Arsenal Move Seven Points Clear But Attacking Issues Remain

42:38You know, so yeah, I just want to see our attackers take more responsibility in those situations, right? So I know it's what we're doing. Hey, look, the Bayern Munich game is still in my mind. There were some of the rotations in that game. I didn't complain about them at all. We got the result. It was incredible. People popped up everywhere. It was incredible. But sometimes I think simplicity is required. You know, Forrest are just trying to stand. They're not biting on rotations. They're far more positionally disciplined. It's about spaces to cover. Right? So you've got to bounce, move, and go.

43:14third man runs receive up bounce down the sides you've got to move them you've got to attract them slowly and then move them by standing there you're just giving them something to do you literally that's what you're doing and then potentially they weren't good enough but Chelsea were you know Aston Villa were they're able to transition from the middle of your pitching look at your pitch you're seeing your fullbacks running back making fouls and giving penalties away because he's knackered with attacking. And so for me, I want to see Declan Rice in that half space rather than during Timber. That's on the left-hand side.

43:49I know Timber's doing a specific role because Califure is not there. If Califure is there, he won't hear a word out of me. Do you see what I mean? I've done it again. But I do think, I prefer to see, the way I like to see it on occasions, particularly when we're trying to score, I prefer to see my fullbacks Crazling the team With my attackers Inside of that structure So that in the smaller spaces I want to see my talent People who are going to score Slightly nearer the goal With the ability to combine with people And move off instinctively Right Our attacking numbers are telling us Our attackers are too far away And I love my attackers But if my best player Is on the right wing Chalk on boots all of the time when we're nil-nil in a big game and hopefully can whack it into the box for a defender to head it in.

44:43I'm not sure that's the best use of our star player, our franchise player. I think we have to find another way to free him to create damage. This isn't a problem now because what's going to happen is when the pressure really hits, that's where you're going to find out these details will matter. now where are your key players what form are they in what can they do when that chance comes i want to see a lot more of our attacking players in the last line than our defenders in the last not continuously but i don't want to see timber there too long too early not really appreciating the space in the same way an attacker would do and that's not a critique of him i think he three weeks ago we were saying he's the best right back in the world he's moved to left back and we're now digging him out for attacking i still think he's playing well he's just not doing enough that's helping us yeah yeah exactly but you see how conversations change because your football environment changes you know another player that suffered for the changing environment has been miles lewis skelly no double pivot for you to go into now you've got to stand out wide Timper we're asking you to do things Ben White still managed to force the game his way so he's doing the same things he's always done because he's aggressive with his 40 metre sprints and so you better give it to me because I've just done 40 metres and he's smart like that so yeah we just have to manage the change of environment the maturity of our players wanting to do things versus the system that the manager's put in place that's where I am with it and I think I want to see our full backs use slightly less because we've got injuries back there I think we're stretching them out physically we don't want to see any of them go down yeah I really like that explanation because I think this hasn't been something new for me I always think our attackers are a bit wide under Arteta to be honest and like you said if we just think about it where the people are standing we've got Trossard on the left, Saka on the right then one lane inside it's the left back and the right back and then we've got the centre forward for me that needs to change we need to switch the wingers around with the fullbacks let them carry the wide areas and then we've got Saka able to cut in and shoot closer to goal Martinelli Trossard closer to goal for me that is much more efficient and dangerous than having a fullback there unless it's Calafiore who I think is very capable in those in those sort of corners of the box I think we need to change that Paul I wanted to just ask you quickly Marino and Saka came on made a good impact Jesus and Trossard not so much Eberet Chiesa got 10-12 minutes off the bench i think he could have come on 10 minutes earlier maybe why do you think he didn't get a chance to come on and sort of swing the game in our favor give him 20 25 minutes to really come on sit on the edge of the box dig out a shot combine with somebody in the left half space it's just not happening for him at the moment is it uh yeah well so you answered the question with kind of where my mind was going i listened to uh tom canton and charlie watts uh discussing eber echi and you know one two other players who are not really getting much of a look in at the moment and they had a really good discussion around it and this isn't about how they framed it but i've seen other folks talking about it and when they're talking about why doesn't he play uh as a and why you know i'm like he kind of it's on the player when it look there's an argument that it's on arteta i get that argument but the other thing is when you get your chance you need to show up you need like this was a game in which two players were already invisible jacoresh and odegaard the last thing you need is the third the player you bring on with or without those players to also be invisible and as a evening games where he's had a chance to play he's had minutes and it was favorable to him um he has not lit it up and reminded us who he was i mean i will say in the in the last month he hasn't had a chance because he played that game against Portsmouth when there was 10 changes and then he's had scraps off the bench.

