Stephen Bradley

Tactics: What did Mikel Arteta change at half-time to take Arsenal from dour to delectable? How important is Emile Smith Rowe to this side?

Stephen bravely returns to dissect one of the most dour matches of the season as Arsenal’s winning run came to a boring end against Crystal Palace.

Arsenal made their way to the fourth round of the FA Cup but they needed extra time and Emile Smith Rowe to do it.

Starting with Arsenal’s thumping of West Brom at the weekend, Stephen talks formation, Bukayo Saka’s ability to play anywhere, substitutions, timing and much more.

As I type this, it is two months to the day since it was announced that Mikel Arteta had tested positive for Covid-19 and football across the United Kingdom was postponed soon afterwards.

In a world gripped by a global pandemic, Arsenal have managed to end up in one of the most expensive and nuanced games of chicken ever to take place.

Remember when we all missed watching The Arsenal during the international break? It turns out that ignorance really is bliss. Sigh.

September 10th is World Suicide Awareness Day. Every 40 seconds, a person dies by suicide somewhere in the world. The goal of WSAD is to increase awareness of the public health significance of suicide and suicide attempts, and to make suicide prevention a higher priority on the global public health agenda. But numbers can only tell a small fraction of the story. The rest of the story is below. 

We’re now four games into the season and we can start to figure out how Arsenal are shaping up for the year, where we think things are going well and where we think improvement or change might be needed.

For almost a decade, Arsenal fans have lamented the lack of a succession plan in place for when Arsene Wenger leaves his role as manager. But now, as evidenced by the signing of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, a plan is finally being put together – and it stinks.

Until we refuse to take players seriously for making the most of every contact made with a defender, then players won’t take the rules seriously either.

Arsenal’s January 2018 transfer window had more in common than the NBA than football – but why?

Is anybody else worried that the first two players targeted by Arsenal’s Head of Recruitment Sven Mislintat are ones who were good at Borussia Dortmund whilst Mislintat was employed there?

Denial. Anger. Bargaining. Depression. Acceptance. To most people, these are the five stages of grief. To Arsenal fans of late, these are simply known as ‘Monday’.

If Arsenal held the winning positions against Liverpool and Chelsea over the Christmas period, they would be in fifth in the table.

With this being my last column for 2017, I’m going to try and answer the three biggest issues facing Arsenal in 2018, as they try to keep up with their rivals and not let another season slip into the abyss that is Europa League football.

All three of you who have read my columns on a regular basis will know that I am not an overly sentimental chap, and the recent Mikel Arteta rumours suggests Ivan Gazidis isn’t either.

After Wednesday’s tepid 0-0 draw at West Ham, Arsenal find themselves in a rather precarious position.

There’s no doubt that Mesut Özil is one of the most polarising players to have ever played for Arsenal.

If Gazidis acts as the ‘catalyst for change’, forcing Wenger to change his style of play and by appointing staff to handle transfers, players will know exactly where they stand.