Arsenal: Bernd Leno getting annoyed with his defense

Arsenal’s elite keeper Bernd Leno spoke out in favor of his team’s offensive, but the defense? Well, let’s just say we all understood what he was saying.

Arsenal‘s defense was at fault for another two ugly goals, and while Bernd Leno had a big part to play in allowing the first, the second was a penalty, and thus far out of his control. On either side of those two goals, he made some tremendous saves and, after the match, he complimented his team.

Particularly the offense. And how they can score against anyone. He gushed over the addition of Nicolas Pepe and then went on to talk about the defense.

"“We can score against everybody but I think the key is always the balance with the defence because in the end that is the most important thing. We know about our character but also about the quality.”"

These players are so in tuned with not saying anything inflammatory. They are media trained. But it’s clear what Leno is saying.

This defense sucks.

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No matter how many goals we score, and we will score many goals, if we can’t defend our own goal, we’ll not be able to become the team we’re capable of being. “We know about our character” he says, and don’t we? So many personalities, so many trophies in that defense, but without the quality, what’s the point?

I’ve made this comparison before and I’ll make it again: Bernd Leno is a lot like Wojciech Szczesny. Both are immensely talented keepers with such a degree of heroism in their blood, but both have another similarity too—they both had the misfortune of playing behind some really awful back lines. Such that Szczesny was ousted for not being good enough before becoming the keeper at arguably the best defense in the world.

Leno is now what Szczesny would have been had he stayed. He is a keeper that can win us points, save us points, but he needs help from his defense in order to do so.

And sure, he will make some mistakes. Everyone does. But overall, he is an elite keeper. Which doesn’t matter if opposing teams are able to beat this defense as easily as they have been lately.

Leno was guilty for his part against Spurs, but he has been fantastic since his arrival and he deserves a defense that can protect him like Szczesny now has at Juventus.