Arsenal Vs Swansea: Complacency cannot reign

Arsenal travel to the Liberty Stadium to face Swansea City on Tuesday night. After Liverpool lost last weekend, they cannot afford to let complacency reign as they attempt to haul their way back into the top four.

A league campaign consists of 38 gruelling games. Some are, in theory, easier than others; some are, in practice, easier than others. It is an undulating, meandering, up-and-down beast, boasting buoyant peaks and crisis-sparking troughs. It is unruly, unpredictable, and changeable. It is long.

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Unlike a shorter, more explosive cup competition, where purple-patch form can be greatly rewarded, a league requires consistency. Short spurts of flourishing football, while lovely when they happen, do not lend to successful league endeavours over extended periods. Similarly, the opportunity to slip up abounds. Around every corner is a challenge; over every hill is another ridge to climb.

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Complacency, therefore, cannot be accommodated. Even against perceived lesser teams, the expected winner cannot assume their superiority. They must prove it. And Arsenal are in that precise scenario next week when they travel to Liberty Stadium to face bottom-of-the-table Swansea City. Thankfully, Arsene Wenger seems acutely aware of the threat of the naivety in overlooking the Swans. Here is what he had to say in his latest press conference on Friday morning:

"“When you don’t win you are criticised and I think Liverpool tried and what is a good warning for us is that Liverpool are an attacking team – you cannot criticise them for not attacking, they are very dangerous going forward and they didn’t manage to score against Swansea. That is a good warning for us that we have to produce absolute total offensive performance.”"

It is an attitude that easily seeps into the squad and the club. An air of confidence and self-belief is important. In fact, it is vital. Football is a ruthless sport. Players, and by extension their teams, must be assured and assertive in their own ability, convinced that they can deliver to the level that is expected.

But that certainty can turn into complacency.  It is at this point that the mental state of the squad can become extremely dangerous. Liverpool, for example, found out to their detriment on Monday night, failing to break down a stubborn Swansea side, ultimately falling to an Alfie Mawson goal.

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This is a game that Arsenal should absolutely win; this is a game that Arsenal absolutely must win if they harbour genuine hopes of challenging for the top four. But it is not a game that they will win if they overlook it. It deserves its due. Wenger must be prepared to give it.