Wigan 3-2 Arsenal: Almighty collapse leaves season in tatters

Arsenal put the pain of their derby defeat behind them by capitulating to an even more demoralising 3-2 reverse at Wigan. An incredible sequence of events in the final few minutes ended up with defeat being snatched from the jaws of victory and has effectively ended the season for Arsenal.

Arsenal failed to capitalise on Chelsea’s loss to Spurs and are now out of the title race, barring a miracle. The gap to Chelsea was 6 points before Sunday’s game, and after 75 minutes of action it looked inevitable that Arsenal would close the deficit to 3. Seemingly comfortable at 2-0 up after goals from Walcott and Silvestre, Wenger’s side contrived to concede 3 goals in 11 minutes at the end of the game. It was a collapse of epic proportions, something the English cricket team’s middle order would be ashamed of. As spectacular comebacks go, Wigan’s must be right up there with Liverpool-AC Milan in 2005. Except in that example, it was 2 powerhouses of European football in the Champions League, rather than relegation candidates against title challengers.

Whether it was a question of maturity, mental strength, mentality or lack of quality, this Arsenal team once again proved that they do not have what it takes to win trophies. Every time they have faced a crunch game, this Arsenal team has ended up losing. They were shown up against Chelsea, Manchester United and Barcelona. This week they surrendered to both Spurs and Wigan. The only time they have shown any backbone or stomach for the fight was in the 3-1 victory against Stoke, when Aaron Ramsey’s leg was broken.

This team looks like it will end up as the glorious failures of the Premier League, shot down in a blaze of glory just inches from the finish line. It is no coincidence that they did best when they were written off, when they had no expectation to win anything. As soon as they were back in the running, it was only a matter of time, of gravity, that they would fall down again.  They are the Icarus of the Premier League table. They aimed for the sun, but got too close to it and fell back down.

If I may continue the metaphor, Icarus tried to reach the sun again but Daedalus did not modify the wings, merely rebuilding them. The same thing happened and still Icarus can’t make it to the sun. No matter, Daedalus will patch the wings back up and Icarus can try again. To most observers, it would be obvious that the construction of the wings is flawed. The wax cannot withstand the heat, new materials are needed. Yet Daedalus is stubborn as ever, he is convinced that these wings will get Icarus to the sun. He keeps persisting with the design, oblivious to the fact that the materials he has are not sturdy enough.

As a coach, Wenger has absolute faith in his players, but it is in danger of becoming blind faith. The inability to find a top-class keeper is perhaps the most serious of his blind spots. Lukasz Fabianski stepped in for Almunia and made yet another costly error in a big game. He dropped a corner onto the head of Titus Bramble, who headed over the line from 2 yards. Before the Wigan game, the Pole had made mistakes in the Carling Cup final against Chelsea and the Porto match in the Champions League. He is clearly too error-prone to be a reliable number 1. Almunia is not much better, having been beaten from 35 yards in midweek and throwing the ball into the net against Birmingham.

Better defensive coaching would also help remedy the inherent frailty of the current set-up. Granted, Arsenal were without 3 of their top 4 centre backs against Wigan but even with Gallas, Vermaelen and Song, the team always gives the opposition a chance. It is no coincidence that Arsenal’s best defensive run in the Champions League happened when Wenger was helped by Martin Keown. It should not be forgotten that this sequence was achieved with a young Philippe Senderos and Mathieu Flamini in the back 4, showing the importance of organisation. This was clearly lacking against Barcelona, when Zlatan Ibrahimović twice beat the offside trap to score, and against Spurs when Gareth Bale was left all alone to make it 2-0. It should also be remembered that the defence Wenger inherited was one of the most well-organised defensive units in the history of the English game. Contrast that with the defence of the current Arsenal team, a defence that Wenger has built from scratch.

Something has to be said for the mentality of the current crop of players. None of them, bar Sol Campbell, have won the Premier League as part of Arsenal’s first XI. They have displayed they do not know how to win at the highest level, despite many of them being full internationals. I have already explained how the young players may feel a sense of entitlement, and so do not have the desire to drag the team forwards in tough times. This lack of drive and complacency has poisoned the mentality of the club and leaders on the pitch are few and far between. Why Wenger kept one of those leaders, Robin van Persie, on the bench til the 90th minute is a mystery, considering his excellent cameo on Wednesday. The team’s play in the second half was particularly sloppy, the midfield was unable to hold onto the ball and the team was unable to gain any attacking momentum. As against Spurs, Abou Diaby was especially ponderous, giving the ball away far too often.

A serious shake-up is needed in the summer and hopefully new signings will be made. Wenger has spoken about how money is available and that there are shortcomings in the squad but he is unlikely to bring in more than a couple of players. Whether he will persist with his idealistic vision for another year is certain, but sooner or later he may have to sacrifice some of those ideals in order to win some trophies.