Arsenal Vs Rennes: Where was the leadership?

Arsenal fell to Rennes 3-1 in the Europa League on Thursday night after having Sokratis sent off in the first half. It leaves me with one burning question: Where was the leadership?

Arsenal were left completely stunned after Rennes blew them away on Thursday night. The shock 3-1 defeat now means it will take a gigantic effort to turn fortunes around next week.

Find the latest episode of the Pain in the Arsenal Podcast here — Rubbish Rennes, Article of the Week

It was a bad all-round display from the team and, with the sending off of Sokratis and continued suspension of Alexandre Lacazette, they will have to overturn the two-goal deficit without two key players.

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That, though, is for the future. For now, there is one burning question after the horrific second-half showing: Where was the captain?

Laurent Koscielny was given the armband. He is the club captain. But was he really doing the job that a captain in football needs to do? Was he really pushing his teammates to the limits? I am not so sure. And this lack of leadership is costing the Gunners. After they were down to 10 men early in the game, it was the duty of Koscielny to be the leader and re-organise, to grab the shirts and tell the boys not to drop those shoulders, to get them to play hard, mentally as well as physically.

Why is this communication lacking on the part of every single captain? Why is there not even a single leader in the Arsenal team? Or, if there is, why aren’t they doing their job?

A captain plays a big role in defining the mentality of a side as well as its character. In situations like these, the pivotal role of a captain comes into play. He can ignite a team’s prowess or allow them to fall completely off balance, just as Arsenal did yesterday due to the lack of leadership on the pitch.

Diego Godin’s leadership masterclass against them in last year’s Europa League semi-final serves as a prime example as to what a great captain and leader should be able to do. He galvanised his Atletico Madrid teammates and ensured that the tie was not lost when they fell a man down after just 10 minutes.

This defeat has raised many questions, but the biggest problem that I am foreseeing in this team is the lack of a solid captain figure. I am often reminded of Patrice Viera when we speak of leaders. It is difficult to envisage any of the current players having his kind of charismatic, challenging inspiration in the dressing room. In fact, perhaps the only one who could was trudging down the tunnel after being sent off.

There is still everything to play for in the second leg and I believe that Arsenal can turn it around at the Emirates. But their issues of leadership have been long-standing and hugely detrimental. They reared their ugly head on Thursday. That cannot happen again.