sit here and say that last season was sparkling and we all super enjoyed it, despite having some high moments.

1:11:07Elliot:There were some fundamental things in the way we played that needed to be addressed with either personnel or coaching change. And we are trying to do it. So while we're trying to do it, I think the volume of the criticism, because we can all see a game, right? Everyone listening can see a game, how they felt. But does the volume of that criticism need to be at 9 or 10 when we just won our OT? No. No, of course not. I just don't think so. You should extract joy from winning at Old Trafford. You should extract joy from your football full stop. And if your team happens to win at Manchester United, then, mate, enjoy that.

1:11:42Elliot:Enjoy it. And the volume should be a 3 or a 4, and it should be a discussion point. And as the sample size grows, we'll have a little bit more informed opinion. at this moment in time we're learning well i'm learning if you know more than me that's absolutely fine i'm i'm trying to learn this group when i go to the emits for a competitive game on the weekend i can learn a bit more when we go to anfield in a couple of weeks we're gonna know a lot more you know we really are gonna know a lot more can we get to at least game three before we hit nine and ten volume on critique i think i think i'm prepared to do that at least and then i am i am as well.

1:12:20I think it's interesting and enjoyable to analyze the areas of our performance that are ripe for improvement. I don't think it's interesting or enjoyable to be freaked out or upset at a win at Old Trafford in the first game of the season when you know we've had all summer to worry about this fixture, to worry about how we get off to the start. This, I said this on the instant reaction, but I will say it again. There is every possibility we look back on this as maybe the most important defining game of our season in the sense that we were not at our best. We were not fully baked. We were set up against a renewed enthusiasm united before the seasons had time to kill off all of their hopes and dreams when they're at full power, ready to go, and we're set up to get off to a poor start, already be behind City and Liverpool.

1:13:15The narratives write themselves, and we find a way to dig deep and get through it. And we had to. The performances, of course, will need to be better. I want to talk a little bit about what variance means. The biggest reason I have for, not concern, that's not the way I want to phrase it, but for suggesting that we will need to be better, you know, sometimes we'll say variance. What I mean by that is, on another day, they give a penalty against Saliba. Or on another day, they find a reason to chalk off the corner goal. right on another day when you're out shot 22 to nine and you're out possessed and you're out passed they cross a ball and it deflects and it goes in your net yeah the problem with playing this way isn't that we we we won what do you the problem is if you play this way at these margins too often there'll be plenty of days where the margins go the other way right where of those 22 shots one's a hopeful one that just happens to hit the inside of gabrielle's heel and finds the corner or there's a fumble by the keeper or var makes a bad decision so i think what i'm trying to say clive is you take these wins and you extract the joy from them but you recognize that a performance like this opens you up to one little thing not going your way and suddenly it's a very different kind of day and so we will need a bit more dominance i mean candidly so you ever seen these memes you'll I hate to bring memes into the show, but you'll understand what I mean.

1:14:45Where it shows the box score, right? The score of the game. And it shows the goal score for Arsenal, Cal Fiore, 13 minutes. And then the other side, it shows two United goal scores. And it has this score, 2-1 to United. And the goal scores are, we were better than them. We outshot them, right? And it's like, we've been on the other side of those memes where we've been saying, but we won the XG battle, but we won the field tilt battle, but we outshot them. It's small consolation when you're on the other side of it. So for once, I'm going to enjoy that their manager is the one sitting there saying, we proved we can beat anybody by losing.

1:15:17Elliot:Yeah. Right. And we're the ones who dug deep and found a way through. And I think it will serve us well the rest of the season, you know? Absolutely. And we were, Mikel was that manager being giggled at after the PSG game. Yeah. When statistically up until that game, we probably had the best XG difference in the Champions League. Post that game, even though we won the XG battle in the game, but lost the game and lost the opportunity to win the European Cup because we would have beaten him in the final, without a doubt. And there's a massive, massive fall down from that. Amrind is probably thinking, oh, my team did what I wanted them to do.

