Chelsea 3 Arsenal 2

Arsenal slipped to a second defeat of the season at Stamford Bridge yesterday after an entertaining (to neutrals) 3-2 loss to Chelsea. It was an amazing game, especially the first half, thanks to both sides' lack of defensive solidity. As Emery admitted in his post-match interview, his side is still looking for the right balance of defence and attack.

Pedro found the net just in the 8th minute. Morata extended the hosts' lead in the 20th minute, just after Auba missed a sitter at the other end. Arsenal's defensive line was as high as the half-way line, when Morata shrugged off Mustafi's shepherding to have a clear run at goal. With two centre-backs with little pace, this high defensive line was suicidal. 

After the blow of the second goal conceded, Micki spurned a clear-cut chance, failing to keep his shot low, but in 37th minute he made amends by drilling home a left-footed shot past Kepa from the edge of the box. The Armenian turned a provider 4 minutes later for Iwobi's equaliser. Arsenal were finding openings in Chelea defence. Auba squandered another glorious chance. Iwobi was also at fault for not converting a goal-scoring chance. We could have put the game out of sight before half time, had we put away all these chances. 

It was refreshing to see a substitution at half time as Xhaka, who was totally anonymous in the first half apart from being booked, gave way for Torreira. Emery cited the yellow card for part of the reason for the change. It was also clear that he was reluctant to start two young players new to the Premier League in Guendouzi and Torreira together at the heart of midfield.

Another bold decision we have never seen under Wenger was Ozil being subbed in 68th minute by Ramsey. Emery insisted that the change was purely tactical, but he could be ruthless enough to drop the Club's highest-paid player from the starting lineup.

Arsenal were hanging on deep in Chelsea's half and Laca was finally brought on in 75th minute for Iwobi, but it was the French striker's wayward back-pass that ultimately undid our resistance to give Chelsea a late winner. As we pushed for an equaliser, Cech had to pull off another brilliant save to deny Giroud in stoppage time.

It is a slow process of rebuilding a team. At least nobody questioned our character after coming back 2-0 down so early. Out of the two newly appointed head coaches, it was Sarri who came out victorious, but he was allowed to bring in a key player familiar with his system in Jorginho with a big price tag. Emery didn't have the luxury of that. Once his players have mastered how the new coach wants to play, hopefully they should start benefiting from what we were promised that Emery would bring to the club, such as meticulous game preparations using videos and game plans to nullify opponents' strengths and exploit their weakness.

We welcome West Ham on Saturday in a normal kick-off. Under Arsene Wenger, Arsenal traditionally dominated in these fixtures against lesser teams at home. This is where Emery has to prove that he is taking the club forward not backwards. The onus is on both Emery and Pellegrini to get first points of the season next weekend. This will be a fascinating encounter for another reason as Wilshere and Lucas Perez face their former club for the first time.

Arsenal 0 Manchester City 2

Arsenal's new era began with a 2-0 defeat to Man City at the Emirates yesterday. It was a tough start to Unai Emery's side against the defending champions, who already beat last season's FA Cup winners Chelsea 2-0 in the Community Shield last weekend.

Cech was given captain's armband in the long-term absence of club captain, Koscielny, ahead of other matchday captaincy candidates, Ozil, Ramsey and Xhaka. Sokratis made a Premier League debut, paired with Mustafi in central defence, which did not come as surprise. On the other hand, Matteo Guendouzi's inclusion in the starting XI raised many eyebrows. The 19 year-old impressed in pre-season, having joined us this summer from a French second-tier outfit, Lorient, but this was a bold decision in light of the magnitude of the game.

It was extremely disappointing to see all familiar defensive frailty emerging so soon, after having been told that Emery placed his priority to improving defence in preseason. It took us only 14 minutes to concede a first goal of the season. Guendouzi failed to stop him getting a shot away, while Sokratis only managed to get a slightest touch on the shot. Besides, it is arguable if Cech should have stopped it going in.

