Arsenal face West ham on Monday night in a London derby clash between two clubs struggling to get a foothold in the table. Both teams are gradually moving down the table and will be looking to improve their fortunes at the London Stadium. Manuel Pellegrini is also under the cosh, as West Ham look to improve on their place in the table, just a point above the relegation zone. Arsenal too have found life hard even after the sacking of Unai Emery in November.
Arsenal have already parted ways with the manager they started the season with, however their form has seen no real upturn. Ljungberg will take charge of the team for the third time and he desperately needs to get a win to keep the atmosphere around the club stable. Arsenal are currently in the midst of their worst run of form since 1977! With no wins in the last 11 competitive matches, things are looking bleak at the North London club.
Ljungberg’s appointment as temporary manager was expected to give new life to the failing season. Unfortunately, the players have failed to hack their way through the tough times and now sit 10th in the table, 10 points off the last Champions League place. After a 2-2 draw at Norwich, fans were hopeful of a much improved display against Brighton at the Emirates. Alas, the first half of the match sits amongst one of the worst showings in the season. While Arsenal managed to wrest back some form of attacking control, it was not enough as Brighton showed much more fight than them to win the match.
Time for Freddie to Prove Himself
Arsenal are in a precarious situation right now and there is a lot of unrest not just among the fan base, but also in the locker room. With very few things going right this season, it is vital to start winning football matches before the atmosphere takes a turn for the worst at the Emirates. A derby against a struggling West Ham could prove to be exactly what Arsenal need if they can keep hold of the ball, or, it could make matters worse. It would be folly to forget that West Ham defeated an in-form Chelsea at Stamford Bridge last weekend, after a lacklustre performance against Spuds before that.
Monday night will see Freddie Ljungberg take the helm once again at Arsenal, with his own future as the interim manager hanging in the balance. With the two matches already under his belt not showing much promise, Ljungberg is still in rocky waters. While his legendary status at the club should ensure the fans don’t turn on him immediately, another lacklustre performance may well speed up his time as caretaker manager. Will he manage to finally end Arsenal’s poor run of form and get them back on track? If not, is the club ready with a replacement in mind? Monday night should reveal a lot about how the rest of the season might play out for Arsenal.
