[Albion] Arsenal vs Brighton & Hove Albion *** Official Match Thread ***

[Mancgull]

Step up AliMac.

 

[zefarelly]

Scrappy tetchy and all you’d expect given whats at stake. Some good battles Saka/estupinian and Gabriel/Ferguson
Really could go either way.

 

[Bridcutt]

Ferguson has been great up top. Isolated but not a surprise

 

[WhingForPresident]

Can just feel them getting a nonsense penalty at some point.

Not doing too badly so far considering the absences.

 

[amexer]

Good Mitoma now on left. If manager happy with a point keep as is. If he has ambition to win get Caicedo in midfield

 

[Morvangull]

So far so good. We are playing our possession based game pretty well and are refusing to be bullied of the ball. Only lacking a better attacking threat but we did create probably the best chance of the half when Enciso put the ball over the bar.

 

[Icy Gull]

I think we have been great!

Worried that the ref who was very fair for about 30 mins now seems to being influenced by the crowd. Giving fouls by us and the same fouls by Arsenal waved on. I really hope his performance doesn’t swing the game

 

[chrisg]

Fast too sloppy passing from the back. Trying to give Arsenal a few free hits?

7 times we have lost possession doing that - 7

That is ridiculous, just giving them chances

 

[jcdenton08]

Loads of mistakes, but generally contained Arsenal reasonably well. They’ve had the best (only) chances really, apart from Enciso from Mitoma’s cutback.

We are causing ourselves problems and not reaping the benefits of playing out from the back. All of our dangerous attacks have come from not doing this, with balls over the top and winning the midfield duels.

We need to go to plan B, much more direct in the second half for me Clive. Managing the game and circumstances thereof aren’t abandoning your principles, it’s doing what it takes to get a result and achieve European qualification for the first time in our history.

MIX. IT. UP.

 

[holybanjo]

Are you drunk already? After Monday I don’t want to see Buononotte anywhere near the starting 11. It was a mistake to drop Gilmour in the first place.

I predicted the lineup so calm down mate.

 

[Husty]

Macalister has been a complete passenger since the Man U game, had his head turned?

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

Very cagey stuff.

Odegaard really needs to find himself a barber that can do a 21st Century haircut, very irritating barnet he's got.

 

[Sheebo]

Weird game - don’t seem ourselves and I think it’s the square pegs in round holes due to injuries. Bother bottle merchant bunch of biased officials of course. Really weird Colwill pressing into midfield and further to press. Missing a right back and Caicedo in the middle…

 

[Zeberdi]

Really physical first half and a good half from our boys.

Glad to see us being so aggressive for a change - we need to be against these bruisers - get fed up sometimes us always being the team that plays ‘nice’ and ‘fair’ - hats off to the ref for keeping things going.

- we look so much more committed to this today than we did against Everton - if we can come away with a point today, that would be a well deserved result.

 

[GoingUp]

We badly need Caicedo back in the middle. I just feel like everytime the ball is kicked into the middle of the park Arsenal pick it up, with Caicedo in the middle you just know he will be there to save the day or at least be putting the Arsenal player under pressure if they get there first.

When Arsenal counter it feels like I'm watching us at our best, mainly because Caicedo isn't there to intercept.

Pervis is worrying me too, feels like he is a red card waiting to happen the way the game is playing out.

 

[holybanjo]

Very cagey stuff.

Odegaard really needs to find himself a barber that can do a 21st Century haircut, very irritating barnet he's got.

Maybe he go to Enciso’s barber

 

[KZNSeagull]

It’s weird how often our best chances come from lumped clearances when teams press us, all from our chances have been created like this and not with our normal slick passing.

Not that weird. We want teams to press us and an accurate long ball over the top (not a "lumped clearance") can be a devastating option. All part of the plan

 

[oldboyroy]

Will take a 0-0 at the finish as any point from this will be a bonus. Lads played OK and certainly been a match for Arsenal so far. Only let down has been Ally Mac who, for some reason hasn't played well since the world Cup.(apart from decisive penalty against United)

 

[trueblue]

Ferguson has been great up top. Isolated but not a surprise

Superb. Not easy when he's usually giving one of the Arsenal defenders a piggy-back. Unpunished, of course.

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

Macalister has been a complete passenger since the Man U game, had his head turned?

Hardly his style is it, a solid professional.