GUIMARAES, PORTUGAL – NOVEMBER 06: Shkodran Mustafi of Arsenal celebrates after scoring his team’s first goal during the UEFA Europa League group F match between Vitoria Guimaraes and Arsenal FC at Estadio Dom Afonso Henriques on November 06, 2019 in Guimaraes, Portugal. (Photo by Octavio Passos/Getty Images)
On Wednesday afternoon, Arsenal travelled to Vitoria SC for their fourth Europa League group-stage game. Here are five things we learned from the 1-1 draw.
Arsenal continue to dumbfound their fans as to just how deep their despair can be driven. This time, it was a drab and dreary 1-1 draw with Vitoria SC. This was the Portuguese side’s first point in the Europa League this season. The Gunners had just seven shots, four of which were from set-pieces. They scored one goal, again thanks to a centre-back, and still managed to throw away the victory in the final minutes.
Here are five things we learned from yet another miserable night.
GUIMARAES, PORTUGAL – NOVEMBER 06: Unai Emery, Manager of Arsenal gives his team instructions during the UEFA Europa League group F match between Vitoria Guimaraes and Arsenal FC at Estadio Dom Afonso Henriques on November 06, 2019 in Guimaraes, Portugal. (Photo by Octavio Passos/Getty Images)
5. One man to blame
This was a terrible performance. In fact, I would go as far as to say that it was the worst of the season thus far. And while I never like completely absolving players of blame for their individual displays, on this occasion, I am more than happy to, because that is quite clearly what is happening.
Unai Emery switched to a 3-4-3. That was not the problem. The problem came in its implementation and execution. While looking to use this different system, he did not lean into its strengths — the numerical advantage in the wide channels, the counter-attacking capabilities — and instead played in the same manner that he instils with a 4-3-3. Obviously, it failed, laughably.
Players were asked to do things they could not do, the team was utterly unbalanced, both in and out of possession, they had no foothold in the first half and no creativity in the second, and so, obviously, very few individuals played well. This is a horribly coached team. It is not a surprise that players are playing poorly, and there is only one man to blame.
Arsenal continue to dumbfound their fans as to just how deep their despair can be driven. This time, it was <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2019/11/06/arsenal-vs-vitoria-sc-5-things-learned-absolute-shambles/"https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/live/football/49373288">a drab and dreary 1-1 draw with Vitoria SC</a>. This was the Portuguese side’s first point in the Europa League this season. The Gunners had just seven shots, four of which were from set-pieces. They scored one goal, again thanks to a centre-back, and still managed to throw away the victory in the final minutes.</p>
<h2><a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2019/11/06/arsenal-vs-vitoria-sc-5-things-learned-absolute-shambles/"https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/pain-in-the-arsenal-podcast-on-arsenal-fc/id1314514440?ign-mpt=uo%3D4%26amp%3Buo%3D4&mt=2%22>Find the latest episode of the Pain in the Arsenal Podcast here — Unai Emery out, again</a></h2>
<p>Here are five things we learned from yet another miserable night.</p>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-95119" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2019/11/06/arsenal-vs-vitoria-sc-5-things-learned-absolute-shambles/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1185916657-850x560.jpeg" alt="" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">GUIMARAES, PORTUGAL – NOVEMBER 06: Unai Emery, Manager of Arsenal gives his team instructions during the UEFA Europa League group F match between Vitoria Guimaraes and Arsenal FC at Estadio Dom Afonso Henriques on November 06, 2019 in Guimaraes, Portugal. (Photo by Octavio Passos/Getty Images)</p>
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<h4>5. One man to blame</h4>
<p>This was a terrible performance. In fact, I would go as far as to say that it was the worst of the season thus far. And while I never like completely absolving players of blame for their individual displays, on this occasion, I am more than happy to, because that is quite clearly what is happening.</p>
<p><a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2019/11/06/arsenal-vs-vitoria-sc-5-things-learned-absolute-shambles/"https://paininthearsenal.com/?s=unai+emery%22>Unai Emery</a> switched to a 3-4-3. That was not the problem. The problem came in its implementation and execution. While looking to use this different system, he did not lean into its strengths — the numerical advantage in the wide channels, the counter-attacking capabilities — and instead played in the same manner that he instils with a 4-3-3. Obviously, it failed, laughably.</p>
