Tom P

Jon Lewis advert

Very weak refereeing so far. Scared of the crowd being on his back

Thunder follows the flash On Gabriel Martinelli, lucidity, and a controlled anger

A story about Gabriel Martinelli, and Pep Guardiola the coward

No indecision You always, always come home.

An ode to Noni Madueke, and the story we didn't care to tell

Different stories The narrative engine hits overdrive, already

Why didn't you just try to win, Arne?

Excellent piece - thanks Tom

It’s really weird but the 16th and 17th place teams in the Premier League don’t look very good.

football fans in general have just become too obsessed with other clubs

Do you think the Ipswich Town fans would be booing Jack Grealish like they're booing Bukayo Saka?

I don't.

Imagine telling a group of Arsenal supporters in August that #AFC would thrash Real Madrid with Mikel Merino up front, Jakub Kiwior in defence and Myles Lewis-Skelly at left-back. Some fans might not have even heard of MLS. It's a remarkable triumph of coaching and culture.

'In the difficult moments, the tree is going to shake, so my job is to convince everybody that this is how we are going to live.'

This week's column, on a season where the tree has shaken, nights like Tuesday are as much about the culture Arteta has built, as well as the team and the tactics 👇🔴⚪️

Lewis-Skelly is being officiated by a reputation he totally doesn’t deserve. It’s so frustrating.

We had total control of this game and our best players coming on and then the referee basically took control of the game.

The match official intentionally shifted the balance of the match.

That’s what they want. Control.

Wesley Fofana stamped on Declan Rice, caught Trossard on the shin with his studs, hauled him down to stop a counter attack and scythed down Lewis-Skelly at the edge of the box. No bookings.

But, when he threw a ball on the pitch, he was carded.

Technicalities over player safety. Incompetence. #AFC

What is wrong with Arsenal finishing second? Maybe the answer is: nothing | Barney Ronay Not signing a striker, too many injuries, too intense – the supposed fatal flaws in Mikel Arteta’s team ignore their consistent success

What is wrong with Arsenal finishing second? Maybe the answer is: nothing | Barney Ronay

Not optimistic but would really like for Mateta injury to bring refereeing / PGMOL / IFAB to refocus priorities.

🔴Stop deprioritising violent conduct and serious foul play
🔴Stop focusing on nonsense nobody cares about
🔴Treat dangerous tackles around the head / face far more seriously.

YouTube video by Ollie Thomas Why does everyone HATE Arsenal?

A Crystal Palace fan explains why people hate Arsenal and does a really good job

www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHpj...

This is why I love Ian Wright, always says the things every other pundit is too cowardly to.

This place still feels a bit small, not football focused, but maybe we could try and connect Arsenal fans at least.

If you are an Arsenal fan, leave a reply, people can follow, also please repost or whatever it's called her and hopefully it can spread. #arsenal

It's great when individuals who work for broadcasting outlets that have shows like 'Ref Watch' and who focus so, so much of their match coverage on refereeing decisions start wondering why there is so much focus on referees and conclude that it is because of Mikel Arteta.

Is there a conspiracy against Arsenal? Probably not – but the feeling is real VAR, PGMOL statements and former referees' comments in the media can often enflame the discussion over refereeing decisions and anger fans

Why have we given referees the keys to the game and made them the main characters? It’s so so tedious.

On PGMOL’s overreach and how conspiracy theories become tempting when fans feel like they’re being gaslit and condescended towards ⬇️

www.nytimes.com/athletic/609...

PGMOL is beyond saving. The whole organisation just needs to go. They’re a lethal mix of incompetent and complacent. Get rid and start again.

Glad to see the Lewis Skelly red is being roundly condemned but we can’t treat it as a black swan event or a one off aberration. Webb is trying to create a culture of referees being stars and it needs to stop and it needs to be called out.

At this point, serious questions have to be asked about Michael Oliver. I'll start: is he biased, corrupt or just utterly incompetent?

And if PGMOL attempt to defend that decision, they might as well declare that they're not fit for purpose.

As it stands, Myles Lewis-Skelly is suspended for 3 games due to that travesty of a decision from Michael Oliver.

We have to appeal. The red card alone was unjust, missing three games on top of that is just not acceptable.

VAR just didn’t bother checking properly. Again.