Arsenal weren’t outclassed yesterday, but they were outplayed for much of the game. To my eyes Spurs wanted it just a bit more, especially in the first half…
Ledley King was completely unmarked on his goal. That’s inexcusable at this level…
Reyes seems like a nice kid and he tries real hard, but he’s useless. Things just don’t seem to happen when he’s a big part of the attack…
On the flip side, is it just me or does the Arsenal seem far more dangerous when RvP is on the pitch? He seems to be one of the few people who understand that you need to put shots on goal. Sure, you may not score every time, but you have to shoot. Less Reyes, more RvP…
The midfield is weak. I wasn’t a big Vieira fan the last year or two, but clearly a player like him is lacking. Arsenal just don’t have the physical capabilities to boss the midfield with guys like Fabregas and Flamini…
Spurs are a decent side, but we could have won that match with 10 more minutes of RvP…
29 Responses to “Spurs 1 - 1 Arsenal - Reaction”
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October 30th, 2005 at 11:01 am
I think fans are a little bit harsh on Reyes. He was bought by AW not to score 20 odd goals a season but to primarily be a supplier of goals and his pace certainly does frighten defenders but of course he is still learning the trade and will improve. Of course it does not help that Arsenal paid over the odds for him when he should have been here for half that. Almost same with Van Persie although RVP is much more a player in the Bergkamp mould…
The next season will be a good judge of that and I feel that the vast open spaces of the Emirates Stadium will only help Reyes and his style of dribbling and running….
I also agree that another 10 minutes of the game and yes Arsenal could have scored another certainly with the frequency of chances that were being created by them in 2nd half….
October 30th, 2005 at 1:07 pm
Reyes is definitely a concern considering how much was paid for him. No question he is a very hardworking player. Also no question he has the skill and the moves to be a very good player. He still have a tendency to lose the ball too easily and makes poor decisions on his passing and shooting. In the 2nd half against Spuds, he chose to shoot instead of chipping over Robinson who made the mistake of charging out his line. The ball struck Robinson and a scoring chance was lost. In another play when he received a pass from Bergkamp in a tight situation at the edge of the box, he played a first time pass behind van Persie’s run where a pass in front of van Persie would have put van Persie thru in the box and on his left leg for a shot at goal. Another scoring chance lost.
Maybe he needs more time. Maybe Wenger shud give Quincy more playing time to provide more competition to Reyes. Its been 2 years since he arrived at Higbury and for a 20m pound player, he needs to offer more to the team.
October 30th, 2005 at 1:21 pm
Reyes as a waste is two-fold. The money paid for him, perhaps enough to buy a Roy Makaay. Or an Arjen Robben, Damien Duff. What about Lampard who cost 11 million GBP?
Reyes as a waste, and for me this is more tragic, is how he gets a highly coveted place in the Arsenal team, dragging down the team with his abysmal form, and denying others with far more promise a chance. What kind of message does it send to kids like Lupoli, Quincy, Larsson, etc. who are doing their best to impress and get a chance, that it doesn’t matter how well you play, because you came up through the youth system and didn’t cost gazillion pounds you’re never going to get the same chance? For me Arsene Wenger’s youth system is a sham, and I cringe whenever I read of some new talented kid being linked to Arsenal. All these kids show such promise and never get a chance then you see the likes of Reyes and Flamini in the team. Arsenal as a team is a shadow of what it used to be, since when was a draw with Spurs a source of joy to us? People think the future of Arsenal is bright, but as it is not a future based on merit, I see little to be excited about. Right now it’s the vets still baiing us out and when they retire/forced out by contract wrangles RVP aside, you really don’t see any of these kids taking over.
October 30th, 2005 at 1:56 pm
Hindsight is a strange thing. At the time of signing Reyes, it seemed we landed a potential gem of a player. Remember, it was he who orchestrated Seville’s 4-1 victory over Real Madrid in La Liga not too long before Wenger signed him. And I know I felt a certain spark in the air when he made his first appearance as a sub against Chelsea, and scored.
