Arse FAM TV

OneUnited24

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AFTV will be like this now. With wenger gone we won’t see any over the top reactions as they’ll give the new guy a chance ... which is truly a utter shame
 

SquishyMcSquish

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I think that time they were genuinely trying to keep their heads down and just got tons of stick and abuse from the Spurs fans.

A lot of the channel is prime clickbait material though. I don't think they hit as many views as when they win.

Troopz spent years slagging off Wenger but then he's doing this


I've always thought Robbie must be in such a weird situation. I genuinely think he's a big Arsenal fan, but he must also know that if they get hammered or just lose in general, his viewing figures will go through the roof. Some part of him always has to be considering his channel (which is his career) over his fan loyalties. Say they lost 5-0 to us .. can you imagine the views that kind of video would get? Can't help but think that will always be in the back of his mind, which must be odd for a guy who has supported the club all his life.

Bet he was secretly a bit annoyed when Wenger left, the DT/Troopz videos about him were always the most viewed.
 

SquishyMcSquish

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Yeah he’s stealing a living.
Bit harsh .. seems a likeable bloke, and I generally think he's decent at interviewing. He's built up that channel impressively well and gives fans a voice, sure some of them are total idiots, but that's the reality of a fanbase.
 

SquishyMcSquish

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AFTV will be like this now. With wenger gone we won’t see any over the top reactions as they’ll give the new guy a chance ... which is truly a utter shame
Depends, sure they're patient now but if Emery has them 6th this season and has a couple of embarrassing results (which is definitely possible first season with a new system, Pep lost 4-0 to Everton in his first) you will almost certainly see some rage interviews creep in. Not necessarily aimed at the manager, but at some of the players.
 

LilyWhiteSpur

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Depends, sure they're patient now but if Emery has them 6th this season and has a couple of embarrassing results (which is definitely possible first season with a new system, Pep lost 4-0 to Everton in his first) you will almost certainly see some rage interviews creep in. Not necessarily aimed at the manager, but at some of the players.
He won’t have them anywhere near 6th if he continues to defend like that, especially away from home. Their back line was on the halfway line.
 

OneUnited24

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Depends, sure they're patient now but if Emery has them 6th this season and has a couple of embarrassing results (which is definitely possible first season with a new system, Pep lost 4-0 to Everton in his first) you will almost certainly see some rage interviews creep in. Not necessarily aimed at the manager, but at some of the players.
Thats fair. However, i believe this this season is a free hit for Arsenal fans. A bit like how we were with Moyes - as long as Asnl play good football their fans wont care what they arent winning
 

SquishyMcSquish

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He won’t have them anywhere near 6th if he continues to defend like that, especially away from home. Their back line was on the halfway line.
They could have scored 6 tbf. The defending was woeful from both teams, but you have to feel that once he finds his best 11 and the squad settles, they'll improve. I just don't think he has the players to do some of what he intends at the moment though, Sokratis/Mustafi is a terrible CB partnership and the likes of Bellerin and Xhaka are an utter joke.
 

wub1234

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AFTV will be like this now. With wenger gone we won’t see any over the top reactions as they’ll give the new guy a chance ... which is truly a utter shame
They have to respond that way because they know that they are primarily responsible for Wenger leaving. It will already be sinking in that this will make absolutely no difference. The guy who owns the club doesn't care about competing. They were punching above their weight, not below it, when Wenger was finishing between 2nd and 4th, getting to the knockout stages of the Champions League, and winning the FA Cup.

They used to go out of the Champions League to Barcelona, and then these idiots would complain and say it wasn't good enough! How ridiculous does that look now? By Christmas they will see that they're doing worse under Emery than even in Wenger's last season, and certainly before they were primarily involved in creating a horrible atmosphere and completely undermining the team and manager. Will they accept any responsibility for this? I somehow doubt it.
 

LilyWhiteSpur

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They could have scored 6 tbf. The defending was woeful from both teams, but you have to feel that once he finds his best 11 and the squad settles, they'll improve. I just don't think he has the players to do some of what he intends at the moment though, Sokratis/Mustafi is a terrible CB partnership and the likes of Bellerin and Xhaka are an utter joke.
He is setting his team up like they are the best team in the league, ala PSG, as you have pointed out there are terrible in defence.
 