49:07So I think before that, I would understand it, but I don't think he's had any chances at all to show anything in the last few weeks. And how did he do against Portsmouth? Because I don't think anybody thought it... Yeah. Yeah. And like, he should have been great. Ethan was great. In midfield. In midfield. Yeah, yeah. I hear you, Clive, right? There's always the, he could be better in a different setup. but I think he's got to impress even in even if it isn't his ideal position he's got to impress and if it's not because he played great it's because he held up his end defensively or he put himself I don't mean the old he put himself about but it can't just be oh he didn't get to do all the Eberachie as I think we know that Mikel Arteta has basic standards he's looking for from every player on the pitch fogging standards right and we know anez is great he's great but the other side of his game needs to be there enough he's we see what martin look at trossard what he developed in his game uh in terms of holding up his out of possession play his defensive aggression um and i just think there are too many aspects of ez that have not shown up in terms of his overall game, how he carries himself, his energy, his ability to drop into our shape and help us defend.

50:39If I'm the manager, I'm thinking he's the guy who's most, man most likely to open, leave the portcullis down, right? And when he's had his attacking moments, I just don't picture Arteta not giving him chances. if he's lighting it up in training. I can kind of picture what he's like in training. He's a great training player on the ball, but not enough. And without the ball, he makes Mikel Arteta feel nervous. And say what you like about Mikel Arteta. He has seven points ahead of the opposition. And there's a lot of, well, he needs to get, where's Ezra going to get the confidence if he doesn't get to play?

51:22Arteta doesn't have the luxury to like it uh you know I've heard give him a few games to build his he's not going to give him a few games he doesn't have a few games to give anybody your job when you get on the pitch is to make Arteta feel you're going to give contributions as Mikel Marino does nine times out of ten if he gets a look on the pitch he puts himself about he He doesn't let the team down without the ball, and he does things with the ball that give him a shot to get more time on the pitch. So there are tactical discussions, combinations, how he's used, how he's been, you know, the fixtures he's been given.

52:03But guys, you want to get on the pitch, do something with your two minutes, your five minutes, your 10 minutes, with or without the ball. Either is good. no look i'm not i'm not saying that what you've said is wrong but here's why it's wrong no um i mean i think at some point you need a bit more trust you know and i think he's come in whether or not you think he was a panic buy or not i think it's very clear that the club have been following for a long time there was obviously a conversation between him and michael i don't think any signing gets approved without Mikel's say-so so this is someone that he would have had total buy-in to bring into the club and I think he played a lot during the start when we had Odegaard missing we had him sort of playing off Marino when he had those good games against Spurs and buying and we just thought we'd found him and then all of a sudden he plays badly off the left once he loses can I say Phil Spurs were terrible like yeah but we set up a bed and breakfast in front of their in the central area in front of their box, to Clive's point that every team knows how to crowd that area.

53:14Like, they didn't. And I think it's a bit of a false read. Okay, we combined them with Marino, and that created some space. And can I come back on one other thing, which is, it's not that I think Mikel has written him off, but I think I've seen him before where he takes a player and he's basically saying, you're not getting to play until you fix these things. work on them come back a stronger player maybe the second half of the season is for you sorry to interrupt phil but a couple of clarifications on how what i think is going on here he was great against tottenham uh tottenham were abysmal and left that space in the middle for us time and time again and he plundered it so i think i think you if you're doing statistics sometimes you throw away the really high figure and the really low figure and i think if you throw away that game it didn't have a lot left okay interesting uh clive you want to come in oh yeah this is my this is one of my favorite topics right because i think you know i think we're still learning about him let's be honest right he's he's played in three maybe four positions for us right eight left eight, left wing, and a strew stick on 4-2-3-1, number 10.

