3 Talking Points (Swansea vs Arsenal) – Wenger’s Tactical Naivety Costs Them Again

Goals from Gylfi Sigurdsson and Bafetimbi Gomis were enough to seal Swansea’s second win in three games and move them into fifth place on the table. For Arsenal, it was a case of Anderlecht all over again, as they let another lead (this time given by Alexis Sanchez) slip leaving them in sixth place ahead of the international break.

Here are the major talking points from the game.

1. Arsenal’s tactical naivety costs them again

Wenger

Arsenal were expected to bounce back from the disappointment in midweek with a win over Swansea City. Although it wasn’t going to be easy, with the form that Alexis Sanchez is in, things weren’t as difficult as it seemed. And after the Chilean scored the opener, it looked as though the Gunners were going to make it three wins on the bounce in the League and move to within a point off Manchester City in third place. But then disaster struck.

Leading 1-0, the visitors went on the attack, but were caught out with too many men up front. Swansea had a free kick in a dangerous position and Sigurdsson converted to make it level. While there was little they could have done with the free kick, they could have certainly avoided conceding it in the first place. When you are leading with less than a quarter of the game to go, there is absolutely no need to throw seven men forward and attack like crazy. But just like they did against Anderlecht, instead of seeing out the game, they pushed too many men forward and left them exposed at the back. Their tactical naivety cost them a point in mid-week but cost them all three against the Swans, who ensured that they paid the ultimate prize.

2. Wenger’s reluctance to change left Chambers exposed

What do you do when you know that a plan is not working? You either change it, or leave it the same and get punished for it. Against Swansea, the Gunners took the second option and paid for it in the end. Right from the start of the game, it was pretty clear that Jefferson Montero was going to get the better of Calum Chambers. The left winger looked to have the pace, skill and trickery to not just get behind Chambers but also deliver as well.

It was pretty evident that Montero was tearing Chambers a new one, but neither the players on the pitch nor the manager wanted to do something about it. Every time the home side had the ball, they would just give it to Montero who would beat the right back and create something. And it was rinse and repeat for the entire game. But the Gunners didn’t learn their lesson at all, as they continued  to leave the Englishman alone with the winger. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain didn’t track back and Arsene Wenger was too reluctant to change anything, as a result, Chambers had one of his worst games of his career against Swansea, following which he’d probably have nightmares of Montero tearing him apart again and again.

3. The League is gone, but can they finish fourth

After the 2-1 defeat to Swansea, Wenger admitted that  there doesn’t look to be anybody capable to challenge them(Chelsea) at the moment. A victory over the Welsh side would have been enough to send the Gunners into fourth spot ahead of the international break. But a defeat to the Swans now means that Wenger’s side are 12 points behind the League leaders after just 11 games.

After a morale-boosting win in the FA Cup, many thought that the Gunners would kick on and come close this season, but a disappointing summer transfer window has left the Gunners faithful moaning about the same things at the end of every game. Lack of a commanding centre half, lack of cover in defence, lack of a genuine defensive midfielder, we have been here before. But Wenger’s failure or reluctance to address them has meant that instead of kicking on and moving forward from last season, they have actually regressed. With injuries mounting and the next transfer window more than a month and half away, Wenger will be hoping that his side aren’t too far off the pace from now till then, when the Frenchman will have another opportunity to correct his mistakes.