Arsenal were spectacular on Sunday.
It isn’t very often a club the size of Manchester United are absolutely blown away and have no idea how to cope with you, but that’s what happened at the Emirates Stadium. The fact we were 3-0 up within 20 minutes wasn’t even a shock. In fact, it could have been more.
The question was inevitable:
Why don’t you play like that every week?
Wenger asked why Arsenal don’t play like that every week: “Unfortunately I’ve never managed a team that plays the same game 1 to game 50.”
— Sam (@samuelJayC) October 4, 2015
He has a point. Nobody plays the same every match, and to expect such a blistering performance every week would be ridiculous. Arsenal do have the ability to turn it on, but it is not as simple as flicking a switch. In those opening stages everything was right as far as the Gunners were concerned.
Every pass was good, every run was found, every first touch left the ball sitting nicely. Those things simply don’t happen very often. But could they?
Walcott: “We should be playing like that every week. The players will be aching after that one, we worked so hard and rightly so.” #Arsenal
— AFCPressWatch™ (@AFCPressWatch) October 4, 2015
Clearly someone thinks so. Walcott must know that would be an unrealistic expectation, but there’s no harm in aiming high. Arsenal were superb and it’s something we really should see more often; we don’t come out of the blocks like that often enough. Theo, truthfully, knows it can’t happen all the time.
Walcott “That first-half we were unbelievable, no-one could have dealt with us, it was the best football I have ever been involved in.” #AFC
— Ben Dinnery (@BenDinnery) October 4, 2015
It’s fantastic to aspire to it again but unrealistic to expect it every week. Hopefully we see this Arsenal more often as the season goes on, and we definitely don’t need any more screw ups. Arsenal should play exciting football, and it’s exhilarating to watch when we really click. Nonetheless, let’s remember that performance was special because it isn’t the norm.
If it was, we’d become just a little bit spoiled.