1:15:53Elliot:They faced Arsenal really, really well. A good side, supposedly one of the three going for the championship. And we dug in there. And in some ways, there are two winners in this game. You know what? We're sitting there thinking, well, we've won. We've got that authority now. we've won on your man and there was a time when you win at Old Trafford mate you normally win the league right so obviously new money is coming to the league now it's not the case but that was this was the biggest result of the season without a doubt maybe that's why I was so excited yesterday and I was so petrified before it I've got old man scars when it comes to Manchester United yeah we didn't win there last season yeah I've got old man scars mate Tim was there in the 8-2 I wasn't I'd be more petrified if I was there for the 8-2 you know so yeah I look at this team differently to maybe you guys do but yeah I'm really really pleased with what we did and I'm really pleased that we know we weren't great and the word be humble about how we played but I believe we can I've already seen us play better than this this season in a friendly so I know what's in this team and we're not fit yet we're not we're not sharp yet we're not no everyone's at it yet but we look good I like what we're trying to be and it's different you know so um let's go roll on to leads and see what it looks like look i i believe in data i believe in things i can measure i believe in things that my eyes can physically see but i think i'm growing to appreciate that that's not everything in the world there is something about arsenal going to old trafford and united playing arsenal at old trafford that brings out different performances from both these teams regardless of their form i've seen arson wenger bring a very strong team to old trafford and alex ferguson start eight defenders, right?

1:17:36I think it was my pick up time. And come away with the win. And so you celebrate these wins at Old Trafford. You just do. They feel great. And it is that thing, right? That's why the concept of a bogey side exists. That's why rivalries exist, because they just matter. And so this is hard to sit back. Whatever they want to say, they want to do the still shots of Saliba and Cunha coming together. they want to talk about the shot differential we just we just have the three points we just have them okay so you know and we get to go home to our crowd after three points at old trafford to face newly promoted leads and and hopefully show a different side of what we can be and and you know we'll certainly be i think a little bit more interested in how that performance looks I want to finish, Clive, with just your quick roundup of the weekend's fixtures.

1:18:35You know, our warts may have been on display in some respects against United, but it's the second weekend in a row in a, I'm going to say competitive fixture for Liverpool, that they threw away leads and conceded a couple of goals. And so, yes, they wind up putting some gloss on the scoreline, and I'm not saying they didn't deserve to win, but I think some of their warts were on display too you know and maybe Manchester City trying to deliver a message to remember that they still exist so those are some of my thoughts what are yours?

1:19:04Elliot:Yeah so Liverpool they showed their leg didn't they again and it was a very good chat with Jamie Carragher and Slott after the game which was really we're really good to get that sort of stuff where they you know Jamie Carragher's also worried about how open we looked sorry we how Liverpool looked and basically basically he said that to him he was worried about it and as a lot of sorts said you know we want to be this team and that sounded very ang like didn't it so when you when you say that when you just won the league you can say what you like but you know he literally said this is who we are well hold on that's what i said wasn't it we are mate i just forgot to say mate and uh everything's fine when you win you can say what you like you can do what you like i'm telling you now they will not play that way against us no chance and we will not butcher the transitions we butchered against them because we'll be a week or two sharper right so i'm finger top please pat that please pat that us again please please please please do that because born for got a new back four we haven't we've got a good back four you know so and when we win it and get the first three passes together and don't get fouled you're in a heap of trouble you know a heap of trouble Gravenbergs can't fix all of that you know and that's what you that's what you turn to the key with us with Liverpool is to keep them under points pressure because we didn't do that last year so we don't even know how they cope under pressure the one time they got a bit of pressure the Everton game when they scored late they didn't look so calm right but we were able to keep the pressure on them and the points stayed as it was etc etc let's just stay in the room with Liverpool Man City I didn't see that game the full 90 Elliot but they got some smooth dude players in there.

1:20:47Elliot:Reinders look smooth, but Rico Lewis looks sharp. They got some nice footballers, right? And Haaland looks brinty again. They know how to play football. The manager knows what he's doing. He knows where to get people to be. They've got wide players that want to carry and travel. But they executed really nicely. I thought the Reinders goal on the run, left foot, side netting, that's a nice goal, you know? And it sort of kills the game off at two goals in two minutes. Then from there on in, it's just a party-passy game. And City are brilliant at that, right? So yeah, they're a good side, right? And they're going to still keep buying.

1:21:23Elliot:And I think that last signing is going to dictate a lot of moods, shall we say. If they go big with Rodrigo and we don't do anything, then it's going to be interesting in the national break, mate. I watched all of the City game, all of the Liverpool game. I think both of them looked vulnerable to quick direct attacks to be clear i i thought we did a bit as well but i think that i think this premier league season in the premier league in general is becoming a bit more i saw i think it was john mckenzie called it like uh bundes premier or premier liga like it's becoming more about the transitions yeah you know he is and but anyway i i i had a conversation with and I saw said to him, yep, I can see it, I can see it.