Since then, though, I agree Reyes has largely flopped. It now seems that, rather than landing a bargain, Wenger paid over the top for him. It simply does not make sense to say that Reyes is untalented; his performances in and for Spain, as well as some of his brighter moments in England, prove such a suggestion untrue.
What then is his problem?
I don’t know. Maybe it’s Wenger’s tactical instructions. Maybe he’s going through a very bad lapse of form. Maybe just the whole setup of things around him aren’t working for him. Any, all, or none of these could be the answer. The question, I think, is what do we do with him? I think you’re right, Afrikan-Gooner; Reyes needs to be dropped.
October 30th, 2005 at 2:48 pm
I can understand why so many worry about Reyes and his lack of contribution; however, I feel that Reyes looks more productive when Arsenal’s attack contains variety. When the attack is predictable and therefore easy to defend against, as it has seemed with so many dangerous players injured, Reyes looks like a lost child. Anyone can shut him down, box him in, leaving only one or two others to make a difference. Which is why I completely agree that when RvP is on the field, he stretches the defense, and suddenly, Reyes has a little more possibility. Henry’s presence has the same effect, b/c then you have Henry as a constant threat, RvP as somewhat unpredictable, but clearly hungry to shoot, and Freddie, who makes those suprising runs, necessary goals, etc. So, I feel that Reyes can fit in as long as the attack suggests variety.
Flamini seems to plug a few holes, but that’s it. Same for Gilberto, whose passing almost made me order a few extra beers yesterday. Was he wearing a Hotspur jersey under his Arsenal kit?
October 30th, 2005 at 4:02 pm
“Useless” is a bit harsh on Reyes. Flamini on the other hand… Hey what about Forlan. I read he’s saying Arsenal is watching him.
October 30th, 2005 at 4:26 pm
Yeah, lay off Reyes. There was no link between midfield and attack - and Wenger would not want him scrapping away in midfield because no-one can beat 5 players and score a goal (except Henry).
I think Reyes has done well this season, he is certainly trying. He needs better players around him - a midfield that can control the game - otherwise the strikers are lost.
Everytime Reyes gets it he meets a wall of defenders, there are no midfielder runners giving him space and Bergkamp just stands in the same area of the pitch and can’t run much. Why do you expect Reyes to do. I think he would be a magnificent player if the team had more attacking threat running through it.
October 30th, 2005 at 5:27 pm
Reyes can play this game, it’s just he has no one who can compliment what he does. If you remember at the beginning of last season he and Henry were scoring every game. The Aragones thing and the radio hoax unsettled him quite a bit last season. Now, with Wenger’s inexplicable, high turnover of players who are not quite the caliber that Henry had when he got here, it’s difficult for him to get things going.
I remember Henry getting massive amounts of chances and not converting them all when he got here. The only difference is Arsenal used to be a team that created so many chances that he could afford to miss a few of them until he finally pulled his head out. We’re obviously not that team that creates so many chances anymore.
Every one was talking the same crap about how Pires is so garbage and past his best, then he saved our asses yesterday. He brought class to a team that was lacking it. Reyes hasn’t played in a few weeks and I’m sure he’s not 100%. Just chill. This guy can play. It’s just unfortunate that he doesn’t have as many players to look up to as he’s one of the old heads in our first team. He’ll probably get a hat trick against Sparta and you’ll be forced to apologise.
Don’t blame the players that the quality of our game has suffered. Anyone can see they’re doing their best in the games. It’s just some of them aren’t ready to be in the first team yet, but they are.
October 30th, 2005 at 8:35 pm
Every player is entitled to criticism, it’s true. But there is really no need to go so far by suggesting a particular player as useless, or similar terms like that.
Bottom line is - there is no point to judge players on GAME-BY-GAME base.
Arsenal is in a transitional period, whether we like it or not. A team like that will bounce to have up and down, both in terms of result and performance.