<p>Players were asked to do things they could not do, the team was utterly unbalanced, both in and out of possession, they had no foothold in the first half and no creativity in the second, and so, obviously, very few individuals played well. This is a horribly coached team. It is not a surprise that players are playing poorly, and there is only one man to blame.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2019/11/06/arsenal-vs-vitoria-sc-5-things-learned-absolute-shambles/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 4. What do you expect Willock, Ceballos to do? </a>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-95101" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2019/11/06/arsenal-vs-vitoria-sc-5-things-learned-absolute-shambles/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1185900368-850x560.jpeg" alt="" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">GUIMARAES, PORTUGAL – NOVEMBER 06: Joe Willock of Arsenal battles for possession with Davidson of Vitoria Guimaraes during the UEFA Europa League group F match between Vitoria Guimaraes and Arsenal FC at Estadio Dom Afonso Henriques on November 06, 2019 in Guimaraes, Portugal. (Photo by Octavio Passos/Getty Images)</p>
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<h4>4. What do you expect Willock, Ceballos to do?</h4>
<p>Drop deep. Receive the ball from a centre-back. Turn. See four or five opposition players between you and the nearest advanced teammate. Turn back. Pass the ball to the next centre-half. Rinse and repeat. This was Arsenal’s plan in possession. Predictably, it did not work.</p>
<p>Unai Emery implemented a 3-4-3 shape for the first time this season. The system features only two central midfielders, in this case, <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2019/11/06/arsenal-vs-vitoria-sc-5-things-learned-absolute-shambles/"https://paininthearsenal.com/?s=joe+willock%22>Joe Willock</a> and <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2019/11/06/arsenal-vs-vitoria-sc-5-things-learned-absolute-shambles/"https://paininthearsenal.com/?s=dani+ceballos%22>Dani Ceballos</a>. They were outnumbered, had very few options whenever they did get the ball, started to drop deeper and deeper, which then tipped the system out of balance, leaving just one central midfielder to progress play, and they combined for more passes in the defensive third than they did the final third in the first half.</p>
<p>But while neither Willock or Ceballos played especially well, I am not sure what more can be expected of them given the situation they were in. What do you actually believe they are capable of when thrust into such a stagnant, stalling system that is being executed in the completely wrong manner? Willock and Ceballos did not play well, but they are not the ones to blame.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2019/11/06/arsenal-vs-vitoria-sc-5-things-learned-absolute-shambles/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 3. At least Kieran Tierney played well </a>
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<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 27: Kieran Tierney of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Crystal Palace at Emirates Stadium on October 27, 2019 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)</p>
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<h4>3. At least Kieran Tierney played well</h4>
<p>I never want to write a completely negative post-match piece, and so, in search of something vaguely positive, I find myself turning towards the individual performance of<a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2019/11/06/arsenal-vs-vitoria-sc-5-things-learned-absolute-shambles/"https://paininthearsenal.com/?s=kieran+tierney%22> Kieran Tierney</a>.</p>
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<p>Used slightly higher up in a wing-back role, Tierney flourish. He won every single one of his attempted tackles, he drove forwards brilliantly, especially when dribbling with the ball, and he again illustrated his crossing prowess with several excellent deliveries, including one very early on that Nicolas Pepe should have gotten on the end of. He also completed 83% of his passes, a very good statistic for someone who was tasked with moving the ball into dangerous areas, even when quite isolated — Ainsley Maitland-Niles, in comparison, completed only 75%.</p>
<p>Quite why Tierney was playing in the first place, I am not really sure. Even if Arsenal had lost this match, it would not really have mattered, and while Unai Emery is under pressure to get results, Sead Kolasinac is a perfectly capable left wing-back.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, Tierney played the full 90 minutes and was the best player on the pitch. At the very least, as he continues to rediscover his macth sharpness, that is an encouraging sign for the remainder of the year.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2019/11/06/arsenal-vs-vitoria-sc-5-things-learned-absolute-shambles/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 2. Know the strengths of a system </a>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-95104" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2019/11/06/arsenal-vs-vitoria-sc-5-things-learned-absolute-shambles/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1185900365-850x560.jpeg" alt="" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">GUIMARAES, PORTUGAL – NOVEMBER 06: Unai Emery, Manager of Arsenal gives his team instructions during the UEFA Europa League group F match between Vitoria Guimaraes and Arsenal FC at Estadio Dom Afonso Henriques on November 06, 2019 in Guimaraes, Portugal. (Photo by Octavio Passos/Getty Images)</p>
