Rejoice. The weekend is here, Gooners! 

 

Unlike yesterday, when we were doing more juggling than Eze during a Rondo to get the blog out during our lunch break and again before dinner, we are lucky enough to only work a four-day week here at Legion Towers. Once a bit of adulting is out of the way (school runs, dog walks, etc), we can focus on the task at hand, and that's looking forward to this weekend's home opener with you lot. But before that, we have to get our coffee sorted. Priorities and all that. Be back in a mo ....

​

Now that we are fuelled with caffeine to get the creative juices going, let's get started, shall we?

​

Home openers are always nervy affairs. Even though it's still extremely early in the season, fans turn up expectant and excited, and with it being a Saturday evening kick-off, I'm saying slightly or maybe more inebriated! I always think the atmosphere is better with these later kick-off times. Noon kick-offs are the worst. It's like waking up and the game is already here. Yes, I get it that later kick-offs are a nightmare for away fans, but that's a discussion for another time.

​

​Our record on home soil HAS to improve if we realistically want to win the league. Our record at The Carpet last season was Won 11, Drawn 6, and Lost 2. That's 8 games where we dropped points. Of those 8 games, 7 of them were against Brighton, Everton, Villa, West Ham, Brentford, Palace, and Bournemouth (the other being Liverpool)

​

Can we see ourselves improving our home form? Absolutely. The Brighton game was the ridiculous Rice sending off, the Villa game we chucked away a 2-goal lead, Brentford we led and conceded late, same story with Palace, and by the time Bournemouth came calling, the fight had left our legs. So yes, we are expecting a much-improved points tally at home.

 

This is where the Eze signing might prove important. It's not 'big' sides we tend to have a problem with. It's the dirty low block sides that we come a cropper. Eze won't help us hang on to a slender lead on the road, but he will help pick the lock of a packed defence, especially at home.

​

For any league-winning team, you HAVE to be strong on your own patch; it's a non-negotiable.

​

First up is newly promoted Leeds United. A welcome return to the Premier League, even though I've never quite forgiven them for wrecking our title defence in '99 (Nelson Vivas and all that jazz). That night ended in a drowning sorrows drunken blur passing out on a B&B floor in Yorkshire somewhere. Tells you all you need to know, really. Fun times? No, not really.

 

You could say the fixture list was kind to us for our first couple of games. A team that finished 15th, followed by a side just up from winning the Championship, albeit scoring 95 goals and securing 100 points along the way. We've seen that before, though, right? I remember Fulham coming up one year after cantering the Championship and getting battered every week. The step up in quality is massive. 

 

So what of our white rose sniffing friends from Yorkshire?​ How did they invest during the summer to narrow the gap in class? Well, they took a somewhat unconventional approach by channeling their inner Stoke City and signed a team of giants. When their board said to expect 'big' signings, I doubt the fans thought they were referring to height! Stach 6'3, Bijol 6'2, Perri 6'4, Bornauw 6'2, DCL 6'2. You get the drift.

​

Their manager, Daniel Farke, had an interesting take on it, saying that in the Premier League, they will have less possession, so will face more free kicks, corners, and long throws, then, on the flip side, have to make the most of their set-piece opportunities when they arise. We watched their opener vs a poor Everton, and of their new signings, midfielder Stach looked pretty decent. We did notice he stands 6'3 but was taking their corners. Mental. Talking of their corners, we have to be wary of the routine they regularly run, and that is getting their midfielder Tanaka free at the back post. Just a little detail we picked up.

​

​​We are already fascinated with how Arteta will approach squad rotation this season. In his defence, back in the day, we were winning doubles with Grimandi and Garde filling in because most of the rest of the league was poorly coached with poor players cannon fodder. The Premier League has been a different beast over the last decade or so. With the influx of mega TV money, even the likes of your Bournemouths of the world now have top coaches and players. There is very rarely a week off in the EPL.

​

So, with Liverpool in mind, the weekend after, does Arteta play the rotation game as early as week 2? For example, does he risk playing Calafiori two games in a row before our Anfield trip? White left the Yanited game with a niggle. Does he risk him? That would mean changing both full-backs, who are in essence centre halves, for two small players in the knowledge that, as discussed, Leeds are a tall side. Does he shatter any confidence Martinelli has left by dropping him this early, or does he think Leeds at home might be the perfect fixture for him to maybe nab a goal? We think he'll stick with Martinelli, but the clock is ticking.

​

Team news-wise, we know for sure Havertz and long-term victim Jesus are absentees, as is Norgaard, who has a niggle that is stopping him from making his competitive debut. You could see the value in signing a Norgaard type in a game like last week's at Old Trafford. He would have been ideal to bring on and help us double pivot our way to seeing the game out.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ The other doubts are White and Timber. As usual, we get cluster injuries at the same position. Seems to happen a lot with us. The fact that Timber was held out of training for 'load management' purposes tells me White isn't making it, and JT will replace him. There will be no Eze as his paperwork won't be through in time, so his debut will be a baptism of fire at Anfield.

​​​

For Leeds! Leeds! Leeds! their captain Ampadu picked up an injury from a bad tackle on Monday night and will miss out. Gruev will more than likely be the replacement. They have one of their new signings, centre back Bijol, returning from suspension, and are hoping that another week of training is enough for DCL to make the bench. They will also have their most recent purchase, Okafor from AC Milan, signed up in time to feature at some point. The only real selection dilemma Farke has is if he sticks with Piroe up top or starts Monday night's match-winner, Nmecha.

​

Below is our usual stab at the starting line-up. We'd just like to say quickly that guessing the starting 11 is meant to be a bit of fun. Hopefully, when the site gets more popular and activity starts to happen in the comments section, it's a great talking point. Anyone would be extremely lucky to guess a starting line-up maybe half a dozen times in a season, if that? It doesn't mean you aren't a knowledgeable fan. Always remember it's just a fun debating point.​​