Rocky the King
I have to confess that it must be well over 12 months since I last penned a blog. In the despair occasioned by having to witness a manager who would not consult, would not plan and worst of all, would allow players to run around like headless chickens, I gave up moaning. My blogs were becoming boring and predictable and lacking in end product, just like the football fare that was being served up.
What has changed? What will happen? When will the wheels come off?
Life after Arsène Wenger was never meant to be like this. Like the harbinger of doom, the prophecies meant that the only safe place was curled up in the foetal position under a mahogany table with a pint of London Pride for comfort.
Being a Gooner meant the rollercoaster from a cliff edge which left one in various states of emotion. I think like other WOBs I gave up, the AKBs had won. There would be no end to this torment until we lost all games and flirted with relegation.
Will someone tell Unai Emery to sit down for a bit? No seriously, he reminds me of myself when I used to coach the under 13 football teams in years gone by. I kicked every ball, made every pass and choreographed every formation. The difference between my old history and Unai Emery ends there. I have watched game after game and marvelled at how on earth he does it? Things like getting rid of zonal marking has caused our defensive blunders at set pieces to reduce. Yet playing out from the back sometimes leads me to put my hands over my eyes as if watching a horror movie, the difference however is that more often than not nobody dies.
There is a spring in players’ steps. There is an unbridled sense of optimism. In short if I didn’t know better, somewhat Spud-like I would be suggesting that we were going to win the Premier League. Yet fantasy aside, older Gooners like me will recall the days when during the to and fro of Premier League titles, they were decided on whether we or the Mancs lost more than five games. Our current unbeaten streak beggars belief, but long may it continue. Wouldn’t it be great if we could get through to March remaining undefeated? Only Liverpool can stop us now (LoL).
Anyway let me get to the point of this blog. When we suffer a defeat, and we will, it is vital that we as fans relay our confidence and support to this team in the same volumes that we are doing now. The new chants, the renewed atmosphere of joy home and away must remain. What we are witnessing is history being made. It may yet end in tears, but actually who cares? In the space of a few months Unai Emery and his team have given me hope that the club will be safe in his hands. The passion now being expressed on the touchline is genuine and sincere. The substitutions are well thought out and the strategy is clear. Whether it is by one goal or three, whether it is Aubamayang or Lacazette, we are the Arsenal, and even under these current grey skies, you will never take my Arsenal away.
