It was thought to be the dawn of a new era or at least the dawn of something better. But the first two games of the Freddie Ljungberg era have been disappointing to say the least.
The draw against Norwich was bad enough and now to make matters worse, the Gunners lost at home to Brighton. Reflecting on the game, fans had a lot of things to say about one player in particular and that was Joe Willock.
Here are some fan reactions:
Willock is highlighting what a poor standard of football the Under 23 league is. He’s so out of his depth he’s drowning it isn’t fair in him #afc
— Steven Groves (@stevegroves2004) December 5, 2019
Willock has to come off I know he's Freddie's boy but he's not really for premiership football week in week out Ozil has to play number 10 and either Pepe or Martinelli come on
— Martin (@GunForceEdits) December 5, 2019
Get Willock off.. He's been largely absent.. Lacazette too has been a burden to the team.. Freddie twice has got the team selection wrong. No balance at all.. #afc
— G-JO (@georgeosewe_) December 5, 2019
https://twitter.com/gazzaj84/status/1202692472997990401
Willock is the worst Arsenal player I’ve ever seen. I don’t care if he’s from the academy #arsenal
— Pinot (@AFC_Pinot) December 5, 2019
https://twitter.com/afcKTL_/status/1202694473412759552
Willock must never start for us ever again until he goes on loan
— Vianney (@vianney_ok) December 5, 2019
This criticism of the Englishman was perhaps highlighted by the fact that he was brought off during halftime and Nicolas Pepe was brought on. Willock made only six completed passes in the entirety of the first half which shows that he was struggling to impose himself.
Once the Ivorian entered the game, the North London club played much better as they appeared to be a more balanced side. It also gave Mesut Ozil some more freedom to play with and the team looked like a more cohesive unit.
Though the reactions of the fans is understandable they must also realize that this is the first season where Willock is playing regular football at such a high level. Given the amount of experience that he has had, there are going to be games such as this one.
The hope will be that he will able to put this game behind him and produce the sort of quality performances that we have seen from him. Willock is a capable and talented midfielder that can drive the team forward and also contribute in a defensive capacity.
He will surely come good once caretaker manager Freddie Ljunberg is able to get the balance of the squad right. The Gunners need to get out of the rut that they are in at the moment. And to do that, they need to have the input of young as well as more experienced players. Willock has shown that he can be impressive and fans will be wanting to see that side of him more often.