1:22:13Elliot:It's becoming a track meet, right? And people are taking a little bit from what Liverpool did and they're recognizing that defenses are organized once they're settled. So don't let them settle. Go for them. You know, really be quick in the transitions and really show transitional behaviors on the first pass to go. Right, so this is August, September. When it gets to the scary times, let's see if they're going to be so transitional or let's see if they want to make sure they have settled attacks with good rest defense. let's see what happens then you know at this moment in time you should be playing to your strength to your power i just think our center falls not quite there yet and we're not quite in tune yet but three of those work it's a three mil win and we are having a chat a different chat you know the outcomes are not there at the moment but we've got time to work on that yeah i would say also about the city and liverpool games they may have both just played two of the weakest five defenses in the league by the end of the season.

1:23:11You might say Bournemouth really, well, realize, one of their center backs went to Real Madrid, one of their center backs went to PSG, one of their fullbacks went to Liverpool, and their keeper went to Arsenal. So that's all changed. I think Wolves, first of all, I think they may have one of the worst keepers in the league, and I think defensively they're a bit shit. But they had the ball in the back of the net. They had a couple of offside goals that didn't necessarily need to be. So it'll be interesting to see how they look against teams that can be a little more organized defensively and have a little more quality at the back.

1:23:42You know, I had them down for big wins in these games anyway. I think Chelsea, nice to see them drop points early. I don't expect Chelsea to challenge for the title, but they have the collection of players to do it. I also think they might be looking at it and they're letting Nico Jackson go and let Nani Meduake go and the guys they brought in. Are they any better? I don't think Gittins look particularly good against Palace.

1:24:03Elliot:And I work as someone who's a Dortmund season ticket holder, and I said about Jamie Ginnis a little while ago, and she said to me, Clive, just bring your money. You can take him. And I thought, hmm, I'm going to stop watching them trips. And then Chelsea went and paid the money and gave us Madweke, and that's what they do. They turn players around. I think they spent$250 this window, but they've sold about$230. but they did spend like a billion beforehand to have this base which they can now trade from you know there are people better with numbers than me but it's interesting everyone's giving them praise for selling well hold on a minute they spent a lot in the first place so they've got a lot of talent man i'm sure i'm sure we'll be back there i'm afraid to go and buy more players and um that's the way of the west because they're trying them in front of our eyes and accommodating them to the premier league so we'll be back newcastle and villa played out a desperately poor nil-nil draw Villa were down to 10 men for a good chunk of that there was one Newcastle chance in the game and it sort of hit the top of Anthony Gordon's head in the six yard box and you're just thinking he couldn't quite reach it he just went over the bar you're thinking if he's there he just headed that down into the bottom corner they just walk away with a 1-0 win everyone's singing his name but football eh will he ever will he be back there ever again I don't know I wouldn't think so, but we will certainly find out.

1:25:33And then, yeah, Granit Xhaka, all he does is win Premier League games. You must think this is the easiest league in the world, getting a win on his debut. Yeah, that's the story

1:25:39Elliot:of the weekend, isn't it, about what they did and obviously we're just promoting teams going down two years on the trot. There's been a lot of money spent in some of these teams and they've reconfigured, particularly Leeds and Sunderland. So, in some ways, there are a lot of people rooting for one of them not to disappear. Do you know? I think it's important. I think it really is. Watch this space too on Tottenham. I realize that they wound up with a relatively big win, but they were not closing the back door particularly well. They were under the cosh against Burnley for a good stretch of the first half and early second half until Burnley finally collapsed.

1:26:13So that'll be an interesting thing to watch. It's going to be a fun season. Look, any season where Arsenal wins a title is a fun season. That's obviously what's going to happen. So it's going to be a lot of fun. We'll have a lot of fun analyzing it. We'll have a rewatch video, our first of the season probably tomorrow, although Clive and I will discuss that offline. we will have a main pod for you on Thursday Tim and I are queuing up a fun patron pod on Wednesday and then you know maybe there'll be a Friday night Clive and we get to play Leeds at the weekend and a 10-0 is going to smooth everything out so don't worry about that Clive I'm happy to my pleasure

1:26:46Elliot:thank you very much my name's Elliot Smith we love you and we will absolutely talk to you after Arsenal 10 Leeds 10

1:27:07Thank you