54:32And I think he's had some good moments in all of those positions. So when he first came in, I'm thinking, oh, man, 25-30 touches. Man, this isn't really what I expect. Odegaard gets 55-60. Now I'm thinking 10-10. Do you see what I mean? And then basically I think, but I looked at it a bit more different. I think, well, hold on. He's affecting the areas that we really need to affect, which is on the D, getting shots. The manager says, we've got to get him to that position more because that's where he's at his best. He's shooting off both feet. It's just fantastic. Like I said, I go back to my reference point, the Newcastle game.

55:14The shots in that game were unbelievable. You know, and I'm not the only one thinking this way because suddenly I can see comps of Eze going around my timeline again. So where is my social media tunnel? where people are just saying, hold on, we need something else here now. We need goal scorers, people who can score, that appreciate and arrive in space at the right time with timing, and they score. They're not high touch. We don't need high touches. How many touches Sleba Gabriel have in the game? Look at their heat maps. Look at their build-up. Look at their influence in build-up. We don't need any more touches.

55:47We don't need any more touch. We need people that can affect the last third of the pitch. and so in in time your mind will arrive based on how your team plays and evolves the more you get watched the more you get stopped the more space becomes a premium you need execution and last touch last pass ability we don't need first possibility in this team anymore we don't need that well we've been well coached we can get out of anything and when we are pressed we've got a goalkeeper plus one and bang we off we go deal with that we're now one-on-one so we don't need that what we need is last touch last chance ability combination play to open teams up and you need the bravery of somebody the strength of somebody who can protect the ball in these areas and the other players are and by the way we do the post-match podcast right so i didn't say this when we were running through villa after the set piece goal and we scored three two goals in three minutes and i'm jumping up and down to i pull my calf i didn't say that then because it was a different game we we got them back we got the first goal we opened them up and we were flowing through them right so but in some games particularly away games i think we need something else we need the ability to threaten you know and and so i think as a the team is coming back to him and so the first thing i'm looking at is what paul's highlighted is off the ball play he is running mate he's running he's saying i'm not going to do this again he showed it in the last home game I went to, he's sprinting back 34 yards to go and catch the ball up.

57:23He's running, he's working, he's saying pick me, pick me, pick me. I need to build trust with you off the ball. There was a time I didn't want to play Trossard left, because Martin Hill was a better defender. Now Trossard's gone up, his defensive play off the ball is so serious. And so you need to be dropped to feel that. I think Eze's had that moment, and he's now starting to move. He's starting to work. But we've got to trust in his ability to appreciate space. Sometimes don't get attracted to the ball, which means to our eye, we may feel he has less touches. But actually for the team and the threat, it's exactly what we are moving towards.

58:07Because the game is going to call for this soon because our patterns are going to get analysed. So this will change, guys. I promise you, this will change. you know there are a few more people talking about ethan now why do you talk about ethan all of a sudden when talk about him a month ago you know why because he shoots one touch out your feet shoot we know what we're missing is coming towards those players the reason why ethan's not in the squad because the gabo jesus has had a shot now for a while then it's like okay what are you doing by the way are you adding to this group do you see where we're heading that this is what's happening and i'm enjoying it to be honest because the team always presents itself to you based on the football environment that's in front of it and we are moving more towards him he has to build up the trust off the ball i think he's doing it i think the manager loves him he quoted him out games is playing i think his moments to come yeah i really do and he has got a five-year contract in his pocket this player is a future of our attack well and so it's gonna be so interesting on the role and by the way i'm not clear on the role yet When we have a narrow team blocked in, I think the left may suit him, as long as he hasn't got Matty Cash running off him.

59:23Do you see what I mean? So the left may suit him. So I just feel we've got to get him the football more. How are we going to do it? How are we going to introduce him into the group? That's too much of an investment and too much quality, too much ability to have him walking around doing after-game sprints, penalty box runs. that doesn't feel right to me you know it really doesn't so it's on him it's on us as well to make sure we integrate him properly yeah i mean we do need to move on from this game a little bit i mean overall i think a point is fine and when you consider the man city and villa results actually turned out to be a very valuable point um and this will be a theme of the season it's so competitive so congested and on any given day anyone can beat anyone in this league i have to be honest and say i was quite frustrated with the overall performance because i thought and i think generally we lack the ability to go through the gears sometimes and we just love us to smell blood and go for things more um now i can say all of that in the knowledge that we're seven points clear in january which is a brilliant place to be and and my issues about this game do not have to mean anything about the season we're having in general.

