Paul Merson don tok say di defeat wey Arsenal chop against Brighton don scare di team, and na why dem don revert to di kind efficient but conservative football wey no go beat Bayern Munich this week. Merson yarn say di result make Arsenal go back to di style where dem no dey allow goals and dem just dey wait for one chance to score. Na exactly wetin im see when Arsenal play Nottingham Forest.
Di former player tok say e no ever see match where one team get that much possession but still no look like dem go score. E call di Nottingham Forest performance ‘as bad as it gets’ and say e dey unbelievable say Arsenal fit hold ball reach that level and still no threaten. Merson compare am to Arsene Wenger teams wey for that amount of play go produce like 30 shots.
According to Merson, other teams don see di blueprint to play Arsenal: sit back and defend. E say e no hard, because Arsenal no dey create 20 or 30 chances. Di wingers no dey beat their man, nobody dey run beyond di ball, di ball no dey hold up, and real movement no dey. Even though Arsenal win Nottingham Forest without playing well, Merson say e expect shackles to come off this season and Arsenal to start playing better.
On di Bayern Munich Champions League match, Merson say e no see how Arsenal go beat dem. Im tok say if e be Bayern coach, e go open di game up and allow both sides to attack, because e believe only one winner go come out. E call am massive match and marker for where Arsenal dey for Champions League.
Merson also question whether Kai Havertz go make Bayern centre-halves lose sleep. E say na X factor dey win Champions League, and e no see that for Arsenal. E no see Havertz or Viktor Gyokeres as di difference-maker against Europe big boys, even though dem fit do well against lesser teams. Still, Merson believe Arsenal go win di league because dem only need one goal, while im feel Manchester City need two goals every game to win.
Di match go bring back memory of October 2015, when Arsenal beat Pep Guardiola’s Bayern Munich 2-0 for Emirates Stadium. Olivier Giroud and Mesut Ozil score late goals that night for North London. But Merson’s warning be say di current Arsenal style no dey give am confidence ahead of this week’s game.
