Sleeping in UpsideDownWorld (Positives Needs & Hopes) [ARS 2-2 LIV]

Sleeping in UpsideDownWorld

An Arsenal blog from a coach’s perspective

So, I watched the game at my former boss’ house. I always wished he wasn’t my boss because we get along so well and watching football with him is fun. He’s a Liverpool fan. We don’t often go to his house but I took almost all of my family there today. I’d imagine that the fact that I didn’t see the multiple ridiculous refereeing decisions, was because I’d told myself to behave. On the way back home I went onto X and saw the clips of three moments posted over and over by many. The Virgil attack. The Martinelli pk and the non-goal.

As I write this, I’m listening to Arsenal Vision’s Instant Reaction and they seem quite calm about the refereeing even though they thought it was bad. My timeline are upset but the rage has vanished. There is much talk of being ‘tired’ by the fact that we are being reffed differently. I can’t be too surprised because I was clearly asleep or simply being overly polite.

The pivotal moment when Jesus scored was bad and was the equal of the three red cards we’ve had to exhaustively talk about. Those were at least a discussion but the Martinelli and VVD incidents weren’t even a conversation.

The VVD and Havertz incident was an example of why players feign injury. If you stay on your feet you give the referee a chance to say, ‘play on.’ Havertz didn’t roll around and maybe he should have. If Arsenal’s players would’ve surrounded VVD and pushed and shoved then I think he sees red, but that’s not the point either. The point is that the game is being reffed by a team consisting of 4 officials at the ground and way too many sitting in Stockley Park. Whether it’s 5 minutes in or 85 minutes doesn’t matter. That was 2 red cards and a yellow all in the space of 3 seconds. It was violent conduct three times over and for no reason whatsoever. Totally unprovoked. It was so obviously a dismissal that it reminded me of watching Sergio Ramos trying super hard to get sent off in a Champions League game when he’s on 4 yellow cards and Real Madrid are playing FC Copenhagen in the next game.

You can often tell if it’s a penalty kick by how a player falls. Martinelli wouldn’t have chosen to dive on his back. So, I look closer at the PK incident to see that Trent makes contact with Martinelli and misses the ball and Konate misses the ball too and totally cleans him out. In the world of refereeing decisions, that one is easy. Not easy to spot at full motion but super easy to spot if you can slow it down and watch it from numerous angles. What a shame that our refs don’t have someone helping them in a video room. Oh.

As ever, watching a PL weekend makes me think that this is all intentional. Horrific decisions against Palace, Southampton and Man Utd, in particular.

I noticed a few years ago that the way that those in power get the conversation to shift is by creating another story. Those in England who are in power are constantly being criticized for their corruption and personally I believe that there is a strong chance that they use the English Premier League as a distraction. It’s popularity is undeniable and folks would far rather talk about it than Keir Starmer’s sexuality. They know that the same people who are pissed that Tommy Robinson is going to jail watch the football and they need the anger to shift to a different topic. Maybe that is a conspiracy. It certainly is. I also think it’s a rather good educated guess based on the world we live in. If I’ve learnt anything useful in the last 5 years, it is that when a negative story comes out, look elsewhere because you are being distracted from a far worse story.

The non-goal is certainly worth a discussion too. I can agree to a chat. Did Havertz handball it and did he foul Trent. Two worthwhile discussions. Ultimately though, these are the facts of the matter that make it easy to decide in Arsenal’s favour because Anthony Taylor said that it was for the supposed Kiwior foul;

1. The biggest tell-tale sign is the reaction of the opponents. We all know that the first thing that happens when a goal goes in is that the opponents appeal something. Even when they know there is no hope. None of the Liverpool players appealed for the foul that was given. They are the ones who play the game and they obviously thought that Kiwior had fairly won the header.
2. The main reason that this is, yet again very shady, is that Anthony Taylor blows his whistle after observing that Arsenal are about to score. If he thought that it was a foul then what is he waiting for? Liverpool are hardly about to gain an advantage by him waiting to see.