For instance, RvP could score a winner one match off the bench, after fans started urging the manager to start him, and when he did, RvP would have a quiet game…
Clichy looked totally outplayed in his first two games replacing Ashley Cole, yet against Spurs he was one of the better performancers.
Pires started the season slow (as usual), but it was his brilliant pass which set up henry to break the Arsenal goal record, and scored two important goals in succession the past two matches.
The same applies on everyone of Arsenal players. To conclude how useful a player is to his team, I think it’s better to leave it at the end of the season. Otherwise, what happens if Reyes scores a stormer the next match….
October 30th, 2005 at 10:45 pm
The truth hurts..
The bottom line is - Reyes is not that good and if you can’t see that keep on wearing Wenger’s glasses. I’ll not called him “useless” but any players who plays one wicked game in every five games is not worth over ?15m. Is simple as that.
We are trying to turn so many Arsenal players into what they are not. Some all so over rated and sometimes I wonder which team or game some folks watch.
October 30th, 2005 at 10:53 pm
As Arsenal followers we should focus on whats wrong. Everyone should notice that this season is ” Not Right” . Since when beating Man City 1-0 was a great thing?, since when drawing with Spurs is a good thing?. Arsenal should have easy accsess to the 3 points of each game except the ones against (Man u, Chelsea, …)
Luckily the teams like Man U, Liverpool, … are doing as bad as Arsenal this year. But Chelsea is making all the big reds look bad.
I dont want to dump the EPL to Chelsea and say forget it, but it we need a mirical to win it. AW are throwing comments over cheslea, which is very inappropriate. We need to focus on Arsenal, try to fix whats wrong, and try to win whatever we can win. At the end we can look at the table and see if we finish first or second or 3r . Chelsea will not choke easy…
There are some problems in the sqaud, but its not becuase of ” Lack of spending or signing new players”. We have good players, but we need a more stabel sqaud ( not team). Any news in the paper or on the internet that hit us, shows that we have a problem. Starting of worring that Henry will leave us to the “Loser” Bently caliming that AW hates him or does not like English players (because he does want to compete ) to Reyes “stories” …
Simply Arsenal is unlucky to be in the same league of Chelsea … specialy this season. Yes we are in the transition season.
1- I think our Young players systems need to be midified a bit. You cant expect players to become very good sitting on the bench or playing in the reserves games. So Far I saw Cesce as a result. I doubt Quincy or Lupoli would get a chance.
2-Our players are good, but we need to have the best blend of players playing to form 2-3 (11 players line up). If we have some “sort of player” missing, then go ahead and buy him.
For an Example: England NT has very good 11-15 players that can play and Beat Brazil. But in the pitch they dont perform well, cause the belnd of the player is not working well. Real Madrid with their players should win every game, but their (bad) blend of the players makes them lose.
October 30th, 2005 at 10:58 pm
I have to love some of your ideas.
The next season will be a good judge of that and I feel that the vast open spaces of the Emirates Stadium will only help Reyes and his style of dribbling and running….
He had lots of chances on different grounds and did nothing with it, so what guarantee playing at Emirate will make any difference.
He was bought by AW not to score 20 odd goals a season but to primarily be a supplier of goals and his pace certainly does frighten defenders but of course he is still learning the trade and will improve.
Read what Mr Wenger said on the 18/02/2004. I guess you know something Mr Wenger don’t know or Mr Wenger is lying to us.
October 30th, 2005 at 11:02 pm
Well said,
As someone said yesterday he is the most expensive player at Arsenal and at the same time the most overrated player in the league.
As for Wenger’s youth policy even a six year old knows is as crap as it gets.
October 30th, 2005 at 11:24 pm
I think Wenger should start looking at his own team and stop chatting crap about chelsea each week. It makes him look silly and Mourinho reply today even makes him looked like a fool. Like some fans why spend your whole time moaning about another team.
