Arsenal’s away problem

Whatever happened to Arsenal? Not too long ago, they had Thierry Henry at the helm and were talked about with the rest of Europe’s elite. They had a perfect blend of solidarity, backbone and flare. They were literally invincible. Nowadays however, they’re about as penetrable as a wet paper towel.

So why has this decline happened, and what’s the real issue at Arsenal?

Arsenal’s demise

The demise could be seen as starting in 2004. That year, the Gunners had won the league in that unbeaten fashion. As the next season kicked on though, one Jose Mourinho was now in the Premier League, and he seemed to really freshen things up. Chelsea won their first title, and Arsenal were busy in a fourth-place battle with local rivals Tottenham.

With Highbury being demolished following the end of the season, an FA Cup win and the fact that Arsenal secured fourth spot on the final day of the season at the hand’s of Spurs allowed sentiment perhaps clouded fans’ judgement. The 2004/2005 season had not been a great one.

Similarly, the following year, Arsenal reached a solitary Champions League final. Defeat to Barcelona meant trophies again eluded the North London side.

Next year, same story. A League Cup final loss was the highlight of another disappointing year. Talk about the new stadium and being in a transition period where transfer funds were a scarcity were shouted frequently, but as the trophyless, non-title challenging seasons became more frequent, what was at first considered a blip, a one off, became the new norm.

Champions League

One thing that highlighted Arsenal’s fall from superiority, perhaps more than anything, was how they performed against Europe’s elite. Year upon year, they crashed out of the tournament suffering heavy first-leg defeats. It was like groundhog day, as Barcelona and Bayern Munich seemed to dump the Gunners out year after year in the last 16 stages. It showed the gap between the very best and Arsenal.

More recently, they’ve been left to battle it out in the Europa League, where they reached the semi’s against Atletico Madrid last season.

Familiarity coming fourth

Another indicator signifying Arsenal’s demise was their consistency in making the top four but so rarely challenging for the title, so much so that fourth place was even celebrated. It showed the mentality of expectation-managing fans. Fourth was acceptable, and possibly even keeping Wenger in a job. Many saw the Frenchman though as the cause of the club’s downfall, yet his consistency at getting the side into the money-spinner that was the Champions League meant the big bosses upstairs were kept happy.

This was perhaps made worse, with Wenger’s tenure being prolonged, by the FA Cup wins secured towards the latter stages of his time in charge. They masked a lot of issues deeply installed into his side, and bought him more time ‘change things around,’ but ultimately made things even more damaged.

Arsenal’s away problem

That brings us onto the real issue: Arsenal’s away problem – something they have suffered with for years now. Whether it was in the Champions League, or at a Premier League rival, Arsenal have been on the wrong end of some humbling defeats. Capitulations were a norm when travelling away from home, yet at the Emirates, they have not shown such weakness and fragility.

For years they were crying out for a leader, a ‘proper’ old-school defender, and someone like Gilberto or Patrick Viera. A player who could dominated the midfield. But it was always a money problem.

Modern football has changed massively over the last few years. It’s become far more globalised and ingrained into societies, meaning it has become related to unexpected sectors. For instance, football’s been introduced into poker and gaming, with games such as Live Football Studio. If we look at the news, it’s now heavily dominated by footballer scandals and sensationalised gossip. Football has even delved into the shares market, with whole indexes available to trade players on. One main downside to this mass-globalisation is that the game is now more commercial and money-orientated than ever before, and that’s come back to bite Arsenal hard, with their owner unwilling to spend heavily.

Where City and Chelsea were investing heavily in players, Arsenal were not. And after yet another dismal away performance against one of the top sides, this time just a flattering 3-1 loss at City, fans were left frustrated once more. When will Arsenal be able to compete with the best in the league away from home?

Lucas Torreira has been a great signing, and at the start of the season looked to have stabled things up in the middle. Sead Kolasinac and Sokratis also made for useful, solid additions, but still a solid away win against City, Liverpool or even United eludes them. It seems it’s more than just a personnel issue. It’s a mentality issue. If fixed, it could be the key to Arsenal’s success in the future.