So, here we are yet again. These three incidents are not consistent with what is happening elsewhere and fall into the category of ‘highly suspicious decision making.’ Maybe Rice, Saliba and Trossard gave referees decisions to make but they all went against Arsenal and then if you watch the other games you see similar or far more obvious situations seeing the opposite result.

What makes everything so much worse is VAR. If these decisions were being made in split seconds we could say that they are errors and that the issue at PGMOL is incompetence, so let’s address the incompetence. When you have VAR, you have no excuse because you have unlimited time (see Merino’s goal) to breathe, remember past similar situations, look at it from 42 angles and ensure that it is correct. But no. Incompetence is being naive. It’s highly suspicious. That phrase is carefully chosen and I think accurate, especially when you have Howard Webb on the earpiece last week and Anthony Taylor looking like he wanted to find a reason to stop Arsenal winning.

If this was a crime drama, everyone on the couch would be shouting at the TV, “bring him in for questioning.”

Maybe we are all so numb to the ridiculous world we live in now that we don’t spot ridiculousness anymore? Just today I’ve watched a news anchor claim that he didn’t say something that he said daily for 3 1/2 years. I’ve watched a woman screaming at a 2 yr old because the toddlers was racist because her baseball cap was supporting a political candidate. Then I accidentally tapped on a clip of Jamie Carragher saying that Arteta’s complaints are making him as bad as Mourinho.

I hear many say that we are living in a movie. Almost like The Truman Show. If we are then I can start to make sense of UpsideDownWorld but if I’m truly awake and lucid then perhaps you and I can join one of those safe circles that some folks go to on a Tuesday night so that they can share their stories whilst the lady in the brown bob puts her hand on yours when it’s your time to ‘share,’ telling you “it’s gonna be ok.”

Oh, I nearly forget about this other example of the upcoming documentary, ‘ Premier League Referees: The Rules change weekly’

Them Luis Diaz non-yellow card when he kicked the ball away. It’s ok though because Mike Dean suggests that this is ok because Arsenal weren’t going to take a quick free kick anyway. Well Mr Dean, how do you know this when Diaz has the ball and then dribbles the ball away from the incident and then passes it to David Raya, you numptie?

POSITIVES:

Pride:

Liverpool came into this game in big form. Arsenal came into it after a rocky period. You could sense that Arsenal needed to score first to regain rhythm. After that you could see that we had to build slowly into our game. Not the easiest opponent to have to regain your rhythm against. Our game is based on defensive solidity and that was rocked before and during. We ended the game with none of our first choice back four playing or playing in their regular position. The draw isn’t super helpful but I can’t help but feel very proud of how we performed. I think that this particulsar pride is birthed from our ‘no excuses’ mentality.

Merino:

Some fans never learn. No player should be judged before he has played 10 or so games. Either way, his goal and general performance was very good and the header will give our fanbase belief in what he is capable of. He was born to play for Arsenal. To play for Arsenal I’ve always thought that you have to have an elite level of composure. The ability to play out of tight spaces. I also love his posture and elegance.

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Ben White:

A good reminder of what a good footballer can do. Play right back for a few years and then slide right back into the centre and dominate your space. this was a big plus as Arteta needs to know that he can rest Saliba and feel good about it. When Timber, Tomi and Calafiori are all fit, White may sit on the bench but being able to play to this level in two positions won’t see him sit for long.

Saka:

Ordinarily, it is hard for any player to look levels higher than the rest in a fixture like this. At times, Saka was unplayable. So strong, so unpredictable, so powerful. Unplayable. By far my favourite moment of his game was his goal. not the shot, because I knew he’d roof it after he cut back, but the run. His weakness for years has been his insistence in wanting everything to his feet. His run was perfectly timed and offers another threat that is more dangerous than getting it to his feet.