SquishyMcSquish

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Thats fair. However, i believe this this season is a free hit for Arsenal fans. A bit like how we were with Moyes - as long as Asnl play good football their fans wont care what they arent winning
Not so sure. Sure they're sticking by him now, but a few really bad losses, some more of that defending ... fans aren't patient beasts, especially not some of the characters on AFTV. They will turn on Emery quicker than you would think.

So far they haven't been that bad, so understandably the fans haven't exploded. The City result was expected (best team by far in the league last season) and losing 3-2 to Chelsea away whilst creating loads is hardly disastrous. Honestly though I genuinely expect Emery to manage a decent season in the end, so it probably won't be that entertaining.
 

SquishyMcSquish

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He is setting his team up like they are the best team in the league, ala PSG, as you have pointed out there are terrible in defence.
He'll learn from it, has a season to alter things a tad. Guardiola's team got ripped to shreds a few times first season, new methods like this take time and Arsenal is a club with a toxic atmosphere at the moment and a really poor squad, so it was always a really tough job. Honestly I thought Chelsea's defence was even worse than Arsenal's, they just finished their chances better. Both teams were very guilty of leaving far too much space in behind, pretty much one ball was always enough to put a player through on goal.
 

SquishyMcSquish

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They have to respond that way because they know that they are primarily responsible for Wenger leaving. It will already be sinking in that this will make absolutely no difference. The guy who owns the club doesn't care about competing. They were punching above their weight, not below it, when Wenger was finishing between 2nd and 4th, getting to the knockout stages of the Champions League, and winning the FA Cup.

They used to go out of the Champions League to Barcelona, and then these idiots would complain and say it wasn't good enough! How ridiculous does that look now? By Christmas they will see that they're doing worse under Emery than even in Wenger's last season, and certainly before they were primarily involved in creating a horrible atmosphere and completely undermining the team and manager. Will they accept any responsibility for this? I somehow doubt it.
Wenger was crap in his final years, no denying it. Tactically utterly naive, players were barely even playing for him towards the end, sure you can argue that this was due to the toxic atmosphere fostered by the fans, but the manager didn't seem to be motivating them. Those two games against Bayern in their last campaign in the CL was an utter disgrace, then that first half against Brighton last season? I can't remember a top six side getting so badly outplayed by a team struggling with relegation.

Wenger had to go. Maybe Emery won't be the right man to replace him, but that doesn't change the fact that the previous manager was looking tired and his methods dated. Sticking with him meant zero chance of progression. At least today they showed a little fight, which is more than can be said for some of their games last season.
 

OneUnited24

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Not so sure. Sure they're sticking by him now, but a few really bad losses, some more of that defending ... fans aren't patient beasts, especially not some of the characters on AFTV. They will turn on Emery quicker than you would think.

So far they haven't been that bad, so understandably the fans haven't exploded. The City result was expected (best team by far in the league last season) and losing 3-2 to Chelsea away whilst creating loads is hardly disastrous. Honestly though I genuinely expect Emery to manage a decent season in the end, so it probably won't be that entertaining.
I guess we'll have to wait and see, most of the Arsenal Fans i know (in real life) seem willing to give him time. They acknowledge that they need to get more signing and update their football - under Wenger they lost their way over the last few seasons.

Completely agree with your second point.
 

wub1234

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Wenger was crap in his final years, no denying it. Tactically utterly naive, players were barely even playing for him towards the end, sure you can argue that this was due to the toxic atmosphere fostered by the fans, but the manager didn't seem to be motivating them. Those two games against Bayern in their last campaign in the CL was an utter disgrace, then that first half against Brighton last season? I can't remember a top six side getting so badly outplayed by a team struggling with relegation.

Wenger had to go. Maybe Emery won't be the right man to replace him, but that doesn't change the fact that the previous manager was looking tired and his methods dated. Sticking with him meant zero chance of progression. At least today they showed a little fight, which is more than can be said for some of their games last season.
It was the right time for him to go, undoubtedly. Just so the stupid c*nts can see where they are as a club. They are not in any position to compete with Europe's elite, regardless of the manager.

