We all know how the Patriots season ended. And Arsenal's seasons have gone this way for a long time. But this season in particular, some of the parallels between them are jarring.
Hot Start
The Pats got off to a 10-0 start, outscoring their opponents 32.3 PPG to 18.2 PPG. They flexed their muscle, showing shades of an unstoppable offense and a pissed off mindset. There were talks of an undefeated season, a la 2007. Things were going good in New England.
In 20 matches from August 9 to January 2 Arsenal went 13-3-4, accumulating 42 of 60 possible points. They were top of the table, 2 points clear of Leicester City and up 4 on goal differential. They had key wins including 5-2 away to Leicester, 3-0 home to Manchester United, and 2-1 home to Manchester City. Things were looking up.
The Slump Starts
The Patriots lost their week 12 contest in Denver. They followed that with a shocking upset at the hands of the Philadelphia Eagles. Two wins over the lowly Houston Texans and Tennessee Titans were followed by a disappointing end to the regular season, with losses to division foes in the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins. The Patriots, once seen as top of the pyramid, now limp into the postseason.
Starting with a January 13 draw with Liverpool, Arsenal go 0-3-1. After the 3-3 tie with Jurgen Klopp's men, Arsenal have yet to score a goal in the Premier League. They draw 0-0 with both Stoke and Southampton, while losing 1-0 to Chelsea at home. After this slump (or perhaps the start of a slump, which is scary), Arsenal are back in the all-too familiar 4th place, 5 points back of new leaders Leicester, 2 back of City, and tied with Tottenham, but behind by 10 on goal differential.
Frustrating Finish
The Patriots looked like they may be back when it came time for the playoffs. They beat Kansas City in the Divisional Round 27-20 and things were starting to click. And then Denver happened. We don't need to get into that any more. They let their own fate out of their hands when they allowed Denver to clinch home-field advantage for the playoffs.
While there are still 14 matches left in the Gunners season, I could give you a run down of what will happen. They'll beat a few teams they're supposed to, but then draw with some they should beat, and ultimately lose the big games they need desperately to win. They may look like they could make a final surge for the crown, but in the end will need some help, which they won't get. They'll leave their fate in the league standings up to other teams.
The connections don't end there...
The Patriots caught the injury bug bad this season. Dion Lewis was lost for the season in week 9 against Washington with an ACL tear. Julian Edelman broke a bone in his foot against the Giants in week 10. Nate Solder tore his right biceps week 5 in Dallas. Legarrette Blount, Aaron Dobson, Jerod Mayo and Dominique Easley all ended up on the IR. Countless other important pieces had knocks throughout the year (Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski, Danny Amendola, Bryan Stork, Devin McCourty, to name a few).
Arsenal has a long history with injury problems, and this season has been no different. Alexis Sanchez missed a long stretch and only just returned in the past week. Same goes for Francis Coquelin. Santi Cazorla is still out. And Jack Wilshere. And Danny Welbeck. And Tomas Rosicky, who had just returned.
Underperformers
Throughout the first 10 game son the season, the Patriots offensive line looked serviceable. It was largely the same as the line from the Super Bowl winner a year earlier, who allowed just 18 QB hits in the playoff run. Against Denver in the AFC title game alone, Brady was 20 times, the most a QB has ever been hit in one game since 2006. Losing Solder early didn't help.
One player everyone likes to get on is Olivier Giroud, who has actually been one of Wengers best players this season. Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain have been putrid as of late. They can't do anything. But they're "English lads" which Wenger, a Frenchman, loves, and they bleed red and white, so they keep getting chances. Aaron Ramsey is another one. I've been a big Ramsey fan. He's been horrid recently. He's so concerned with his personal stats and desire to play in the middle of the formation, but abandons his position, leaving his defense out to dry. Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny have each had the poorest seasons of their Arsenal careers.
Failure to Add at the Deadline
The biggest trade the Patriots made was back in the middle of September when they sent a 5th round draft pick to the Texans for receiver Keshawn Martin and a 6th round pick. They made a few other small acquisitions from the waiver wire, and called players up from the practice squad. There were talks at the deadline they were ready to add key pieces. Cornerbacks Sean Smith and Jason McCourty (DMacs twin brother) were linked, as was left tackle Joe Thomas. All were seemingly available for the right price. But Bill never pulled the trigger, and we are left with "what-ifs".
Simply put, Arsenal have all the resources necessary to have added top-tier talent in the summer and this past January. Funds? They have more money than I can dream of. Need? Certainly, at multiple positions. Status? They're supposed to be one of the biggest clubs in the world. The only moves they made were for Petr Cech in June and Mohamed Elneny in January. One is a legendary goalkeeper, a move that has seemed to pay off so far. The other, a relative unknown; a midfielder 23 years young seemingly with all the tools to become a cog in the Arsenal midfield for years to come. It cost Wenger next to nothing for these two moves, the only ones he made between the two transfer windows. More on Wenger's transfer window gaffes this season.
So there you have it. If Arsenal continue to follow the Pats blueprint this season I can stop watching them all together. I hope they prove me wrong, but I'm cautious to believe.
No comments:
Post a Comment