1:00:37I don't think Arteta is a fraud or that we need to sell five attackers this summer because two things can be true at once, which is an incredible concept. But in my mind, this was a chance to lay down a marker. City had dropped points again, could have gone nine points clear, step on some necks, kick Villa back as well. But ultimately, two goalless draws will leave people a bit frustrated, but it doesn't mean that we're not in a great place. So that was my feeling of the game. I thought we could have maybe We pushed on a little bit towards the end. It didn't happen. Forrest defended well. I think it's worth noting that as well.

1:01:11So, you know, off the back of three away games in a week, we were tired. Forrest had time to prepare. I'm willing to just draw a line under it and say, on to Inter, and then more importantly, on to United. More importantly, I think we should take a break here because, you know, we've been going an hour now and Elliot's going to kill me if I don't. So it's time to tell you about some brands. Here's Elliot with some ads, and we'll see you in a second. But before we do that, I should, If I don't tell you about a couple of brands, you will have listened to this podcast and then you'll go into your life and be like, I don't know.

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1:04:25I know this. I have a 10-year-old who does division now. Four goes into 12 three times. You get the idea. NordVPN.com slash Arsenal Vision. NordVPN.com slash Arsenal Vision. NordVPN.com slash Arsenal Vision. Is that enough? Indeed. Nailed it. So let's have a conversation about the attack because that's two goalless draws in a row. It can happen, but I think it's worth highlighting our forward options a little bit, you know, as a collective, because we're not getting enough from them in terms of end product. We're not getting enough quality at key moments, which is a problem when you're chasing the biggest trophies in the game.

1:05:03Our identity, you know, and Clive, you mentioned this before, our identity isn't and probably will never be swashbuckling attacking football under Arteta, but we've got a good group of forwards who are firing blanks, right? There was some good work posted by Orbinio on socials, which Andrew actually pointed out in his blog as well this morning about our frontline and their general level of output. When you're actually faced with the numbers, it's not pretty. And I'll read some of them out to you now. Victor Yocarez, one goal and no assists in his last 10 Premier League games. That one goal was a penalty.

1:05:37Gabriel Jesus, one goal and no assists in his last eight Premier League games. Noni Madueke, no goals or assists in his last 24 Premier League games. Gabriel Martinelli, one goal and no assists in his last 19 Premier League games. Bukayo Saka, no goals and two assists in his last eight Premier League games. Leandro Trossard, one goal and one assist from his last seven Premier League games. And Odegaard, one goal and three assists from his last 16 Premier League games. That is small. You know, those are low digits. Those are not good enough. and obviously these are only league stats so it doesn't count anything that's happened in the Champions League or any other competitions the ranges are a little bit different for each player as well but it does help you visualize how barren some of those stretches are and our top scorer is Trossard with five goals in the league which doesn't even put him in the top 20 for goals scored in the Premier League this season so Clive I'm gonna I'm gonna come to you first how would you diagnose this issue is it a quality issue is it a tactical issue are we not putting the people or the players in the right places are we not urgent enough or you know playing with enough conviction in the final third how do we get more from this attacking group because you know i i'm completely aware that we are a strong defensive team we're excellent out of possession we don't lose many games we don't conceive many chances but at some point we're going to need some of these guys to start firing so how do we do that wow no pressure big questions didn't you yeah how do we do it i think um i'm not overly concerned about it at the moment because why should we be you know because we are generally winning the games but there's gonna be a moment when the pressure comes on where we're gonna really need to find a goal out of nowhere and at the moment what's covering up these cracks has been the set pieces the set piece goals particularly the first goals i read that of our 15 wins in the premier league this season 11 of them have seen our first goal come from a set piece or second phase oh you're stealing my stats clive i had one i had that one ready to go you had that one did you and i i i bookmarked that one because i thought because that's the feeling i've had and that and to see it written down was like whoa that's like a that's something that is great it feels sustainable until it isn't and then what do we do what do we revert to what can i come back with with another one yeah we've also dropped we've dropped points in seven league games this season five draws two defeats we didn't score a single set piece goal in any of them so again and how do you feel you know it's when you're watching it's a team that we love right so doesn't really matter how we get there but how do you feel you know when Deca and Weiss had that free kick we think go on give us that chance we're not the only team that's thinking this because as we said earlier our possession coaching has gone through the roof you know you can see what these teams are doing in Europe we are we are slaughtering teams in Europe our ability to win the ball control areas play where we like the one-on-one ability with the ball, particularly defensively, to create transitions on teams that don't normally feel that pressure that high up the pitch.