I believe that the last couple of years largely occurred due to a total lack of unity at the club, which was caused primarily by the fans. Prior to that, they consistently qualified for the Champions League knockout stages, they won trophies, they were always in the top four. However, many of the Arsenal supporters deemed this to be unacceptable. Even if you watched their performances last season against Atletico Madrid, when everyone was committed and trying hard, they were very good. The problem was that the players stopped trying because they stopped believing, and nowadays players just do what the f*ck they want.

What has also changed in the last couple of years is that the big clubs are investing extremely heavily. When City have spent an absolute fortune and signed a reserve winger for £60 million, when Liverpool have broken the goalkeeper and defender world record and spent over £160 million in one window, when United have signed a £60 million midfielder, and have previously signed a £90 million midfielder and an £85 million striker, when Chelsea have signed a keeper for over £70 million, when Juventus have signed a striker for £95 million, when Barcelona have just signed two players for a combined £250 million+, and have still signed world-class players in the summer...if you want to compete with these clubs then you can't do it with a 30 year-old Borussia Dortmund reserve CB. Arsenal will have to spend big, or they will be left further and further behind.

Last year, Arsenal made a profit in the transfer market, this year they have signed some second-rate players, and half of them aren't even playing! They also got rid of seven players who were in the first-team squad, so it wouldn't surprise me if they've balanced the books again. They're playing some kid from Lorient in the centre of midfield, a CB that Dortmund were happy to discard, half their starting line-up against Chelsea came in for next to nothing (Cech, Bellerin, Monreal, Sokratis, Guendouzi and Iwobi all cost less than £15 million, while Mkhitaryan was a makeweight when they sold their best player...again!). They have no chance of competing.

The likes of Guardiola and Mourinho wouldn't even consider taking that job because they wouldn't get the budget and the conditions that they expect. If people really believe that Emery is going to come in and do better than Wenger, they are kidding themselves.
 

tenpoless

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No more "I've had enough of this blud, I've had enough of this fam" and "Every fecking week, Robbie" :(
 

SquishyMcSquish

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It was the right time for him to go, undoubtedly. Just so the stupid c*nts can see where they are as a club. They are not in any position to compete with Europe's elite, regardless of the manager.

I believe that the last couple of years largely occurred due to a total lack of unity at the club, which was caused primarily by the fans. Prior to that, they consistently qualified for the Champions League knockout stages, they won trophies, they were always in the top four. However, many of the Arsenal supporters deemed this to be unacceptable. Even if you watched their performances last season against Atletico Madrid, when everyone was committed and trying hard, they were very good. The problem was that the players stopped trying because they stopped believing, and nowadays players just do what the f*ck they want.

What has also changed in the last couple of years is that the big clubs are investing extremely heavily. When City have spent an absolute fortune and signed a reserve winger for £60 million, when Liverpool have broken the goalkeeper and defender world record and spent over £160 million in one window, when United have signed a £60 million midfielder, and have previously signed a £90 million midfielder and an £85 million striker, when Chelsea have signed a keeper for over £70 million, when Juventus have signed a striker for £95 million, when Barcelona have just signed two players for a combined £250 million+, and have still signed world-class players in the summer...if you want to compete with these clubs then you can't do it with a 30 year-old Borussia Dortmund reserve CB. Arsenal will have to spend big, or they will be left further and further behind.

Last year, Arsenal made a profit in the transfer market, this year they have signed some second-rate players, and half of them aren't even playing! They also got rid of seven players who were in the first-team squad, so it wouldn't surprise me if they've balanced the books again. They're playing some kid from Lorient in the centre of midfield, a CB that Dortmund were happy to discard, half their starting line-up against Chelsea came in for next to nothing (Cech, Bellerin, Monreal, Sokratis, Guendouzi and Iwobi all cost less than £15 million, while Mkhitaryan was a makeweight when they sold their best player...again!). They have no chance of competing.

The likes of Guardiola and Mourinho wouldn't even consider taking that job because they wouldn't get the budget and the conditions that they expect. If people really believe that Emery is going to come in and do better than Wenger, they are kidding themselves.
I agree with a lot of what you are saying concerning the Arsenal board, certainly that should be where a lot of the fans anger should have been directed, at the severe lack of investment. I honestly just think that also coincided with the simple fact that the game had passed Arsene Wenger by the time he left, his tactics were outdated, he often made baffling decisions and was incredibly stubborn. A great manager undeniably, but perhaps reached a point (Just like managers like Capello and LVG) where he hadn't really adapted with the times. His teams in big games too regularly looked sluggish and uncompetitive towards the end of his time in charge, and they received a number of total hammerings as a result. Regardless of his budget/personnel, he had a good enough team to at least compete in these kind of games.

