We could fill up this article talking about VAR, and no doubt in the coming weeks and months we will HAVE to talk about it, because yet again it has become the focal point in the Premier League weekend. VAR was supposed to clear up controversial incidents, it has only added to them and now is happy to overrule referees even when painfully said referee has already made the right decision. VAR was the major player yet again at the weekend, but the temptation in this article is rather to focus away from the service just for one week and look into other stories.
Arsenal's Granit Xhaka leads that list and what he did at the weekend was shocking. Appearing to swear at the fans after he was rightly booed and jeered by them for an average performance once Unai Emery had substituted the Swiss player. As Captain, Xhaka's job is to lead by example and what his actions did was summarise perhaps just how far Arsenal has fallen in the past five years.
Since arriving at the club Xhaka has looked perhaps at best a good man's Mesut Ozil, that's not to say he hasn't had his days, and as a team Arsenal even in their darkest moments have still been able to show glimmers of their true qualities, but something seems broken at the club. Fans can point to certain players not pulling their weight, which would be true but then that player will have an outstanding game the next week, which will leave everyone confused as to why he and the team can't be more consistent. Perhaps the answer lies in the fact that Arsenal simply do not have a good team.
If you were the manager of the current champions or wanted to pick some players from the Arsenal team to feature in your fantasy football side - who in reality would you pick? In the prime of Arsene Wenger's reign at the club it wouldn't be unnatural to see half of your team, maybe more made up of Arsenal players - Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira, Robert Pires etc etc, we could go on. But look at this current crop of players, the ones that can make the difference. I for one can only think of one player I would take and that would be Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang who has been a prolific striker for the club. When he has an off day it's difficult to see where the goals are going to come from. David Luiz has actually scored a few lately, but as a defender he isn't going to and isn't expected to score 15-20 goals a season. Nicolas Pepe has had a very slow start but there is a glimmer of light, he scored two delicious goals against Vitoria in the Europa League last week, which rescued the Gunners and then assisted in both of their goals at the weekend against Crystal Palace. Perhaps he will justify his £70m+ price tag. Lucas Torriera reminded one of a young and hungry Roy Keane with more skill on the ball and more judgement in the tackle and yet the Uruguayan much like his team mates is simply finding it beyond difficult to replicate that performance week in and week out.
It's been inconsistent and topsy turvy for the club who have been so stable and solid in the past. The last five seasons have seen Arsenal finish in 3rd, 2nd, 5th, 6th and then 5th last season. That seems to be the clubs ballpark right there, 5th and 6th now. Forget the Champions League even and one wonders if this continues will they finish outside the top six? As it stands now the Gunners are looking at an under 60 point finish to the season. The clubs main enemy is playing away from home where they have picked up just 5 points from their last 15 and haven't won on the road for the last 4 games. Perhaps it could be argued that Emery isn't the problem but his away record at Sevilla was also very poor, the reality of the situation seems to be that the club need almost an entire face-lift. Arsenal are 2.63 to finish in the top 4 and are 1.44 to finish outside the top 4.
A big congratulations to Leicester who have looked brilliant under Brendan Rodgers this season. The clubs 9-0 slaughter of Southampton was impressive even if the Saints were beyond poor. There is a legitimacy about the Foxes this season and if Liverpool and Manchester City were not on another level and not so consistent it wouldn't be a stretch to think that Leicester could win another Premier League title. Their objective surely has to be a Champions League finish though and the club are 2.50 to do so. Also well done to Southampton FC who recognised how poor their team had been and players and coaches alike gave their wages for that day to charity.
Sheffield United have been another unfancied team who up until now have impressed in the league and their form is also good. The Blades have a mantra of hard work and getting possession of the ball back as fast as they can. They clearly are not afraid of playing in the Premier League. How long they can keep this focus up is anyone's guess but it is refreshing not to see the club battling away in the bottom three like Norwich for example. Their last two results in particular have been wonderful, beating Arsenal and keeping a clean sheet and then this past weekend holding West Ham to a 1-1 draw away from home after going behind. There is some genuine 'steel' in this side.
Finally the clasico between Barcelona and Real Madrid was rightly called off at the weekend after political unrest in Catalonia which saw millions protest on the streets. Although it is unfortunate for many fans, a lot come from England through booking agencies, and this would have been a logistical nightmare for many. The postponement of the game meant that Granada have played a match more and are now top of the league- no one could have for-seen that. It is great to see, though one suspects normal service will soon resume. Still if you fancy a punt on Granada to cause perhaps a shock that would make Leicester's Premier League win feel like a ripple you can back them at 251.00. Till next time, happy viewing, happy punting and happy Halloween.
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