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<h4>2. Know the strengths of a system</h4>
<p>Unai Emery switched the system drastically, playing a back three for the first time this season. He used the 3-4-3 shape extensively last year and also in the pre-season, though also ceded that a back-four-based system is his preferred approach and generally stuck to that throughout this campaign. Nevertheless, on this occasion, out came the back three.</p>
<p>There is nothing wrong with using the back three. In fact, given the circumstances, away from home against a possession-based team that are vulnerable to the counter-attack, it made a lot of sense. But Arsenal played the 3-4-3 shape as if it was something that it isn’t, a vehicle for possession football, short passes from the back and dominating the central midfield.</p>
<p>The main advantage of the 3-4-3 is the freed positions of the two wingers, who can act like wide attackers in a back four but have none of the defensive responsibility, thus being able to drive forwards whenever the ball is turned over — Arsenal were at their most dangerous when they could break on an exposed Vitoria defence from turnovers. But Emery’s side played slowly, short, looking to keep the ball and progress the play through a two-man central midfield that was thoroughly outnumbered. The system was not the mistake, the execution was. But that, I feel, is still the responsibility of the manager.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2019/11/06/arsenal-vs-vitoria-sc-5-things-learned-absolute-shambles/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 1. Is there anything else to say? </a>
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<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">GUIMARAES, PORTUGAL – NOVEMBER 06: Bruno of Vitoria Guimaraes celebrates after scoring his team’s first goal during the UEFA Europa League group F match between Vitoria Guimaraes and Arsenal FC at Estadio Dom Afonso Henriques on November 06, 2019 in Guimaraes, Portugal. (Photo by Octavio Passos/Getty Images)</p>
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<h4>1. Is there anything else to say?</h4>
<p>Sacking a manager does not solve your problems overnight. Manchester United fired David Moyes and got worse. They then did the same thing with Louis van Gaal. And now they have done it again with Jose Mourinho. But when it is quite clear that the manager you do have cannot fix the problems he is facing, the time to move on has come.</p><div class="widget fs_ads"> <div class="fs_ad_widget-ad" style="margin:0 auto; width: 300px;"> <div class="fs-ll-ad" data-ad-type="minutemedia_slideshow_inline_300x250__desktop__tablet" data-vendor="minutemedia">
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<p>For Arsenal and Unai Emery, that time is now here. I have been more patient than most, wanting to give Emery as much time as possible to figure out his kinks as he welcomes back formerly injured players and continues to bolster his squad and fine-tune his tactics, but I have now reached the end of my tether.</p>
<p>It is quite obvious that Emery is the cause of the problem. He might not be the sole cause, but he is most certainly not a part of the solution. And once you have reached that judgement, the subsequent action is obvious: it is time to move on.</p>
<div class="fs-shortcode" data-type="StoryLink" data-theme="dark" data-text="Arsenal Vs Vitoria SC: Player ratings" data-url="https://paininthearsenal.com/2019/11/06/arsenal-vs-vitoria-sc-player-ratings-unai-emery-screwing-players/" data-call-to-action="Next"> <div class="story-link-next"> <a class="story-link-next-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="story-link-next-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2019/11/06/arsenal-vs-vitoria-sc-5-things-learned-absolute-shambles/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2019/11/06/arsenal-vs-vitoria-sc-player-ratings-unai-emery-screwing-players/"> <span class="call_to_action">Next:</span> Arsenal Vs Vitoria SC: Player ratings </a> </div>
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<p>Until Arsenal make the move, they will not fix their issues. They might improve here and there, but the root issues will remain. Unai Emery must be sacked. And until he is, there is very little else to say.</p><!—pageview_candidate—></p>">
