Arsenal capitulation at Watford on Super Sunday was like seeing a’semi-pro’ team, says Graeme Souness.
Following being 2-0 up at half-time via a Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang double, the points drove away through two defensive errors. Until David Luiz gave away first, Sokratis Papastathopoulos tried to play out for Tom Cleverley, only from the back to capitalise and halve the deficit.
Arsenal have now conceded seven goals in their last three games, a lot coming from errors in the back, and Souness didn’t return in his evaluation of the Gunners from the Sky Sports studio.
«They capitulated in the second halfof Arsenal. They did not win a challenge. You should be scratching your head, if you’re an Arsenal supporter seeing that. It’s two teams. It’s as if here is the team at the first half, along with a second one after half-time. Proper teams don’t play like that.
«Arsenal in that second half were just like a semi-professional team playing soccer. That I mean that they were not learning from the errors they were performing and time again.»
In particular, Souness contested Unai Emery brought on Joe Willock and Reiss Nelson when leading.
«They bring on some children, that was a match at which 2-1 it was time to dig and regroup, be sure they didn’t lose the match, and they should have lost it. When the kids arrived they were all around the place, it was just like a sport of basketball and when you were still an Arsenal fan, which would profoundly, profoundly worry you.»
The first goal came from Papastathopoulos’ central pass out of defence from a Bernd Leno goal kick, and something seen again this season.
However, Souness said Arsenal must have gone after a warning sign from the first half.
«There are mature players in that defence. As a supervisor, you hope your players that are larger, it doesn’t need to be the ones, operate out it that they are going to concede.
«Why did the huge players not say’let us just go long with it for 10 minutes and see where it’s us’, because persisting by it was likely to cost them, and they’re lucky it only cost them one.»
One of the best players around the day, Granit Xhaka of Arsenal admitted Arsenal were’scared’ at the second half,» but said playing out from the trunk was among several issues, not the problem.
«That which was wrong [in the second half], we did not play our game, we were fearful , we know they’d push us more in the second half but we have to show more character and drama, rather than be scared. You can’t provide a performance.
«We train for short target kicks, obviously mistakes are here but it is not an excuse. The next time we must do much better, we have to analyse and then we’ll see what happens. It wasn’t only this scenario that was an issue – it was the whole second half»
Back in the studio, Souness responded to the meeting of Xhaka by asking:’How can Arsenal be fearful?’
«They’re saying they were scared – I’ve never been frightened in a game of soccer in my own life. I simply don’t know it. From the game plan, Arsenal were allowed to possess the ball, Watford dropped .
«It’s simple to play when nobody’s coming after you, in mind. I could’ve played from the first half in that Arsenal group an hour! But the thing changes when Watford are let off the lead, you’re confronted plus they did not stand up to it.
«Sometimes you’ve got to have one hat for one type of match, and another hat on for some other. Arsenal proved today they could only play one way – they can not go to war»
Talking to Sky Sports after the game, Arsenal director Emery admits that his side must learn from their errors, also explained the ball from goal kicks would have induced his side to drop the conflict at midfield.
«Trying the long ball, they are physically stronger than us, and they have been winning that ball. We wanted to split the line and connect to Mesut [Ozil], just like we did with the second goal.
«It was two unique halves. In the first we commanded the game we wanted, in the second they pushed for our mistakes, and we’d more than we wanted to perform. We will need to consider how we could improve, how we can do better.
«We can grow up with all the mistakes and learn for the future games. We said at half-time which 2-0 is not enough, and in the second half we had to do the same job, but knowing they’d do more. They did that, and the lines couldn’t split.
«I continue with our method of working. We will need to improve, take some advice. We could be disappointed, but we know about this.»
Arsenal visit Eintracht Frankfurt in their initial Europa League group stage clash on Thursday at 5.55pm, prior to hosting Aston Villa at the Premier League on Sunday at 4.30pm.
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