Sunderland v Arsenal Saturday Nov 8th 530 PM: Page 2 - The Arsenal discussion forum and community: One More in the Tolly

Sunderland v Arsenal Saturday Nov 8th 530 PM

Panda

Team picks itself with the absences:

Raya
Timber-Saliba-Gabriel-Calafiori
Zubi-Rice
Eze
Saka-Merino-Trossard

This feels big with Liverpool and City playing each other. Sat early eve kick off their fans will be well up for it and this will not be an easy game.

I hope we don't underestimate them and that Eze, Saka, Tross, Merino is enough to do the business in attack for us.

If we can win this and Pool and City draw and we get our attackers back after the break I will really start to believe.

Burnwinter

Panda Christ that's a threadbare lineup. Thank God we signed so many because we know how to break them.

MistaT

I’d love an Eze “arrival” game.

Need someone to step forward and dominate a match offensively.

HomeSteak

Considering our next 3 in the league will be very hard this is a must win. Then we add Liverpool vs City at the weekend. Also the next 3 come after an international break & we have Bayern in there as well...yeah.

Sicario2

HomeSteak Bayern game not that critical given we won 4/4. It’s a game mainly for pride (who will go top of the CL group stage).

I do think it’s a must win given the context as well.

RowJimmy

Waiting for a league game where someone doesn't say it's a must win. Suppose when we've wrapped up the title.

Sicario2

RowJimmy every game is relatively must win when you are going for the title. You don’t know what sliding doors effect could occur if you don’t win a game especially when the margins are so fine.

That Newcastle game earlier this season was a must win following Liverpool dropping points. Sat is must win as one of City/Liverpool will drop points.

Stop drowning in the semantics.

Burnwinter

Jimmy's swimming along fine in the semantics the way I see it. 😆

Panda

Burnwinter Yeah I am worried about this game without Gyokeres. If we come through it will be big.

Dom

I've watched a couple of Sunderland matches this season and a few things have struck me. Firstly, they're a short team. Secondly, their coach is obviously a Wenger disciple because their style of play reminds me a lot of Arsenal's 07/08 team - it's not an approach that's common these days and I've found them enjoyable to watch. Lastly, their recruitment team/scouts are bordering on geniuses because I think they've got too much quality to go down and will be a goal threat against anyone in the league.

This is going to be a lot tougher than the Burnley match and we need to make the height difference between the two teams count.

Tactics

Dom Are they as attack minded vs the big boys?

I watched them against Chelsea and they looked compact and difficult to break down. Their shape was similar to Palace's without the ball: a 5-4-1. They forced Chelsea wide and immediately double or triple marked the winger who was forced to either pass it back or sideways. The ball frequently got circulated back to the centre and to the other wing, and crosses eventually came in which were easily dealt with.

We have struggled against such tactics before but maybe they'll be more open/attacking at home. I think this is another match where we'll likely have to rely on set pieces for the opening goal. I keep worrying that our set pieces would fail us and we'll fire blank just like so many times (relative to our rivals) last season. However we keep scoring the opening goal from them, I have got no issues with that but is it really sustainable though??

Gotta say I am nervous going into this as I see it as a potential banana skin. But then I felt the same way against Burnley last week....

Klaus

I'm just glad we've worked up enough of an advantage to lose this game and still be top of the league.

Then again it's Sunderland. I think it's time they (and Xhaka in particular) learn their bloody place.

Gunner89

Klaus

This is one game we should absolutely aim to get all 3 points

to go 9 clear of city and 10 clear of liverpool will leave them having to do an almost perfect rest of season

flobaba

Yeah it's weird the trepidation at this stage of the season, against Sunderland... Even with our injuries we have more than enough quality to handle them. Midfield is solid, backline is concrete. And not having Gyokeres isn't a make or break factor in a game like this. Merino has got his practice reps in and can put in the hard yards leading the press upfront. I expect a simple, comfortable win. Set pieces? Yes please.

Klaus

flobaba Honestly, just take a leaf out of Big Sam's playbook and throw Mosquera up top, tell him to bang into people all game and look for crosses. All we need is to keep the defenders off Saka so he can cook.

It would be great if Rice could agitate Xhaka a bit too. The idiot's gonna be so riled up for this game that he'll be easy to push over the edge. I smell a red card tomorrow.

QuincyAbeyie

flobaba Even with our injuries we have more than enough quality to handle them.

Exactly. If we had so many injuries we had to field an XI with Sunderland's players we'd all be crying.

Coombs

Klaus It would be great if Rice could agitate Xhaka a bit too. The idiot's gonna be so riled up for this game that he'll be easy to push over the edge. I smell a red card tomorrow.

I fear he's going to be the model of discipline and calm. Just to fuck with us.

lorddulaarsenal

I imagine Saka will toy with them tomorrow

QuincyAbeyie

Coombs I'm thinking the same. He didn't leave on bad terms and I imagine the fans will give him a warm welcome.

USArsenal

Coombs

I agree, i think the days of his hot-headedness are behind him. He is much more disciplined as he has gotten older. That said, i think he loses the midfield battle against Rice and Zubi.

Dom

Tactics Are they as attack minded vs the big boys?

Honestly I haven't watched them against the traditional top 6 teams but they were commited to playing risky one-touch football in the games I did watch. They are an entertaining team largely because of the risks they take in midfield and up front.

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