Today, I don't know where to start. I'm not even sure I want to. Needs must, though, I guess.
Overview
As you surely know by now, Arsenal went down to Borussia yesterday. We've lost 2-0 and the margin could have been a lot wider but for some Szczesny heroics and the Germans' wastefulness. By the time the final whistle blew I wished I was stuck at work (if I had it) or in a traffic jam. Anywhere but before the laptop's screen. The reason is simple: we were atrocious. Last time we nicked a win in Dortmund, but few will argue we deserved it. Sure, Arsenal was dominated the entire game back then, but our brilliant defense coupled with lighting-quick counters ensured we got the three points, while also restricting Klopp's side to very few chances. This time around, we were simply dominated.
The first half
Despite Debuchy's and Monreal's absence we had a very strong squad. Bellerin, Gibbs and Arteta respectively were the only new faces compared to our weekend's line-up.
The squad was the only thing reminiscent of Sunday. It quickly became apparent Borussia would set the tone for this one and so they did.
Despite missing a slew of key players, the Germans had no problems breaking us down. Most of their attacks came down our right side and it's perfectly understandable: Bellerin and Ozil occupied this side. The former seemed out of his depth and was often caught out of position, while the latter was just not interested in tracking back in the slightest.
However, Bellerin was far from our weakest link. His compatriot Mikel Arteta has somehow disappeared from sight and was nowhere to be found. Which means Borussia broke through our defense right down the middle as well.
They didn't even need Reus and Blaszczykowski to make us look pathetic. When someone of Mkhitaryan's level has so many chances, it tells you a lot about the way we defended.
Surprisingly, we could have been in front around the half-hour's mark. Ramsey found some space in front of Borussia's box and sidefooted a clever pass into Welbeck's path, only for the latter to put his effort wide of the far post. Should he have gone for the near post? I don't know, but I know one thing: the scores remained level.
At the other end every Borussia's attack was genuinely threatening, with Immobile and Abameyang given free reign. That we have only conceded once and so late in the half is down to Szczesny, who at one point denied Abameyang from point-black range.
Before the game I mentioned how important it is not to fall prey of the counter-attacks. And yet we did exactly that, once again.
In our typical fashion, the opposition's attack started with our throw-in, deep in their half, gone bad. Immobile picked up the ball near the central circle, ran half the length of the field completely untroubled by our defenders (Arteta was nowhere to be found) and put his shot past Szczesny. You can joke all you like, but our defense looked much more Immobile than the man himself. The whistle blew immediately after the goal, we weren't even given time for one attack. Not that I think we would have conjured something up, but still.
The second half
Things needed changing, but no substitutions were made. And so we carried on, in the exact same manner.
Borussia punished us three minutes into the half. A simple one-two over our defenders was all it took to send Abameyang clear and he doubled his team's lead without much problems, putting the ball into an empty net. Szczesny tried to intercept the pass to Abameyang, you see, but couldn't do this.
We could have been 3-0 down shortly after that, but that joke of a player (Mkhitaryan) smashed his shot over with the goal at his mercy.
On the hour we've finally seen a substitution, even a double one. Oxlade and Cazorla came on for Ozil and Ramsey respectively.
Suddenly, Bellerin started looking much more the part. The reason for this is blindingly obvious: the Ox worked his socks off in defense. Cazorla added some quality to our passing, but couldn't do much else.
Poldi then made his entrance, after looking for his shin pad for what seemed like an eternity. In an attempt to save the game (which was beyond saving after the second goal), Wenger took off Arteta.
We created two chances in the dying minutes, but both weren't capitalised on. Podolski could have scored after being sent clean through, but the shot never came, while Welbeck created a chance for himself only to consequently smash the ball over. 2-0 it ended and, in truth, we can consider ourselves lucky. A more clinical team would have put the game beyond our reach inside the first 30 minutes.
The aftermath
This game highlighted exactly why a 4-1-4-1 doesn't work. For it to be effective, we need a beast of a DM, who can do all the dirty work by himself and wingers that retrace their steps and help the full-backs.
Arteta/Flamini just aren't that prolific in defense. If they receive no support from the midfielders, they will fall short. Simple as that.
Regarding the second issue, we no longer have Sagna or Debuchy, each of whom can manage on their own. For the next couple of months it's Bellerin or Chambers on the right and these guys need help. The kind of help Gibbs gets from Sanchez, though something tells me the Englishman would survive by himself just fine. He's a lot more experienced than either Bellerin or Chambers.
That's why I hope for a Bayern-like transformation. Do you recall that 3-1 defeat in 2013? Of course you do, things like that are hard to forget. But it's not about the defeat, it's about how we reacted to it.
At that time, we didn't have Ozil, Sanchez, Welbeck. Ramsey was out of form and Wilshere was, unless I'm mistaken, injured. At this point Arsene realised he just doesn't have the players to implement the attacking kind of football the Frenchman loves. And so he adapted.
He dropped Vermaelen and replaced him with a much more assured Koscielny. He dropped Szcsesny for his antics and gave the green light to Fabianski. He introduced Ramsey alongside Arteta, so the Spaniard wouldn't have to do all the defensive work on his own. He built a team around the back four and set a number 1 priority: do not concede. You all remember what happened after. We took 26 points out of 30, drawing only with United and Everton and got that fourth place.
In the summer we added Ozil and Ramsey blossomed, but our early results were again down to a rock-solid defense. 2-0 was our favouite scoreline this time last year.
Arsene has to do something like this again. This time around we have Sanchez and Welbeck and Ozil and CAN play the Arsenal way. Quick passing, counters, flashy moves. But we seem unable to do so whilst utilising a 4-1-4-1 formation. Too many players are uncomfortable with it. Full-backs don't get enough support. Arteta is left alone. Jack's and Ramsey's styles clash, cause these are two similar. Ozil is ineffective on the wing. Going back to 4-2-3-1 may just solve our problems. And I really hope Wenger will give it a long and hard thought.