You right apart from Chelsea the rest of the teams in the EPL as soo bad to watch. If Wigan is the best team with the best defends and sitting 2nd it says alot about the league. I’m not dis-respecting Wigan but the state of the league is soo bad. You watch it, we will finished 2nd again at the end of the season with United and liverpool 3rd or 4th because the league is soo crap no wonder fans not turning up and prices are over the roof.
What surprise me is teams like Wigan, City, Charlton, Bolton don’t even have a quarter of our money and you never hear their managers bitchin$ but play football and deal with facts.
October 31st, 2005 at 1:08 am
I still do not understand why Pires did not start. The penalty from last week? Has a great record in the north london derby
We got RVP for I think 2 mil and reyes for about 17, maybe it averages out OK in the end.
Quick comment on Defoe. Good player- should get more England starts. I might be somewhat cynical, but I htink 99% of strikers in the league would have gone down around the 70th minute when he cut through our defense. He deserves credit for staying on his feet when he probably could have had a penalty had he gone down.
October 31st, 2005 at 2:09 am
I was surprized Wenger is making those comments about Chelsea. Why? Chelsea dropped two points last week, which was good for Arsenal and the rest of the league. To call that as a dip in their form is premature. A dip in form is when a team drops points for 4-5 games in a row..Not when a team ties one game and loses another game on penalties.
Other than Chelsea, the rest of the league is such that on any given week, any team can beat anyone else. ManU, Arsenal and Liverpool are all suffering (same point made above by Farek and LoveG). And the funny thing is each team has a different set of problems. Not like Liverpool didn’t go out and get players, they spend plenty getting quality players…Imagine if ManU had not gotten Rooney, then what? They would have been far lower in the league than they are now. Rooney has only been there for more than a year and his presence hides their other problems.
If Henry does not play, Arsenal’s problems are more on display. Whereas if next week, Chelsea are without Drogba, Lampard, Terry or Crespo, they will still grind a result out. Why? Yes the depth their money has bought is one answer. But if Ranieri was still their manager, would Chelsea have been as dominant as they are now? Their annoying self proclaimed know it all manager has found a way to put together a team and a system. But they are not unbeatable. Even though no team has found a way to beat them yet. Seems like ions ego that no team had managed to find a way to beat Arsenal in the league. But Arsenal were beatable then in Europe not in the EPL.
When Liverpool scored two goals at Highbury, Arsenal bounched back and scored 3 more. 5-3 over Boro was another result….Yes Henry was on the pitch as were some other key players….But even with these key players, Arsenal struggled away from home in Europe. What was the problem? No Plan B! If teams figured out how to stop Arsenal, then we had no plan to adjust and adapt. Still that adjusting system is not there, and worse some of those key experienced players are not there either. A tough spot.
Atleast we have two home games coming up…
October 31st, 2005 at 6:52 am
So what if after winning the next two games 1-0 only we end up in 2nd place or 3rd place above Man Utd….will you still be complaining - I think you will it’s human nature I guess….glass being half empty and all!
Playing at home in vast open spaces of Emirates is different to away stadium spaces….I would urge you to try and get some tapes of reyes playing for his old team Seville and then comment on Reyes and wide open spaces at the Emirates stadium…
October 31st, 2005 at 7:27 am
Get a grip of yourselves. Reyes has been quality so far this season. Saturday was his first poor game. Get of his back. You are supposed to SUPPORT the Arsenal.
October 31st, 2005 at 7:34 am
I wish all arsenal fans were as supportive as you.
October 31st, 2005 at 12:06 pm
You have know clue what it means by supporting a team.
The the blind glasses on
October 31st, 2005 at 12:07 pm
Sorry I forget he is the best in the league.. I guess that makes you happy..
October 31st, 2005 at 12:09 pm
I’m not complaining but find our excuses a bit rich
October 31st, 2005 at 1:02 pm
What would you expect for Reyes to do, be a goal scorer or a playmaker? He wasn’t exactly banging in goals at Sevilla. He wasn’t leading the league in assists either. But he was a handful for everyone in La Liga to deal with. The potential is truly there as opposed to some of our other young players.