Partey:

Apart from getting nutmegged by Diaz, he was flawless. His improvement back to the level he is capable of is so encouraging. I’d imagine he wants another contract. So would I if I was part of this team. Like many on the team, he can do numerous things which helps his playing time, Arteta’s options and the need for us to be unpredictable to opposing coaches.

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Martinelli:

Another game where he looks like he’s returned to his best form. He doesn’t get enough plaudits for his crossing ability but put two beauties on a plate with his so-called weaker foot. He also is in contention for the award of being the best winger at defending in the league. A new and actually worthy award that I’ve invented.

Rice at 6:

His two free kicks to Merino were world class. His ball winning and aerial duels were good too, but it was his willingness to be braver on nthe ball and play progressive, chance creating opportunities that was a big improvement. I often wonder if the long term plan for Rice is at number 6 as I’m not convinced that we coukldn’t get more from another player at left eight. He does well there but so does Jesus on the right wing. Sometimes it’s important to recognize and applaud but realize that we could do even better as Mr. Saka proved once again. Tomas Partey is making this potential move tricky as he is still better than Rice in possession and we need to be ok with this. We’ve always wanted these kind of conundrums. What will be interesting will be when and if Merino solidifies the left eight spot as he offers similar defensive qualities to Rice but a far greater attacking threat.

Kiwior:

Even though he misjudged the ball by Trent to Salah, he made several positive contributions. If Anthony Taylor was Antonio Taylorini the far better CL referee version, then Kiwior would be getting flowers for his pre-assist. He made a crucial interception and numerous important headed clearances. Fair to criticize him recently and you give yourself more validity if you praise when earned.

MLS:

He keeps getting chosen in big games. He keeps getting chosen ahead of Zinchenko. That tells me that he will almost definitly save money on Zinchenko’s replacement as MLS can invert into CM and play CM also. As mentioned earlier, you have to have elite composure to play for Arsenal and he has this already. Likely because he’s grown up playing CM with opponents all around him.

NEEDS:

El Classico vs PL:

You may have seen the Real v Barca game. A brilliant watch. Lots of incident and all of it revolved around the players. Conversation was on the football. As it should be. When Mbappe was offside, which happened every 3 minutes, they wheeled out the semi automated offside and seconds later the football returned. When Merino scored it took our pre-historic VAR 5 minutes to draw a horizontal line. My 5 year old niece has just learnt to use a ruler and could do it faster. Bringing back carrier pigeon would be quicker. Everything about the PGMOL is embarrassing hence why people who thrive in talking about the football, like I do, can’t stay away from what is constant game changing decisions.

Using the energy:

There is a short list of big improvements needed at Arsenal. Ruthlessly using the crowds energy and the players confidence to push on when we go ahead, is certainly on the list. After the first goal we still didn’t have rhythm but after the second goal we should have pushed our defence higher and been buzzing around and finished the game off. Easy for me to say, I know.

Zinchenko:

I’d still use Zinchenko when playing games we dominate, but I’m not sure Mikel is going to do this. He seems to prefer others and Lewis-Skelly needs a pathway or he will leave because 75% of the PL would use him. We should’ve sold Zinchenko when he had more value, an Arsenal weakness.

HOPES:

Preston:

I’d imagine that we will see MLS, Nwaneri and possibly Ayden Heaven due to injuries, also. I sure hope so. Jorginho, Sterling and Jesus will play and I sure hope that Saka and Timber don’t.

Gabriel:

I wonder if both he and Ricky have the same MCL injury. Would be really bad luck but an opportunity for others to step up.

TWEETS and THOUGHTS:

FINAL THOUGHT:

Regardless of the result and league table, I don’t have any doubts that we are better than Liverpool. I think that the league is between us two as well as Villa. I think the PL have to relegate City, at least. I’m not worried about the points gap. I wouldn’t be worried if it was February either. Arsenal are a serious club who will contest the league and I’m not even remotely close to thinking that when the league isn’t even 1/4 of the way through, that we need to be worried.

Even if I was a worrier I can’t be upset at a team that gives me such an overflow of belief and happiness.

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.