Perhaps finishing the first half 1-0 was an improvement over the last season. We were still in the game until 64th minute, when Bernardo Silva doubled the visitors' lead. Lichtsteiner was too slow to spot Bernardo, who was given too much space in our box. City could have extended their lead further, when Guendouzi misjudged a bouncing ball and allowed Aguero to have a clear run. But Cech produced a superb save to deny the City striker. Cech looked uncomfortable playing the ball out from the back, but his counterpart, Ederson, looked even shakier. It was pity we couldn't take advantage of those mistakes. Mustafi had a strong case for penalty when he was grappled by Mendy. If Michael Oliver had seen a replay, he would have given a penalty.

As much as we lament our fragile and too open defence, we regret our offensive shortcomings. As Cech pointed out after the game, we lacked quality in final pass. We created enough chances to get an unlikely result at the end of the game, but the final ball let us down.

After the promising pre-season, this was a disappointing result, but it was only one game against the reigning champions. Lichtsteiner had a decent game in his unfamiliar position at the left-back, showing authority. When he came on for injured Maitland-Niles, we feared his lack of pace against Mahrez and Kyle Walker, but as soon as he came on, City seemed to have stopped attacking his flank. He even made himself useful in attack. Torreira looked tidy in possession after being introduced in the 70th minute at the expense of Xhaka. His pressing put off Sterling from crossing, while he got De Bruyne on the book. The Uruguay international nearly claimed an assist with his wonderful pass to release Auba behind the defence. Unfortunately, Auba's goal was disallowed for offside. Torreira should start, stationed in front of the centre-backs to give them protection. Guendouzi grew into the game after a few mistakes. He is the epitome of Emery's philosophy -energy, intensity and industry-, which probably earned him a starting place. It takes time for a foreign player to get accustomed to the pace of Premier League matches, especially coming from a French second division team. Sokratis did little to impress us. He was booked and gave away a free-kick just outside the area, which could have been a goal, had it not been for Cech's brilliant double saves.

As well as new comers to get used to the intensity and speed of Premier League games, the entire squad have to learn how to play Unai Emery's way. They executed high pressing well in patches, but the trouble was that after they had won possession back, subsequent passing was often disappointing. This style demands players to move the ball quickly under pressure. Against Man City, our players were often seen dwelling on the ball too long.

This game was the extension of preseason. Emery was still experimenting team selections and formations. Lacazette should have been introduced earlier, as he made an immediate impact after coming off the bench in 54th minute in place of Ramsey. Ramsey was not so effective in a more forward position than he is used to. Obviously, Arsenal are still a work in progress.

Long before Arsene Wenger's departure was announced, one of our members in the "Wenger Out" camp said he would be happy to see us outside top four for a couple of season, provided we parted with the Frenchman. Now we got changes we wanted, let's get behind the new coach. Emery's pressing football is a more modern style and his brand-new training regime is promising and seemed to have been well received by the players. He has been playing the right tunes so far. It will be a shame if only one game has spoiled all the positivity. It took Pep Guadiola a full-season's experimentation and an enormous budget to build a title winning team. It's crucial for his players and supporters to keep a faith in Unai Emery and his philosophy.

The 2017/18 Season Review

A long and difficult season finally ended on 13th May as Arsene Wenger took charge of his last game as Arsenal manager against Huddersfield Town at the John Smith's Stadium. We thought the 2016/17 season was bad enough, when we finished outside top four, failing to qualify for the Champions League for the first time under Wenger, not least because we finished behind Tottenham for the first time in 22 years. Nevertheless, Arsenal won the most points to finish outside top four in the Premier League history, just missing the fourth spot by one point. Many believe that the FA Cup win at the end of the last season saved Wenger's job and led to his two-year contract extension, but the key factor was that the Frenchman was still capable of turning around his team's form in April by switching to three-man defence and giving the team a new focus.

