Kick in the Arsenal

"Bloody hell, French? I've got to play for a Frenchman? You must be joking."

The quote has long been attributed to legendary Arsenal hardman Tony Adams, upon hearing that Arsene Wenger would be the new manager of the side. I feel it's quite poignant right now.

I've come to realize that I tend to write a lot about Arsenal, even though I am far from a fan. Again, as mentioned before, I don't mean to demean or put down a club that is clearly going through a horrendous period of time, but these events are exactly what needs to be looked at.

The last time I took a long, hard, look at the Gunners, they had just been shot down at Old Trafford, and were still winless this season, with the worst defensive record in the league. Since then, they've managed a win, draw and loss in three games and truth be told, I'm still far from convinced that they will exit this slump anytime soon.

Their solitary win came at home against a side that at the time had not scored in the BPL (and looked like they should have against Arsenal) and they drew with the reigning Bundesliga champions in Germany. The latter result seems like a good one, but considering Dortmund were fourth seeds, it speaks volumes for the European credentials that Monsieur Wenger has gone on for so long about. And to be frank, his London side were battered throughout the game, and the lead they took was unlikely, at best. The Black & Yellows were surely disappointed to have only gone away with a point. I won't even start on the win against Swansea, which only came about due to an uncharacteristic blunder from unsung hero Michel Vorm.

I watched and examined the Blackburn-Arsenal game in great detail, as did many others, I'm sure. It goes without saying that once again, the Arsenal defence was in shambles. The terms "diabolical", "disastrous", "calamitous", and "amateur" have been used, and are thoroughly deserved. And this is an Arsenal defensive unit that welcomed back Alex Song and Bacary Sagna.

Now, Song and Sagna aren't exactly Vieira and Dixon. Nor are they Campbell or Cole. Heck, they aren't even Johnson and Agger, Bosingwa and Alex or even Rafael and Carrick. And I deplore Michael Carrick.

But those were two of the names missing, two of the reasons that many Arsenal fans (and staff) pointed to when they conceded 8 against United. They were back, and conceded four against Blackburn. Blackburn Rovers, who were until that point winless in the league, led by the only man that might have been under even more pressure that Arsene Wenger. And Song and Sagna were helped by the presence of new recruit Per Mertesacker, German international and who has played at two World Cups.

Or were they?

Mertesacker looks twice the player of Koscielny and Squillaci (put together), but that might be his biggest problem. He's huge. For so long, Arsenal's defensive frailties when dealing with set pieces and crosses have been picked apart - 51 of the last 100 goals they've let in before the win at Shrewsbury have been from such situations - and the big man's arrival was seen as Wenger's answer to that. We remember, of course, that Mertesacker's (panic?) purchase was only because the pursuits of Gary Cahill and Christopher Samba were in vain.

But even with Mertesacker, two of the four Arsenal conceded came from crosses and set pieces. His presence has failed to offer a solid base for the Arsenal back line, which was also evident in the (two) failed offside traps that led to Yakubu's opener. And Yakubu isn't even the sprightly sort of forward that is known for breaking the move. Andre Santos, another new defensive purchase, was most at fault for the goal, being yards behind his team-mates (who weren't in line anyway). But back to Mertesacker, there were times during the game where his addition to the side failed to help Arsenal against Rovers' set-pieces, especially in the first half.

With the transfer window shut, there isn't really much that Arsenal can do to address these concerns, other than wait for the return of Thomas Vermaelen. The way a side with such a history and (supposed) pedigree is banking so much on one defender speaks volumes for the aspirations and ambitions for the club that went a season unbeaten not so long ago. Their rivals have managed to get through even more injuries (United & Tottenham), player bans (City), loss of form (Chelsea) and even fewer options (Liverpool).

I have long accused Arsene Wenger for poor or even a lack of long-term planning, most recently after the 8-2 debacle at Old Trafford. If that was just a blip, albeit an astounding one, conceding four against Blackburn - when it could have been more - suggests that their defensive weakness is a problem that will only get worse as the season progresses and more and more teams start looking to exploit it as their primary game-plan. Purchases and player returns have not helped at all, and what lies in store for the Gunners?

Arsene Wenger has apparently survived a "vote of confidence" from the Arsenal board, which suggests, ironically, his position is more tenuous than it has ever been in all his years in charge, despite the Arsenal ship veering so dangerously and dramatically off-course in the past year (or more). Tony Adams is the kind of player most Arsenal fans have deemed missing from their side, and perhaps like he said so long ago, such defensive solidarity might elude Arsenal for as long as Wenger steers this domed vessel.