‘Really tough to watch’ 😳 Frank Leboeuf on Arsenal’s ‘BORING’ style of play | ESPN FC
Frank Leboeuf slams Arsenal's boring style: they could win with more panache
The ESPN FC panel discussed Arsenal's win over Nottingham Forest and criticized their conservative, hard-to-watch approach. Frank Leboeuf argued Arsenal have the players to play more freely but Arteta has chosen a grinding style that may not work in European football against PSG, Bayern or Barcelona.
- Nottingham Forest missing Gibbs-White made it much easier for Arsenal — Gibbs-White is a big player for Forest, and his absence weakened them.
- Arsenal only care about grinding out results and are a tough watch — They do not care who likes watching them or thinks they are entertaining; this is how they played in the second half of last season.
- Arsenal could play with more entertainment value but have chosen a conservative approach — They have the players to win with a freer, more open and quicker style, and could have beaten Forest by two, three or four, but Arteta has chosen this way.
- This style will not get Arsenal over the line in European football — He called their performance against PSG in the Champions League dreadful and pathetic; PSG, Bayern and Barcelona will not play like Forest, so whether Arsenal can flick the switch is the big question.
- Arsenal's front line underperformed and could not unlock a deep defense — The starting XI has enough talent, but Saka cannot regain his stride and several attackers were disappointing, with no one providing a moment of magic.
- Winning this way by narrow margins will eventually catch up with Arsenal — They created little against Forest and almost dropped points late; that is not how a team with title ambitions should go about its business.
- Arsenal are playing within themselves and need the arrogance to put teams away — Against Leeds they were arguably no better for over an hour, and against Forest they lacked creativity; they should impose themselves more.
- Arsenal's players do care because something has been broken since the Brighton game — They briefly looked like a new Arsenal using their offensive strengths, but since Brighton they have reverted to boring winning, clean-sheet mode.
Frank Leboeuf, Shaka Hislop and Craig Burley join Dan Thomas on ESPN FC to discuss Arsenal’s 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest and whether Arsenal can win the Premier League title again with Mikel Arteta’s defensive style of play. ✔️ Subscribe to ESPN Unlimited: https://plus.espn.com/ ESPN
Transcript
Let me just do this. It's not your nucle is how it finishes. Arsenal then back to three points of Manchester City who got that victory [music] against yesterday. >> Great. >> I think for us without Gibbs White, it made it a lot easier for Arsenal. Uh he's obviously a big player for them. >> Well, they made it so easy. Why did Arsenal make it so hard? >> Because of Arsenal. Uh I am surprised Glazner took this job. That's another story. Uh, as for Arsenal, they're it's abundantly clear that they don't give a toss, who likes to watch them, who thinks they're entertaining or how they go about their business. They're just going to grind it out >> and get the results they need and they perceive to be enough to get the job done and hopefully get their self-aware at the end of the season. Uh, that's kind of how they spent the second half of last season. Uh that's their choice. But boy, they're just and there's no right and wrong way, but they are such a tough watch. >> Yeah. >> They're just they're just they're just and and what's frustrating is and this is again this is this is how they're going about it. And and then you see that, you know, a free kick comes in and that just this set piece coach all of a sudden pops up from nowhere like pops out this cake [laughter] and it just can make it makes it even more annoying [laughter] because >> what's that old movie Steven Seagal under siege >> I mean you've not seen they can't score a set they really score a set piece now you never see him and all of a sudden some ball gets whipped in and it glances just by and he pops out of his of shell, you know, but you know what frustrates me with Arsenal a little bit and and they've been and they are the team to beat in England is I think they can be I still think they can have the success, but I think they can do it with more panache, but they've chosen not I think they have the players, in fact, I have no doubt they have the players to win games with a more entertaining style and really put teams away and make it easier for themselves. But they have chosen and their manager has chosen to do it this way. That's his choice. I just think they could they could have beaten Forest by two, three or four today by playing with this freer, open, quicker style which they seem and and and people got upset when when we criticized their performance against PSG in the Champions League final. It was dreadful. In fact, it was pathetic. And I don't think