The fact that the performances against Atletico are being highlighted as an example of what his team can do at its best is pretty damning. Atletico were down to 10 men and were still comfortable for most of the first leg, and Arsenal created nothing in the second. They weren't 'very good', more a perfectly ordinary side who messed up the advantage they had from the first leg. The managers job is to keep them believing, Wenger seemed incapable of motivating the squad at the end, except for the odd cup run. The league was particularly awful with a shocking away record in 2016-2017, and in his final few years they had some embarrassing performances like losing 3-0 to Palace, I mean ffs they lost 2-1 at home to Ostersunds.

The squad Arsenal have isn't good enough for top four, you're absolutely right. It's massively suffered due to a lack of investment and again, you're correct that you simply can't compete in 2018 with the kind of money Arsenal are willing to spend, unless you are exceptional at developing youth or have a world class scouting network. The team he assembled was good enough to not be so regularly embarrassed though, he had the likes of Ozil and Sanchez at his disposal, spent big money on players like Xhaka, Aubameyang, Mustafi etc. Enough to match the ambition of Arsenal fans? No. Enough to do better than Arsene had them doing in the final couple of seasons? I'd say so, yes. Ozil alone is on a mega contract, and they spend more than we do for example.

Again, I agree with you .. they didn't invest this summer, Kroenke needs to go if they want to compete again, and absolutely the best managers wouldn't touch the job with a bargepole. They're going to have to rely on a manager like Emery who is in the lower tier, or on taking a punt on somebody like Arteta and hoping he comes good. I don't think Emery can do much worse than Arsene to be honest, as long as he has them not capitulating in every big game, has them regularly beating the sides they should beat (Like Arsenal sides used to do, tbf) and brings a bit of fire back to the team, he will already be doing better than Arsene in his final season. I think your defence of Wenger makes total sense when he was being criticized for exits to Barcelona, but by 2018 I honestly feel like they were being managed by a shadow of a man, and whilst 'Wenger out' was never going to be the fix that perhaps some Arsenal fans believe, it was the right decision.
 

wub1234

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I agree with a lot of what you are saying concerning the Arsenal board, certainly that should be where a lot of the fans anger should have been directed, at the severe lack of investment. I honestly just think that also coincided with the simple fact that the game had passed Arsene Wenger by the time he left, his tactics were outdated, he often made baffling decisions and was incredibly stubborn. A great manager undeniably, but perhaps reached a point (Just like managers like Capello and LVG) where he hadn't really adapted with the times. His teams in big games too regularly looked sluggish and uncompetitive towards the end of his time in charge, and they received a number of total hammerings as a result. Regardless of his budget/personnel, he had a good enough team to at least compete in these kind of games.
I wouldn't necessarily disagree with that, or at least most of it. But look at the two games they've played so far. The first game, City just sauntered around, completely outclassing Arsenal, who were barely in the game. Second game, Chelsea absolutely tore them to shreds for 30 minutes, almost comical defending at times from Arsenal, then for 15 minutes they played some fantastic football, got back in the game, weren't clinical enough when it counted, and then ultimately crumbled at the end.

To all intents and purposes, it might as well have been Wenger managing the team. Now I know people will say that Emery has only had two games, but they were two bad games whichever way you slice it. Or were they bad games, or just the level of performance that you'd expect from the players they've got, at the investment level they're willing to outlay?