1:09:02It's really affecting teams. The power, the pace that we have, the physicality across all 11 players. Now, I saw something yesterday that Everton, of their nine players that beat Aston Villa, sorry, 11 players, nine of them were over six foot. There's a level of physicality all through the league. Leeds, look what they bought in the summer. Physical players. So there's a lot of parity. There's a lot of parity going on in the league at the moment. A lot of out-possession playing. That's forcing me to think about attack differently. And so the way I see it, for me, the way to change that is about a little bit more proximity.

1:09:46Now you may say you're putting players into areas that are already crowded. Well, I don't care. Because the reason why teams squeeze spaces is to make sure that you don't bother coming in there. And when you don't come in there, then you're taking longer crosses, longer events, which they can set themselves for for clearances. And the Forest Centre-backs are very good at that. Everton's are very good at that. Go around the league, we've got players that can deal with the ball in the air, etc. So it's proximity, combination, space arrival. will change things for our attackers. And making sure they have positional discipline to stay in the areas where the ball's going to arrive.

1:10:29So this is just a timing thing. I'm not overly concerned at the moment, though I probably contradict myself because I went for a walk this morning. I went for a walk yesterday. All I thought about was our attacking play. So I'm probably lying. But after the Billa game, I'm probably less concerned. But I think it's something now. It's out there, Phil. All these numbers are out there. everyone's thinking about it, everyone's talking about it don't you think the players are going to be thinking about this? don't you think the manager is going to be thinking about this? I'm actually quite pleased I'm pleased that we talk about this now I'm pleased that it's not just on the centre forward who hasn't had a shot on target since I don't know when I'm pleased it's not about just that because I do think it's a collective issue it always has been for me so I'm pleased that it's out there and I'm interested to see how we adjust our patterns to fix a problem that's not massive yet but could be when kreinstein comes i mean paul we know that set pieces are a huge strength for this team and how valuable they have been for us in terms of breaking games open we've got outstanding deliveries coming in from rice saka i think madueke has improved a lot this year we've got gabriel attacking everything that moves in the penalty area but do we need to find a way to move away from that crutch that security blanket or will it just prove sustainable over the season which to be fair it mostly has been for this group um i think we can probably survive it but be nice to not just survive but to thrive and the piece we're waiting for uh waiting for gado we're waiting for the attacking patterns where you're like oh look at these guys play we've seen it seen it in a few games um now coming into this like something we haven't talked about uh in this particular discussion and i think it impinges on a few things is the we've sacrificed quite a lot with the zubamendi rice pairing and how they play and where rice plays which to me makes great sense when calafiore is fit and firing and in the team because to the eye we keep rice basically as a double pivot and we don't lean into him being an attacking force and zubimendi being able to cover in front of a strong back three which could be on any particular day could absolutely be saliba gabrielle and timber and nobody's getting past you so you don't need rice and zubimendi back there so i mean rice gets forward a bit but we're not really leaning into it he hasn't becoming you know he's no granite jacka for us in the left eight to poke that bear um and that has been fine because we've leaned into uh you know arteta's favorite new toy the joker card calafiore uh zipping into that spot and not as the inverted midfielder but the inverted left eight and uh creating patterns in the left hand side and without Calafiore our left hand side like we're a different team on a reasonable day with Calafiore in the mix now we have two sides to the attack now they can't now if they sit in on Odegaard they're going to get screwed on the other side because we Calafiore connecting with whoever we got there uh tearing them a new one uh Rice rampaging in all that space forcing turnovers you know all that dynamism that we saw just a few games ago that feels so far away at the moment now we seem stayed uh gray as soviet communist russia in the 50s out in the fields uh with the sides cutting it like it's it's all gone terribly gray and yet just a few games ago we were starting to express ourselves.

