Arsene Wenger is often known to keep his cool during his interactions with the press, but this week he has been much more aggressive in his interviews after they suffered a humiliating defeat at the hands of Monaco.
The result has heaped more pressure on Arsenal and Wenger, who have often struggled with consistency this season. The performance was demoralising at best and it seems the boss has taken the loss seriously, if we go by his recent comments.
The French boss reacted sharply after the game by terming the defensive performance as suicidal and has also thrashed the lack of mentality. He said:
We missed chances and were suicidal defensively.
On the second and third goals, it was suicide. It looks like we have lost our nerve and our rationality. The heart took over the head and at this level that doesn’t work.
Mentally we were not sharp enough. We rushed our game. We knew coming back in at half-time it was important not to concede the second goal, but we were too impatient. It was more heart than brain.
The boss is often known to be back his players and the comments are definitely not Wenger-like. In the pre-match press conference ahead of their clash against Everton, he admitted that they deserved to be slaughtered. He added:
But I think as well on the night everything went against us and after that you get always slaughtered. That’s part of it, you know.
The reactions are always very emotional but life is not only on a high. You have to go through lows and highs and at the end of the day it is how consistent you have been in your responses to disappointments that make your life. And for the team it is the same.
Many fans and critics have held Wenger responsible for the defeat and some even called for his resignation, but there is no point in blaming the manager for the defeat. Wenger put out his best line-up for the game and that’s the best thing a manager can do.
If the players don’t turn up it is has nothing to do with the coach, although many might suggest that he didn’t buy enough. I will argue on that point too because we needed a defender and we signed one, so the side put out by Wenger was good enough to beat a lackluster Monaco side on any day but the players just didn’t give their best which more or less contributed to the result.
The comments clearly suggest that Wenger is serious about some players not performing to their potential, which is what every manager expects from his players. The players should take the responsibility for the result and it remains to be seen whether they can respond to the loss, when they take on Everton on Sunday.
Can Arsenal respond against Everton?