He doesn’t exactly have a young Bergkamp, Overmars, Petit, Vieira, Pires, Henry or Edu providing him with that first class service. Bottom line Wenger took a chance on his potential. The kid’s still very young and will get better, guaranteed. Remember when Henry was his age? I’m not saying he’s going to be another TH14 but Titi wasn’t very clinical in front of goal either.
The major difference is that Henry had a plethora of playmakers giving him chances to no end where Jose doesn’t have that now. Henry also knew how to play striker where Jose doesn’t. Does he hold the ball long, yes but who is there to pass to? Who makes themselves available like Henry, Wiltord or Pires would storming into the box? Maybe Freddie but where is he?
I often wonder too if Wenger thinks he can make every midfielder into a striker like Henry. People wonder why we don’t shoot more. The reason is simple; we’ve only brought in midfielders and no strikers. Where did Jose, van Persie, Freddie, and Henry play before they got here? You can’t blame them for trying to pass or dribble into the goal as that’s what midfielders do, pass and dribble. Seems simple to me.
October 31st, 2005 at 2:36 pm
Defoe gave our defence a tough time with his running and dribbling. Plus he can shoot from distance. I would love him to rotate on the right with Ljundberg.
October 31st, 2005 at 2:58 pm
I don’t think folks are expecting too much of Reyes. We’re not expecting him to score in every game. What we are asking him to do is try and STAND UP for a start and then have some general awareness of where other players are. His decision-making is awful most of the time when it comes to seeing a team mate in a better position.
I personally think he has done well this season and provides our team with much needed pace when Henry is not available. However when Henry is fit he shouldn’t play. Van Persie deserves the nod. Reyes is still very young but he has tendencies which I don’t think even experience can eradicate.
October 31st, 2005 at 3:41 pm
I agree with you Danny the midfield has been our biggest issue this season. We need to find someone who can do the job Vieira used to do and it cannot be an inexperienced kid. I think if we had that we would look a signifacantly better team.
October 31st, 2005 at 3:48 pm
I know why Wenger made those comments; it’s because he doesn’t want the attention to be on him and his claim that our team had the necessary quality to win the championship with the players we have. He got it wrong this time.
The bad thing about him talking about Chelsea is that he’s embarassing himself and doesn’t even see it. Everyone can see that this is the weakest Arsenal team in the past ten years and it’s because of foolish decisions he’s made.
I don’t know if you’ve figured it out yet but I don’t blame the players. I think they’re doing their best, they’re just not good enough yet to match the legendary players that we’ve had before them. I blame the manager for being way to arrogant in thinking he could do no wrong because people have called him brilliant. Alex Ferguson did the same thing when he sold Jaap Stam. Real Madrid did the same thing when they sold Makelele to Chelsea. I guess it was Wenger’s turn to do something stupid and let so many quality players leave with no one available to replace them. You keep what you have until you find something better. As for the kids, you make them prove they’re good enough.
November 1st, 2005 at 8:12 am
Dry your eyes mate. Its not all doom and gloom. You are worse than the british tabloids.
November 1st, 2005 at 5:27 pm
SACHIN G,
As one journalist said, Wenger is only commenting on Chelsea because the press keeps questionin him about them. Where do they get the quotes from? The various interviews pre and post match press conferences.
Of course he could just refuse to answer questions on Chelsea, their spending, and on whether he thinks Arsenal can catch them in the title race…but he is entitled to express his opinion, and if Mourinho doesnt like it he can go and suck eggs. Wenger is not the only manager who talks about Chelsea, Ferguson does too and so does Souness and Steve Bruce…so I dont see why that **AYE CARUMBA**(censored) has singled Wenger out for criticism. I think it is totally out of order what Mourinho says about Wenger as it is an attack on the man’s character and a low blow. Wenger does not get personal, he talks about football and money…and I have NEVER haeard him attacking another manager’s character.
Mourinho is so far up his own ass he cant see how stupid he looks