Did I care about it? Yes.
Would I have swapped it for fourth place? Maybe.
Did I enjoy beating Chelsea? Absolutely.
Do I regard it as a far more significant achievement than an improvement from 6th to 5th in the League, plus getting stuffed by Chelsea in the EL Final? Absolutely.
Bruce Rioch got us back up to 4th. He'd left the back 5/6 alone, and been happy to work with the added creativity that DB10 and Platt brought, while having a top form IWWW, Parlour and Merse.
We were basically a top CM and goal-scoring winger away from a title challenge. But we fücked him out the door so we could get AW.
Luiz is a carthorse who has made Papa Sok worse. Torreira would have been fine for AW, esp with Rambo and Ozil, but Dick doesn't like him cos he's too small.
Pepe's taking up a space which, had he not cost a fortune, would be to Saka or Nelson. If Xhaka can't defend, why play him not Ozil?
Ceballos's spot could go to Willock or AMN. What worries me most is that if we had a better manager, he'd get more out of what looks like a great generation of kids.
Northern Monkey ... who can't upload a bleeding Avatar
I'm just saying that Saka, Nelson, Willock, Smith-Rowe and AMN given a chance in MF (now we've HB coming back, Chambers showing he can play there and AMN having learnt the skills to beat a man and make goals out wide after his experience at FB) would learn to play better football under a better coach.
If we'd been playing Torreira at DM with Willock further forward, Willock would have scored that one Torreira put over. He's got a bit of the Rambos/Freddies about him in the way he arrives late into space in the box.
We need MF creativity, but Xhaka can't play defensively, Torreira's not an 8/10, we let Rambo leave and dropped Ozil despite the fact he's no worse defensively than Xhaka, who we've made captain.
Pepe so far doesn't look any better than Saka or Nelson and Willock could be a top level MF. But I'm biased. I just don't like Dick for replacing AW.
Yes, exactly. This is the subtext in virtually every criticism of Unai. And it is not only unfair on Unai it is stupid, sentimental and revisionism of the highest order.
Nothing that has happened since Wenger left indicates that it was the wrong move. Neville was spot on last night; we aren't playing well but at least the players are trying which is more than you could say about the latter years of Wenger's tenure. Watching Ramsey try a stupid flick and then stroll back after giving it away is not something I miss. Nor the 8-2 and 6-0 pastings.
Unai may or may not work out, but either way the club has moved forward.
What about the fact that we're giving away needless goals because we try to play the ball out from the box after goal kicks?
What about the fact that we're not seeing those great team goals finished off with a Rambo backheel or kung-fu lob over the 'keeper?
What about the fact that we don't do the sexy in MF? That the only creativity we have is when Auba and Laca pass to each other?
I don't mind being a EL-level side as long as we score some sexy goals. Auba's on fire, but where's the sexy MF Wengerball?