The Arsenal faithful don’t know whether to jump for joy or bury their heads in their hands at the moment.
This comes after a week that produced a decisive victory in Naples, leading to a semi-final berth in the Europa League, only to crash at home to Crystal Palace over the Easter weekend.
It’s rightly left Arsenal fans scratching their heads as to how to rate their team at present, leading to a cloud of uncertainty sweeping over the remaining crucial weeks of the season. That uncertainty is plain and simply dictated by inconsistency.
Inconsistency would be the way to describe the events of the last week, if not the whole season. It’s an inconsistency in play on the pitch, an inconsistency in squad selection, and an inconsistency in results that could cost Arsenal their season as they head into the final straight.
Emery’s failed gamble in switching out key starters that saw off Napoli on Thursday for squad players was as plain to see as Hodgson’s tactical nouse in exploiting Arsenal’s weakness for set pieces and long balls.
Shkodran Mustafi was at error for all three of Arsenal’s conceded goals in the 2-3 loss at home to Palace, demonstrating that inconsistencies in squad depth are something that still continues to plague the Gunners.
It was the big hitters in Mesut Özil and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang who nearly saved the day on Sunday afternoon, with some slick link-up play from Alexandre Lacazette another positive for an otherwise difficult match to follow.
The one positive from the weekend was that top four challengers Man United took a major hit to their league ambitions by going down in an embarrassing 4-0 defeat away to Everton. Arsenal fans will be encouraged to see just how far Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s side have slipped in recent weeks.
Manchester City saw off Spurs in a 1-0 win at the Etihad that incredibly still leaves a top three finish open to the Gunners. That, however, all depends on results.
Arsenal are still fighting on two fronts, and to follow their exploits in Europe and domestically with a market leading welcome offer look no further than BookiesBonuses.com.
The Gunners have successfully seen off one of the Europa League’s prime contenders in Napoli, which will provide much-needed confidence now Valencia are the next obstacle to navigate.
Keeping two consecutive clean sheets against one of Europe’s top sides is no mean feat, but the next European challenge has to be seen off against a backdrop of tricky Premier League fixtures.
Wolves, Leicester, Brighton and Burnley are all waiting with bated breath, and maximum points will have to be garnered in order to seal Champions League football from a top-four finish for next season. The last thing Arsenal fans want is to rely on victory in the Europa League at the last gasp with Premier League rivals Chelsea still in the mix in the other semifinal.
The big worry from Crystal Palace on Sunday is that Unai Emery simply can’t rely on second stringers to get the job done. It’ll have to be full throttle for the first team until the end of the season unless the manager can find a better balance.
Inconsistencies across the board have to be plugged up in the final dash to meet this season’s goals. A Champions League place for next season is a must, European silverware an added bonus.