Directing racist abuse at Toney? You're no Gooner. Jog on.

From a previous incident...

I'd like to say a few words about any so-called Arsenal fans who have directed racial abuse at Ivan Toney after his controversial late equaliser on Sunday: GTFO. Hand in your Arsenal shirts, posters, scarves and anything else. Sod off to Milwall or Chelsea. You're not wanted here. We'll set aside fancy words like hypocrisy and cognitive dissonance, for these are almost certainly too lengthy and polysyllabic for you to understand, and the last thing I want to do is to enrage someone whose idea of a legitimate reaction to conceding a goal is to hurl racist abuse at the scorer. If you doubt me, take out your sarcasm detector and check.

Arsenal 1-1 Brentford: Player Ratings & MOTM Poll Results

It really is a pity that I can't offer you negative numbers to choose in situations like this one when VAR got a decision so horribly wrong that you start to wonder about Lee Mason's IQ. Still, when you only score one goal while playing at less than your best, you really are rolling the dice. The result pegs us back to a mere three-point lead over Man City with a massive six-pointer to play on Wednesday. Do our recent struggles reflect a deeper problem, or have we been so eager to go toe-to-toe with them that we've looked past Everton and Brentford? Let's hope it's the latter. Well, 514 Gooners weighed in and denied No One a second consecutive MOTM award. 38.1% of us gave it to Trossard, suggesting that it might be nice to see a bit more than a half-hour from him sooner rather than later, especially how out of form Martinelli has been lately. Thomas Frank did say that the stability of our lineup does it make a bit easier to prepare for us... Well, enough pondering. Let's look at the results below the fold.

Arsenal 4:1 West Ham—Vote for Player Ratings & MOTM!

In a strangely subdued performance, one that in no way reflected the significance of a week in which a manager of 22 years announced his retirement, Arsenal labored for 80-odd minutes before finally rising to the occasion. Nacho Monreal opened the second half with a scuffed finish from Xhaka's corner, but it wasn't until the 81st minute that we could feel at all settled. Ramsey sent in a cross that Aubameyang dummied a header for, bamboozling Hart (who had been excellent). Late on, Lacazette found a brace that left it at 4-1, and we could sit back, relax, and enjoy it. Well, let's get down to the poll!

Burnley 0-1 Arsenal—Vote for Player Ratings/MOTM!

Wave after wave of the Arsenal attack crashed up against Burnley's defense but looked like we'd never break through. The hosts had a number of chances in the first half but seemed to settle on defending with tenacity in the second as Arsenal probed and pressed for a goal. It was always going to be tough to score here; Burnley have only conceded two goals in six matches. It seemed like we'd squander a chance to gain ground on Tottenham, Liverpool, and Chelsea, who all drew on Saturday. Then, in stoppage time, Tachowski brought Ramsey down in the box and Lee Mason pointed to the spot. Alexis made no mistake, and that's 0-1 to the Arsenal. Let's get down to the poll!

Arsenal 2-1 Swansea—vote for player-ratings/MOTM!

Arsenal dominated most of the first half only to see Swansea's Clucas score on a counter, and it looked like Swansea's defensive set-up would be enough to keep the clean sheet. However, we came storming out of halftime with two goals, as Kolašinac scored during a scramble and then assisted Ramsey moments later. There was a ten-to-fifteen minute stretch there during which it looked like Arsenal would blow the game wide-open. In the end, though, things settled down into a comfortable rhythm, more or less, or Swansea never really rose to the occasion after that. It's three points in the bag against a club we've struggled to beat in the past, and it's enough to see us climb into the top four, if only temporarily. Good enough for now. Let's get down to the poll to rate the lads!

Slip slidin' away...or a set-up for a second-half surge?

Liverpool got lucky with a late equaliser at Anfield. It's impossible to win at the Brit. Chelsea were gifted another man-advantage win. We made nine changes to face Burnley. Forster played an absolute blinder. For each dispiriting result, there's an individual excuse, some isolated reason why Arsenal could not find more points. However, we're mired in the muck of a majestic morass at the moment, and no amount of finger-pointing at Lee Mason is going to change that. This misfiring squad has shot itself in the foot too many times in recent weeks. That, however, sets the stage for a stunning surge the likes of which we haven't seen in several seasons.

Tactical Preview: Arsenal v. Southampton

After three disappointing Prem results, we finally got back to winning ways in an FA Cup win over Burnley. Offering a nifty study in parallel universes, Southampton have bounced back from an FA Cup loss with three impressive Prem results. Something's got to give. Here's hoping it's the Saints' little win streak (each of them a clean sheet, by the way). After dropping seven points from our last three matches, we have to get back to winning ways in the Prem. Leicester host Liverpool while Man City visit Sunderland. There may not be quite enough to see us climb top of the table, but we'll have to at least keep pace...