1:14:27The upside is if we can get the right players together, enough of them, we can develop some of those patterns. But that front three in that last game, you might even say that front five. Who were the front five? Well, I guess you would say it was Odegaard. And who was it on the left-hand side? Timber. Not really anybody. Yeah. Well, Timber, but he was also in the middle. then he like uh and look there are things i like about that move with timber and i think he'll get much better at it if we have the time to give him that role but he's not gonna you know we're going to switch him back to the right soon enough so it'll end up in a mixed experiment there are he is a baller i think he could grow into that game if that's where into that role but he's also not a left footer so he can't spin some of those passes that the left hand side need quickly to spring Martinelli or the left eight, but there's no left eight.

1:15:29So it's one more season where we've got a broken left-hand side is the biggest issue with our attack. We're going to talk about players and goals and putting the ball in the back of the net. But if you have only half of the pitch, and we, as Clive so eloquently said, any team can block the middle. So don't be asking yourself why we can't get centrally. Almost nobody can get centrally. We can hurt them from the sides. But when you go back to just having the right-hand side, you're screwed. And so we need to unlock the left-hand side. That tends to be trossard at the moment for obvious reasons. Unless you have Calafiore or Gabriel Jesus connecting with Martinelli, though.

1:16:14Look, it hasn't been great, but you've seen things happen there that we haven't seen in other games with other players. That whole left-hand side needs to be unlocked again, and then we'll start to see us rock again. Now, how you do that, Clive's itching to get in there, but I definitely think there are things to work out with this Zubimendi-Rice thing when you don't have Calafiore, because I think you've leaned way too far into a way of playing that then deprives the left-hand side until somebody else comes up with some other combination on that side. Go on, Clive. Yeah, I just wanted to say, I don't know if I answered your question properly before, but I wonder as football is developing and changing, I know this may sound counterintuitive, but I wonder if we're going to head back to two strikers.

1:17:00Because one striker is not just Jokic, he's having 10 touches. And people are managing that central threat. So if you go split strikers one plus one or split wide two strikers, I think if tactics evolve, and I was again on my walk today thinking about this you know are we heading back this way there was a rumour I'm going to say this I'm going to say this with a tongue in cheek but there was a rumour that before one of the games before Califuri got injured that we in that warm-up that we were going to play a back three with Califuri as a centre forward yeah I don't know but I'm just saying to you was it the kind of rumour you believed Clive?

1:17:45I don't know it doesn't matter but the fact that's even out there made me think slightly differently you know and then the then the injury happened we went back we settled back and I think we played right right back in that game remember you know and um so there was there was a bit of chatter about that and that just really intrigued me everything's open football evolves it changes right so if you want to hit that D how are we going to do it is it with a true 10 or is it with double 10s we've done that this season We played double tens, played in pairs. You know what I like? Played in pairs. We had pairs at fullbacks, pairs at centre mid, and pairs up front.

1:18:23And I loved it because we had a real framework for which to play. And the reason why I loved it, I've said this before, is a framework for which to make change. When you have a squad like this, one of your key responsibilities as a manager is to create a framework which is simplistic for change. When you're playing in those groups, it's easier to maintain the balance we started the podcast talking about our front three why we talk about our front three should talk about our fullback we had combinations our interior combinations not our front three combinations because now when you're making change you're making it on a balance and a framework which is simple to follow you know so i think this is really important for us you know why we've got two teams it's not important for everybody else we've got two teams and what we don't want is redundancy roles on the pitch and people not even getting changed who could be used on a given day because we are forced into a way of playing which maybe the team is evolving away from this is a big thing for me because i think football's going to go this way far more bigger squads it's a very attritional game we're speaking about energy and fatigue and so this is the way forward for us we're lucky we've got the Maddowire K-Saka thing everyone's saying Saka should have started because he had a bright half hour they've forgotten the four-month hamstring operation I haven't and I can't have that happen again you know so we just need to create a framework for change simplicity so it's easier to retain the balance when we make those changes because we have a system and proximity of players that's very easy to see I'm really curious to see what happens even throughout the rest of January because I think we've got four games and I absolutely think there's scope for us to bring people in to change things around I think of names like Ezza, Havertz, Marino, Calafiore is going to be back soon hopefully I really think we can change the dynamics of this team which is actually a nice segue into my last section which is a quick preview of the inter game and I think we're in a great position to consider this maybe not a dead rubber but a free hit because the way the group phase works this season is that a top four finish gives us home second legs for the last 16 and quarterfinal rounds and a top two finish gives us second leg home advantages in the semi-final as well so it's still important to finish strongly and not just qualify in the top eight I think we're really well placed to do so it would take one hell of a collapse not to do that at this point but regardless of what happens against Inter, I would say we're basically guaranteed a top two finish on the assumption that we can beat Kyra Almaty at home in the last group game, who were ranked 311th in the UEFA club coefficient rankings earlier this season.

