Arsene Wenger’s future as Arsenal manager took another turn on Monday night as the Gunners were soundly beaten at London rivals Crystal Palace.
Advertisement
Yet a exhausted and drawn looking Wenger insisted his team had created chances – in direct contrast to what many observers and supporters thought had happened.
Townsend found himself free six meters out to turn in Zaha’s cross and put Palace ahead and although Arsenal had more possession, Palace looked unsafe most times it went forward.
The Arsenal fans sang “you’re not fit to wear the shirt” in the last moments, as the team hobbled over the line, bruised and battered.
“I’m disappointed and determined to put things right”.
“[Nacho] Monreal and [Hector] Bellerin play like wingers, they come inside with the centre forward, and the defenders are just left on their own, so if you can get at them you can get into the box and make chances”.
To be clear, even if Crystal Palace had won four of their past five leading up to this matchup, this was a very winnable game.
“Honestly, I’m so disappointed tonight”.
“It wasn’t a shock tonight in terms of our performance for me”, said Palace boss Sam Allardyce.
Arsenal started shakily against in-form Palace and within the first seven minutes Cabaye had wasted a risky shooting position before Milivojevic blazed narrowly wide.
“We don’t go out there to lose games, we work the best we can”.
The defeat to Palace leaves Arsenal sitting in sixth spot in the Premier League table and seven points off fourth placed Manchester City, with a game in hand.
The latest defeat also brought up an unwelcome milestone for Wenger.
“Two of the hardest teams are out of the way – Chelsea and Arsenal – and we beat them both”.
“We knew what we would face”. How much more of this garbage do we have to endure?
Allardyce, who has developed a reputation over the years as a survival specialist and last season led Sunderland to an unlikely escape from the drop, has been the driving force behind the stunning upturn in fortunes experienced by Palace.
Advertisement
Supporters have been harping about how the entire team was crap and they were right, but don’t dismiss every single performance just yet.
