3 areas where Arsenal’s team mentality is worryingly weak

3. Negative Football Until it’s Too Late

The outstanding criticism directed at Arsenal across this season has been their inability to capitalise on positive game states. When taking the lead the natural response is to shrink into their shells and protect whatever faint lead they may have, no matter what minute of the game it is.

Against Everton there was less of that. The natural response was to fall back onto that fallacy as clarification for the performance. In all honesty, Arsenal were just bad. They didn’t stop playing when they took the lead, they just played dreadfully.

Their mental fragility still came through, though.

Arsenal played their best football when the score was 1-1. In some ways, it showed a degree of resilience like had been seen against Old Trafford when falling behind, as they actually moved the ball around with purpose, poise and with a previously unseen degree of threat.

The question is why did it take until then to occur. Why wait until the game is in its manic final few minutes where transitions needs to be managed with tired legs on yellow cards to step up the intensity, play on the front foot and look to go through a poor Everton side?

It’s evident that the players have the talent to play with an intent and with a threat, they are just unable to overcome this giant mental hurdle that sees that conviction locked away for 80% of matches.