The fact that the performances against Atletico are being highlighted as an example of what his team can do at its best is pretty damning. Atletico were down to 10 men and were still comfortable for most of the first leg, and Arsenal created nothing in the second. They weren't 'very good', more a perfectly ordinary side who messed up the advantage they had from the first leg. The managers job is to keep them believing, Wenger seemed incapable of motivating the squad at the end, except for the odd cup run. The league was particularly awful with a shocking away record in 2016-2017, and in his final few years they had some embarrassing performances like losing 3-0 to Palace, I mean ffs they lost 2-1 at home to Ostersunds.
I think the bolded point is a fair comment, but they did play well against Atletico. Not just against ten men, they were all over them when it was 11 against 11. And they didn't create that much at Atletico, but no-one does! They're an extremely tough side to play against, particularly in European competition. Over the two legs, one defensive howler has cost Arsenal from going through, or at least forcing extra time. Now that, to me, is a much higher level of performance than they managed in the league for the most part. Is that the manager's fault? Possibly. Is it the manager's fault that they were rather good at home last season, and appalling away from home? Possibly.

I'm not so sure. I think it was the right time for Wenger to go because he had become a divisive figure. But I just don't think they're very good any more. And you cannot continue to sell your best players (Vieira, Henry, Cole, Fabregas, Nasri, van Persie, Sanchez to name a few) and continue to compete. People tend to overlook the fact that in the last year they've let a decent PL team go. Szczesny; Debuchy, Mertesacker, Gabriel, Gibbs; Coquelin, Wilshere, Oxlade-Chamberlain; Sanchez, Walcott; Giroud - that's a team that has all left in the last year. I would say that's better than their current first-team! They'd give them a good game, anyway.

I definitely think there are reasonable criticisms of Wenger to be made, but I fully expect Arsenal to be exactly where they are now five years down the line, regardless of who the manager is. I'm sure Guardiola could go there and get more out of that squad, but he wouldn't even consider it. And I'm not sure there are many coaches who will do better than Wenger, with a squad that is now mostly Europa League standard. Basically, Aubameyang, Ozil, Mkhitaryan and Lacazette need to play an absolute blinder if they're going to get remotely close to the top four. The rest of the squad they've got is average. Player for player, I don't think they're much better than Everton.

It'll be interesting to see what happens at Spurs because they don't seem remotely committed to investing in their playing squad. Credit to them, they've been very insightful, and also quite lucky, to sign a midfielder for £5 million from MK Dons who is now worth £100 million, and have Kane develop as he has. No-one could have anticipated this when he was on loan at Millwall and Leyton Orient, where he did nothing special at all.

However, when Ali and Kane need to be replaced, it is unthinkable that they will be able to do this with lower league signings and youth products. You can nick a few bargain buys, but already when was the last time they bought someone who really improved their team? The backbone of their team is still Lloris, Vertonghen, Aldeirwereld, Eriksen, Ali and Kane - all of whom have been there ages. I expect eventually that this Spurs team will just break up, and they'll steadily decline as they never reinvest enough to get the same calibre of player. Which is pretty much what happened at Arsenal, except that they're in an even worse position, because their owner quite clearly does not care about football in the slightest, and has already asset stripped other sporting franchises.

Thanks for the thoughtful response.
 

oneniltothearsenal

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They're playing some kid from Lorient in the centre of midfield, a CB that Dortmund were happy to discard, half their starting line-up against Chelsea came in for next to nothing (Cech, Bellerin, Monreal, Sokratis, Guendouzi and Iwobi all cost less than £15 million, while Mkhitaryan was a makeweight when they sold their best player...again!). They have no chance of competing.
Interestingly enough those bargain players were the best on the pitch today and looked much more up for this level than 350k per week Ozil and the expensive Xhaka. Spending smart is more important than spending big.
 

SilentWitness

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Too much formal discussion in here. Reel it in and give me more "blud fam".
 

Mastadon

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Wenger managed to keep Arsenal in the top 4 because there were never more than 4 teams competing for the top 4. It’s not too hard to finish 4th when your rivals are Everton and Aston Villa. The moment Liverpool sorted themselves out with Klopp and Spurs started to overachieve with Pochettino Wenger got found out and we finished 5th and 6th.

I don’t know where the club is headed under Emery because it’s too early but one thing for certain is that Wenger was past it. And this is from a huge Wenger fan.
 

wub1234

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Interestingly enough those bargain players were the best on the pitch today and looked much more up for this level than 350k per week Ozil and the expensive Xhaka. Spending smart is more important than spending big.
Easier said than done. Leicester picked up Vardy, Kante and Mahrez for next to nothing, why don't they just go out and get three more players of that quality?