LEAGUE CUP JOY, THE WENGER WAY
The mood around Arsenal at the moment is so good. I am a little bit scared. Will it last forever?
Max Dowman became the youngest player to start for Arsenal in its history, then Arsenal boys went on to become the first team in English history to play six games in a month, win them all, and keep clean sheets in every single one of them.
Last season, our defensive record was chided a little bit. Memes of Arteta being likened to a t*rror leader because he was playing a style of football only someone with bad intentions could possibly serve up to the masses have been replaced by rival fans crying about the way in which we’re winning games this season, and Sky Sports getting community-noted for getting the numbers wrong on where we are for open-play xG (13th, not 17th).
Defence is in fashion. The cool kids in London are all digitally detoxing and microdosing luxury due to the recession… and they’re microdosing Arsenal’s luxury output. Arteta made ten changes from the Palace game and he took a page out of Arsène Wenger’s book and went with teenage kicks. Ethan Nwaneri, Myles, Ethan, and a new striker called Andre (double-barrelled surname, of course). The only senior name on the agenda from the Palace game was Eze.
Brighton put out a good team—high levels of technical ability, power, pace, well set up, the usual stuff. They started strongly, walking through our defence a number of times. But we had Kepa, well positioned to block or put their players off their game. In fact, it would be remiss to ignore that the 29-year-old was probably one of the best players on the night. He showed great composure, his shot-stopping was great, and we really didn’t miss much of a beat from David Raya. When your backup keeper is putting on a clinic, you know you’re in good shape.
It did take a while for Arsenal to click. The changes were massive and the whole team was a new relationship, but they slowly worked it out all over the pitch and started the comeback.
Max Dowman really was central to a lot of the attacking flair. If you didn’t know his age, you would assume he was 23 years old. The way he composes himself, the speed he moves, the maturity of his decisions. It’s crazy how much belief he has in his abilities… and how good he is at embarrassing fullbacks. There was a run in the second half where he skinned Brighton’s fullback from the right and zipped into the area at speed, on the byline, before being fouled. I thought it was a penalty. But the whole move to me just spoke to him being very closely aligned to how Neymar plays. I’d love to give it to everyone that he’s like Bobby Pires, but he’s not even close—he’s far quicker and lighter on his feet (which is saying something).
The breakthrough came from a very Wengerball type of goal, the perfect response to those that think we’re incapable of playing beautiful football. Eze received the ball on the left, he jinked inside finding Merino, the Spaniard backheeled a perfect ball into Myles, he broke the box, found Ethan on the edge of the box, and the finish was a swept ball into the bottom corner from the edge of the area. Ethan getting an assist from his best mate—poetic.
Myles was key for the second goal. His driving run through midfield gave him space to pick out Andre in the box. His shot was blocked, but coming in on the second ball was Saka, who took a touch and finished off the game.
The night was drama-less, we moved on to the next round, and we exited with some good stories.
Andre, our 17-year-old striker, ended his debut with a really solid performance. He created a chance, hit the target, ran the channels well, and did some good defending. The goal would have been perfect, but it wasn’t to be. It’s far simpler to make it as a jet-heeled winger than a striker whose game is built more on strength. The gap in power between a 17-year-old and a 27-year-old is massive at the highest level, that’s why you don’t see any 9s who are teenagers at this level. So, a way to go, but a really positive outing, and we didn’t have to see Gyökeres, who got a lovely rest.
The defence kept another clean sheet and we saw a new partnership of Hincapié and Mosquera. That is who backs up Saliba and Big Gabi. The two of them got over a shaky start and performed really well. Mosquera would be talked about more if we hadn’t had such a good summer in other areas of the pitch. He’s the bargain of the last five years. £15m and he looks as good as Dean Huijsen. Composed, strong, great read of the game… he has it all. Plus, he’s really tall. Hincapié, for me, is a left-sided version of Ben White. The aggression is off the scale, and the speed is really impressive. He’s playing within himself right now, but he made some great blocks, he defended really well, and his passing was really tidy all night long. It’s great to not have any weak points in the defence this season. Hincapié was a weird signing, but he’s going to be key to keeping Big Gabi fit at 100% this season.
The impactors did their job again. It’s quite clear that the set-piece wizardry really is only magical when you have Declan, our two starting centre-backs, and Saka on the pitch. We were largely quiet, then the cavalry came on, and all of a sudden we were bullying Brighton at every chance. What I like about this team is no one thinks they are too big for League Cup games, and that wasn’t the case early in Arteta’s tenure. Timber was great, Big Gabi was playing as a striker half the time, Saka scored a goal, Declan put himself about. You succeed in the Premier League when everyone feels connected to the first team, and Arteta is doing a much better job of that this season.
The next round of the draw served us up Crystal Palace. Not the best draw, but it’s at home, and we dodged City, Chelsea, and Newcastle. A semi-final puts us in “you did well” territory… though I do have the feeling Arteta is dreaming of a final this season. Settle the jitters with a trophy heading into a monstrous end to the season. Mourinho, Klopp, and Pep all did the same during their mega phases. I think it’s time Mikel delivers a domestic cup and a great day out for the fans.
Ok, that’s all I have for you. If you want the On The Whistle, then subscribe to the damn website, there’s an October offer on right now. You get all the premium writing, you get access to the Discord, the archive blogs, all the bonus podcasts, and everything comes ad-free. What a fine deal. x