Arsenal FC defender Per Mertesacker has accepted that it’s the players who are to be blamed following a nightmare start to the new season.
Arsenal FC went down to hard working Hammers in the opening game of the new Premier League season. Petr Cech, who was making his Premier League debut for the Gunners endured a forgettable afternoon between the sticks. The former Chelsea FC number 1 was partly at fault for both the goals that the Gunners conceded.
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First, Cech came off his line looking to punch an in-swinging Dimitri Payet free-kick, which Cheikhou Kouyate headed towards an empty goal. The Czech international was then slow in reacting and was probably caught wrong-footed when Mauro Zarate hit a low drive from outside of the box after Oxlade-Chamberlain gave away the ball. Arsenal FC fans criticized the appalling display by the Premier League stalwart.
We can only blame ourselves for todaya s game – Per Mertesacker
Speaking in an interview with the club’s official website, Mertesacker was quoted as saying:
“Sometimes ita s hard to explain. We played a great pre-season but that is absolutely nothing. Ia ve said that before already, especially after the Community Shield game. Thata s reality now. Ita s a massive loss for us because we had great confidence and now ita s time for us to settle down, stay healthy and look forward to next Sunday.
“The first half was ok, not decisive enough, especially not in the final third. We can only blame ourselves for todaya s game. Hopefully we can come back from that disappointment. The confidence was high, everyone felt great but we had a couple of misunderstandings, especially in the first half. We lost the ball a lot, we were not patient enough at times, so there is a lot to work on. We have to work more.”
The World Cup winning defender also admitted that his team needed to bounce back from the shock defeat in order to avoid a repeat of last season.
“Ita s very important. We want to have a better start than last season so we need to be very cautious of the situation. To start with a game like that is not good but to bounce back is even more important now.”
The Gunners endured a similar horrific start to the season against Aston Villa in 2013, when a huge section of the fans had demanded for Arsene Wenger to resign. Things calmed down when Mesut Ozil was signed for a record fee from Real Madrid later that summer, and the fans will be hoping for something similar to happen.
Arsene Wenger and Arsenal FC need to ensure a repeat of last season doesn’t happen
The North London club had a brilliant pre-season as they lost none of the games and capped it off with a great display against Chelsea FC in the Community Shield. However, their pre-season form and confidence took a huge hammering and the team would now require to start from scratch.
Arsenal FC had been billed as one of the title contenders prior to yesterday’s horrible display. One game doesn’t reflect on the potential of the team, but the signs didn’t look promising. The Gunners were made to rue a slow start last season, as they failed to challenge for the title despite being on a remarkable run after the turn of the year. Arsene Wenger would be hoping that a repeat of last year is not on the cards as he prepares his team for Sunday’s clash against high-flying Crystal Palace.