Queen Elizabeth was a Gooner (Oh! and Arsenal beat Zurich)

Queen Elizabeth was a Gooner

POSITIVES, NEEDS and HOPES 

I never had the privilege of meeting the Queen but I did see her once. Crossing the road outside Buckingham Palace a policeman stopped us as a black car pulled out. The window went down and there she was ❤️

I also remember going to Windsor Castle about 10 years ago. I didn’t know that they gave the public such open access to the private c quarters and I distinctly remember being in her bedroom and being in awe.

I always admired her more for what she didn’t do than what she did. It must be very difficult being the most recognizable person in the world and respecting others and the positions that they hold and the decisions that they make. Especially when politicians are ruining the country that she represents. 

As we know through history there have been many kings and queens that have got involved wherever they felt like where as Queen Elizabeth had too much respect for what her position was and what it was not. 

As a Brit abroad, I am frequently asked about the royal family. Diana and Queen Elizabeth in particular have given me a real sense of pride over the years. Having pride in your country is something that many have but nobody else had a figurehead like Queen Elizabeth. She gave the United Kingdom a unique sense of identity and pride because of who she was and what she  represented. 

I’d like to think that before she passed away that she was happy that her favourite football team was at the top of the Premier League ❤️

POSITIVES:

• If you did not see the game yesterday, it was a game full of 7 out of 10 performances. Everybody was fine. Everybody was good. There were two players that excelled beyond that though. Granit Xhaka and Sambi Lokonga were consistently very good. Both offering progressive disguised passing when the team needed some unpredictability. Sambi almost faultlessly keeping possession in the midfield third and offering better positional sense. I was delighted that he played and got to further practice this position as I’m sure he will have to play against Everton. It is hard to sense leadership when you are sitting on your couch but the best leadership is always the best example. Xhaka was a level above everybody apart from Sambi. Such a hard-working professional performance where other British teams have offered the opposite this week. 

• There is a different level of seriousness about Arsenal these days. I’ve watched quite a few British teams in Europe this week and many seem largely uninterested in comparison to Arsenal. We all remember our inconsistency last season. If we could improve one thing as a team from last season I’d say consistency would be what the coach would want. He talked about this at his press conferences repeatedly last season. It’s always hard to achieve but your best chance is if your players take every moment in every game seriously. A high level of focus and desire. I’m seeing this and I’m happy.
• I’ve been wondering why I am so enamored with Fabio Vieira when he’s barely played for a Arsenal. He flitted in and out of the game but I believe I’ve figured it out. I have always liked players who make the sport look effortless. Just glide around the field and offer the technique in a more compact fashion. More disguise on everything that they do and quicker execution due to this compact swing. The first goal was delightful all the way around but his first touch away from being double teamed was high level. He clearly has an eye for dissecting defences. I greatly look forward to seeing more of him soon as our coach suggested.
• As a fan it resonates when a player is so emotional after scoring their first goal for my club. I felt like a proud father watching him. His finish was perfection and much of his play was intelligent. His cross for the second goal was even more impressive. He seems to have a flair for crossing. His earlier cross was perfection also. Similar style to Saka without the power and a little less acceleration. I’m happy using him as an alternate or rotation certainly for the next eight weeks before the window. Give him a chance and possibly save yourself 30,000,000+

• I was encouraged to see Odegaard’s defence splitting pass in the 86 minute. I’ve been chatting about the need for him to attempt to dissect the defence more.
• I don’t know how you feel, but I always sense that Eddie Nketiah is going to score when he plays. Some players just give you that vibe.

NEEDS:

• I’m still not fully convinced that we are going to score when we are in a crossing position. I know that sounds like the opposite of my Marquinhos complement, but we are getting into so many crossing positions in every game and rarely creating clear-cut chancesI. I’m not worried about it because firstly we have movement where we had very little last season. We also have a 6 yard box striker. My concern is more with the accuracy of the crossing. If I was the coaching staff I’d be spending time at every session working on this.
• During the middle portion of the game I noticed that we were slow to take advantage of broken play. Zürich had players out of position but without a vertical pass we were choosing the hard way and prioritizing passing patterns over the game.
• I’ve noticed in the past little while that Bukayo Saka can occasionally be very sluggish at supporting our right back. If the coach has put faith in Ben White and Tomiyasu dealing with the issue and asking Saka to be the outlet pass then I understand. I’ve just noticed players signaling to him to get back quicker.

HOPES:

• I feel comfortable with Sambi against Everton. I hope that we don’t give Partey an injection unnecessarily. He is clearly fragile and I think that he needs to be brought back slowly. We should be fine even for the next couple of weeks giving him increasing minutes and getting him match fit again for the North London Derby.
• I got to see Mudryk play once again on Tuesday. He had two assists and a goal. He is a rare breed. A devastatingly fast player who also specializes in a beautiful weight of pass and a very creative eye. He also seems to be able to keep his head up when running at warp speed. Similar to Wolcott but more to his game and different gears. I’m delighted to hear that he is interested in playing for Arsenal and he seems to have opened the door with his quotes yesterday.

FINAL THOUGHT:

Today is a strange day. It certainly won’t be remembered for Zürich v  Arsenal. 

A largely forgettable game that had a good result from a professional performance. 

I sit alone here with my daughter being my only family member who seems as upset as me. Her most proud possession is her British passport that she got through her dual citizenship and she hopes to live and work in England one day. Our emotions are likely very different to yours as most of you are in amongst the sadness. I think about you and hope that the nation of England can take inspiration from Queen Elizabeth and learn from a real leader. 

No podcast today. See you on Monday morning for the next blog.

Mike McDonald

Former Highbury regular. Moved to TN, USA in ’99. Married with 3 kids. Coached in UK and US for 27 years.
Mike McDonald Soccer Academy in Morristown TN, Olympic Development coach, Regional Premier League Champion.