2 hours ago
24
Mikel Arteta has been told by Seeing Red podcast hosts Tom Canton and John Cross that showing his team the mistakes of recent weeks is a mistake and given new ideas to trial
Arsenal have experienced perhaps their lowest point of the campaign. Following defeats in the League Cup and FA Cup, the home loss against Bournemouth has sent many into something of a spiral.
The mood of the team is on the floor, players trudged down the tunnel, eyes to the floor, not spotting the hopeful outstretched hands of those fans who had not yet left the stadium before the full-time whistle. Some delayed boos were heard, and Mikel Arteta even apologised to supporters at the end of the game.
In what was perhaps the most sombre Seeing Red Arsenal podcast of the season, both John Cross and Tom Canton had the tough challenge of discussing not only what had happened but what happens next. The show spiralled and eventually settled on the motivation that remains to go and win the biggest and toughest clash of the season so far.
“It's not like this team needs any extra motivation for what they can achieve because it's been there for the last three years,” Canton said. “It's there every week with pundits slamming Arsenal for how they play when they're winning or when they're not winning. They don't need any extra fuel.
“It's all there for them. And so if they can't and the manager can't do it this season, the question is, when are they ever going to do it? And so they need to now go… It's not about the fans in the stadium.
“It's not about the atmosphere. It's not about bringing your lunch or your dinner. It's about you, the players, and you, the manager, going out there and getting the results to win this title and prove to everybody that's been criticising you and saying X, Y, Z about you are completely wrong.
“And until you've done that they're right. When Arsenal lose, whatever anyone says about Arsenal is completely correct. Because you haven't got any answer for it because you've lost. So it's now on you to go and respond.”
Cross replied: “Absolutely, they've got to respond. Back in the day, George Graham would have pinned up the newspaper headlines. ‘I'm addressing them all.’ Clearly, Arteta's not going to do that.
“He probably wants to protect his players from trolling on social media. But at some stage, use that kind of criticism and that disappointment and that judgement basically as motivation. As a motivational force to kind of get the team going again, because they need something.
“They just look so flat so tired and so short of belief. And that's on the manager to pick them up, and we talk about dressing room rollickings or whatever. Yeah, that's pretty basic, but people say, ‘Oh, you'll give them a talking to, and they can't be as bad in the second half as they were in the first.’
“Well, you can be if you lack it. You can! As Mick McCarthy might say.”
“Give them the rollicking, give them that, get into them, but that's not going to solve the issue. When you're running on empty well…”
Lastly, Canton said: “For me it's about like I wouldn't be showing them that Bournemouth game. I wouldn't be showing them the League Cup final game. I'll be showing them beating Bayern Munich.
“I'll be showing them beating Atletico Madrid. I'll be showing them putting four past Aston Villa. I'll be like you did this season.
“This is what you are capable of. You need to be reminded of how good you actually are. It's not about the mistakes that you've made.
“It's not about why things are falling apart what we need to do better. Ignore that. Focus on what you do really, really well and do that.”
Watch the full episode on the Seeing Red Youtube channel or wherever you get your podcasts.
English (US) ·