1:21:16So assuming is never good, but I'm quite happy to do it in this occasion. So with that in mind, I do think there is scope for Arteta to make changes and sit some players down tomorrow, bring some others into the group. And I wouldn't bat an eyelid if he made five or six changes even though that's probably unlikely i would love to see it happen but there's just something telling me in the back of my mind that this is an away game at sanciro and michael's going to want to go with his with his trusted soldiers out there paul eza wanari nor god louis skelly mosquera havertz just a few names there that i would like to see involved potentially or could be involved tomorrow night what are you thinking in terms of rotation yes to all of that so the right thing to do is to get out your team sheet and study it for the Manchester United game work out who you not only want in that lineup but who his maximum energy because to Clive's point and he he scared me a little bit Man United are all energy all the time right this moment they're feeling great they've absolutely they battered Man City absolutely battered them like you've seen results like that against City over the years and you're like yeah but if they'd only put the ball in the net the 97 times they could have they absolutely battered them so let's assume a strong and energy not just a good united but a strong energetic united at the Emirates and anything less than that is is gravy and so you You pick the Man United team.

1:22:54And then you work backwards from that and say, okay, some players are going to have to play, but not in positions where we need the energy. Now, there will be energy. It'll be at home. It'll be the Emirates. It'll be against Man United. But let's overreg the pudding here and put out a high-energy, high-intensity game to right the sins of the last game I just watched. And then you pick your team. Now, we're going to be away at Inter. you know they're uh i've done my research for this we're going to be a way at inter we're going to get the chance to counter attack here is where i'm going with this okay uh in a in a more elegant framing we're going to get to counter attack i'm not saying we're going to sit in the whole game i'm just saying that this will not be a game in which they're just sat in they're at home okay they have a way of playing uh we will get to counter-attack they will have three central defenders we're going to need creativity and counteracting counter-attacking props and that absolutely leans into as a who's a brilliant counter-attacking player makes great choices picks out players will find space for himself at times so yeah and when he gets his chance he better shine and ethan was great on his last outing i don't know if he gets artel has been reluctant to uh give him any minutes in the first half of the season almost um i'd like to think as clive and i were batting back and forward it's because he's priming him saying uh you're going to get your chance but before you get your chance here are the things you need to show me in practice and in your few minutes on the pitch and when i see that because the thing about ese is to go back to that a little bit i agree with clive i'm seeing more more of those things in terms of his energy and his but arteta doesn't want you doing it for a bit he wants to know you will do it without question without him looking at it needs to be etched in Not that you're making the changes, but the changes are made.

1:25:06They're bedded in. It's etched into the wafer like it is with Trossard. He doesn't need to brief Trossard anymore on the importance of his role without the ball. He doesn't need to look at him. He's got that cover. He doesn't need to get him off at 70 minutes. And so he's going to ice you long enough in a very positive way to say, here are the things you need to do. And then you're there. Show me that. Then you're there. Not it's a work in progress. that seems to be more Arteta's way of doing it so here you go guys you're going to potentially get on the pitch they will play against Inter if they've convinced Arteta they're ready to go and he doesn't need to hover over them and watch them and worry so this is absolutely a game they should be playing but it's also on them yeah I mean in terms of the game itself yeah I was just going to say we know what Inter are we know what they do it will be a 3-5-2 with lots of pace and energy in wide areas but their main threat comes from the strike partnership which is what you mentioned before clive lataro martinez marcos turam up front developed a really strong partnership over the last few years and there'll be a handful for whoever plays at the back um although they are missing two kind of important players in denzel dumfries and hakan chalanolu so let's see what kind of effect that has on them they need to win this game you know they've lost their last two in the Champions League they're very much in that block of teams beneath us and Bayern I think only a couple of points separates them in um in eighth and then or is it seventh and then Barcelona in 15th so there's there's lots that can happen in these in these last few games they need to win coming back to you Clive is there anyone you're looking at who could come in and make a statement a phrase that you like to use is finding people who could we find or who do we need to find at San Siro.