that will get them over the line in European football. I really don't. And that begs the question, can they t when the season rolls on, can they flick the switch from this kind of performance and these kind of performances to take on a PSG or a Bayern or a Barcelona who are not going to play like this? That's going to be the big question. Can they flick that switch? >> How is this? >> Yeah. No, I I was just going to say so no the excuse I I guess you can offer Arsenal and and Arteta here is not Solless who's been so good on the left hand side and they they miss that that that balance. But to Craig's point, you look at Arsenal starting 11. You have so many incredibly talented players who should be able to unlock a defense that sat in hoping for a nil nil. But you have so many underperformances. Um Saka [music] just can't re regain his stride. Ez was disappointing on on the day. >> What's up with S? >> I I don't know. >> Garez is another one. Shout out Garez. [music] You know >> he hasn't he he looks as if he doesn't feel he looks like he doesn't think himself he should be there. He's not he's not he's not strutting around like he was at Newcastle dictating the middle of >> park. It's a different role in that in that you again you look at that that 11 you you look at the front four and you think any one of those four on the day one moment of magic can unlock a defense. Bruno Garish is not really that kind of player. He's more a player that arrives late. Cindy was was doing that for for Newcastle arrives late. He gets on the ball in the middle of the park and he sprays >> and but you're looking against a team who's sitting deep. looking for you're looking for your tricky players and it's it's just you look that entire front has just been underperformance under underperformance and and while yes again you can look at the injury to to as as being impactful that that's that's one player you're defending champion >> Arsal fans aren't saying to you just made you you're well but they've won and but it it's >> winning in this manner and by this narrow margin eventually catches up with you. Um quite easily Marilo could have scored later on it. So while you take the three points, this is not how you go about your business if you are truly expecting to defend your title. in City were I don't want to go into the whole city uh you know shenanigans and allegations because that's what people will go on about but I'm just talking if we just take it in the football field when they were winning all those titles and people will be shouting yeah but they cheated and all that whatever that'll be sorted but they were putting teams away weren't they >> they were they were you were you were sitting going I don't know who's going to catch them >> and in some sense you know there's been other times as well uh for other teams and from Arsenal's perspective uh shacks Right. They were they won against Leeds last week at home, but for for over an hour, Leads were, you could argue, were as good if not better than them. And then all of a sudden, they scrambled a Califuriori goal and and the floodgates opened. Uh again, as Jack said, the Merilla, the fact that there was no Gibbs White, they lack creativity. Uh they really created nothing, but they could have lot dropped points to that Merilla run at the end of the game. The point being is is they just I think they're playing so much within themselves that somehow they got to find that that that sort of arrogance and and and just we are the better side and go out and just put teams away. I'm not I'm not see they beat Leel and uh I think it was Leo in midweek who were absolutely again absolutely hopeless uh at the Emirates but you know they're second in the league. >> They're not playing well but they're grinding out out results. just came to who they are at the moment. >> But Frankie, the fans don't care. The players care. Uh I think they do care in a way that uh uh yeah you get the three points or you go back home and you you're happy with that result but I think they do care because I think something has been broken since the game against Brighton when they lost before the the international break where I'm sorry but before we discover a new Arsenal and we say okay maybe they learned their lessons after their their their fin the Champions League final against Paris and they say well they know that they cannot they can they cannot only defend, they try something else. They were very entertaining and they we say, "Okay, that's a new Arsenal. They they use their strengths offensively." And something since Brighton has changed. They keep on winning games, but they are back to what they were doing, being boring, winning, getting the three points, but not being entertaining. And on top of it, um yeah, just thinking, just changing their mindset to okay, we keep the clean sheet. We know what we have to do. We know where we're good at and we don't try too much. And it's why it's not it's tough to watch. really tough to watch.