In fact, that has become the pattern associated with Arsenal in the past few seasons. Our form dipped in February and March for a strong season finish in April and May. So for the 2017/18 season, we hoped for the same turn around in form, but it never happened. Even Wenger's announcement of his departure couldn't inspire an upturn in our miserable away form because he never understood the reason behind it. Arsenal finished their 2017/18 Premier League campaign in sixth place, their lowest finish in 22 years, with their fewest points of 63 in the 38-game era. By the time the season finished, we were used to all these unwanted stats. The Gunners were the only club in England's top four divisions not to pick up a single away point in 2018 until the last game of the season. The run of seven losses was our worst away record since 1966. Arsenal's slow decline in the recent years was as clear as black and white. As a man who loves numbers and stats, like all economists do, Wenger must have realised that he is no longer the man who can take the club forward.

Looking at the squad, we went through a number of changes in personnel this season. Arsenal welcomed the then club record signing Alexandre Lacazette from Lyon and captured Sead Kolasinac on a free transfer, while Oxlade-Chamberlain left us on the deadline day of the summer transfer window for Liverpool for a handsome sum of £35 million. Gabriel's departure for Valencia raised many eyebrows as our pool of defenders continued to thin out, with Mertesacker announcing his retirement at the end of the season. Szczesny was sold to Juventus for a reported fee of £12.2 million after spending 2 seasons on loan with Roma, while our then second longest-serving player Gibbs left for West Brom on the arrival of another left-back. Keeping Alexis Sanchez was widely regarded crucial for Arsenal's title aspiration, but it turned out to be a destructive element in the dressing room. Wenger's plan backfired as Sanchez lost his motivation after Chile failed to qualify for this summer's World Cup in October.

The January transfer window was our busiest ever. Walcott, Coquelin, and Debuchy left for Everton, Valencia, and St-Etienne, respectively. Mavropanos was the first signing of our new head scout Sven Mislintat. Sanchez joined Man U in a swap deal, which saw Mkhitaryan moving in the other direction. Arsenal broke their record for the second time in the same season to bring in Aubameyang. In the three-way deal also involving Chelsea's Batshuayi, Giroud joined Chelsea, looking for more playing time ahead of what is potentially his last World Cup. Ozil finally signed a new contract to end all speculations, which also marked the end of Arsenal's rigid wage structure, along with the arrival of high-wage earners in Auba and Micki.

In a season when we saw more lows than highs, Aaron Ramsey topped the Player of the Season votes conducted by Arsenal website, followed by Nacho Monreal. It is a cause for concern that the Welshman is yet to be offered a new contract, going into the final year of his current contract next season.

On a more positive note, we saw some of promising youngsters coming through the ranks and the group stage of the Europa League set up an ideal stage for that. Among those up and coming talents, Maitland-Niles saw his stock rising, particularly after being named Man of the Match at Old Trafford.

The other bright spot of the season was the signing of a potential 20+ goalscorer in Auba. Despite having not played in an entire month of January, Auba hit the ground running since his move from Dortmund. He racked up 10 goals and 4 assists in 13 games. It makes you wonder how we would have fared  if he hadn't been ineligible for the Europa League due to an absurd UEFA rule which has since been abolished. His successful start to the life at Arsenal should be a platform for Arsenal to build on next season.

The 2017/18 season marked the end of era as Arsene Wenger's 22-year tenure came to an end. As much as we appreciate what he did for the Club and what he achieved with the Club, it was clear that Arsenal need a change. Wenger left unaddressed defensive issues for far too long. Players were feeling too comfortable whether they win or lose. The supporters were growing tired of the way the Gunners play, which is too intricate, too slow and toothless against well-organised defence.

Ivan Gazidis made it clear that a new manager will not have the same authority Wenger had. The roles of the incoming manager are expected to be limited to those of a head coach. With a new management structure in place, it is interesting to see how much control the new head coach will be allowed to take. Wenger was well-known for his frugality, which frustrated us supporters. But was it his policy or did he not actually have money to spend? Rumour has it that the incoming coach will be given a war chest of as meagre as £50 million before any sale of players. The truth will be unveiled. Whoever Arsenal appoint as Wenger's successor, all the supporters should get behind him and be positive about the club's future. Negativity in the past couple of years has really hurt the club.