1:26:55Well, the Portsmouth game was really instructive. And what I was going to say then, Phil, just gives a bit of a preview on Inter, because I know as our European correspondent that you would have seen them play a little bit more than me and Paul would have done. And so, and so... Speak for yourself, Clive. I haven't seen them play yet this season. Maybe only highlights in some Italian games. I haven't got a feeling for them, although I now know the system and who plays where. But I was really impressed with Ethan. at Portsmouth. I really was impressed at the angles of where he received the ball and how he could turn away and travel, but clip it off, play forward, go back looking for combinations, win tackles.

1:27:36Don't you think he's got a list of things to improve? Making slide tackles on the touchline. Wasn't doing that last year, was he? A 17-year-old one-way winger. And he's really trying to develop his game. I'd love to see him get rewarded with this trip and with some minutes on the pitch at some point. I think he's a really up-and-coming player that for this all-in squad where we're going to win the biggest things in the world, he has been a slight victim. I'm not saying that a senior pro needs to be out of the squad all of the time, but I think I'm hopeful that he gets a chance. He'll get a chance against Wigan, hopefully get some minutes in this game, hopefully get some minutes against Carrot Almighty, and we go from there.

1:28:19So I think that's where we want to be heading. And I think it's just very important to see players like him active and feel like they're part of this. As for Eze and Havertz, we'll see what happens with Havertz, where he is health-wise, how many minutes he can do. The period for Eze is coming up. I can feel it in my bones. He's coming up. It's okay to ride the hot hand using a basketball phrase. Trossard was hot. It doesn't look so hot anymore. you know Odegaard Bournemouth Villa super hot not looking hot at the moment you know and so sometimes you've got to ride that hot hand until until they're not hot and someone else gets opportunity you know so Jesus came back looked so bright didn't he when he came back so bright scored a goal against Villa oh my goodness what a player we found him gone flat completely flat you know so it's what we do to recognise that can we see it coming I mean, Mourinho had a flat spot a little while ago.

1:29:20Now he's looking lively again, looking more aggressive again, looking like a leader again. We've got to make sure we can see when someone's flattening out and we ride the hot handle, we select those players and trust them to play rather than running people out. The Odegaard bounce that he had against Bournemouth is not here at the moment. It may come back in by the Man United game, but does he need to play this game as well? So we have him for Man United, home game against the Emirates. where he's a little bit nervy and he can get on it and he can move it and settle us down for the first hour of this game.

1:29:53That's the sort of planning and rotation I want to see to maintain the key pillars of this team in tip-top form. That makes complete sense because I think we've worked really hard to put ourselves in this position where we're going away to Inter and it's not life or death. You know, we've built ourselves a really comfortable cushion at the top. We've got scope to maybe draw or lose a game. Not that we will want to do that, but we've got the scope to do it. and I think players can come in, show something different to the manager. Like you said, if someone's gone off the boil, there's a chance for someone else to come in and show something.

1:30:25So for me, that feels like a good place to finish. We should probably get something out before the intergame, which kicks off. I mean, let me check my watch in about 10 minutes. It's a very short turnaround, but that might be a good thing because we've got more lined up for this week. There are some pods ready to go after the game. We'll have an instant reaction for you after tomorrow's game as well. So if you're not already signed up to the Patreon, what are you waiting for? Just$5 a month can get you 20 extra pieces of content per month, like the countdown, scouting videos, data, deep dives.

1:30:58There are interviews coming as well. So you can definitely get a return on that investment and it helps support everything we do here. Otherwise, all that's left for me to do is thank the guys. Clive, always a pleasure chatting. Thank you very much. Paul, thanks very much. Woohoo! My name is Phil Costa and thanks for putting up with me for this episode. There's lots of football still to come in January and I love that we're halfway through the month and I haven't bothered with a single transfer room yet. So stick with us. Thanks as always for listening and we'll talk to you after Arsenal 10 into nil.

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