PETR CECH HAS acknowledged that he let Arsenal down during a 2-1 defeat at Brighton, with his performance not good enough.
In a contest which required the Gunners to have everyone performing at the peak of their powers, another disjointed display was delivered.
The struggles of recent weeks have rocked confidence within Arsene Wenger’s camp, and the problems just keep on mounting.
A trip to the Amex Stadium presented Arsenal with an opportunity to offer a positive response to those quick to criticise them on the back of successive defeats to Manchester City.
It was, however, to take just seven minutes for their frailties to be exposed by Brighton.
Cech was unable to deal with the threat posed by an early corner, allowing Lewis Dunk to fire home.
The veteran goalkeeper was then at fault again in the 26th minute, with a Glenn Murray effort squeezed under his body.
The 35-year-old is happy to take responsibility for another demoralising setback, with his personal display not up to scratch.
If you want to win a game away of home in the best league in the world your GK can’t concede 2 goals like I did today ... it’s simply not possible ... The team fought back but the damage was done .
— Petr Cech (@PetrCech) March 4, 2018
Defeat on the south coast leaves Arsenal languishing in sixth spot in the Premier League table, 13 points adrift of the top four.
They have now suffered four successive defeats in all competitions and gone 11 games without a clean sheet.
The problems facing Wenger are obvious, with the under-fire Frenchman unable to inspire an underperforming squad into producing the level of performance required to ease some of the pressure being piled on his shoulders.
Europa League glory remains up for grabs to the Gunners, but they are set to face Italian giants AC Milan at the last-16 stage of that competition and the contrast in form between two continental rivals heading into that contest could not be more marked.
Cech, then, needs to find a way of raising his standards, along with those around him, if a season in serious danger of imploding is to be salvaged.
The42 is on Instagram! Tap the button below on your phone to follow us!
Remember carragher said he would save us points? He’s more finished then Wenger ffs
@Jordo: your problems go a lot deeper than Cech I’m afraid bud
@Jordo: your problems go a lot deeper than Cech im afraid bud
@Jordo: who would have thought I would rather have Almunia in goal than Cech
@Jordo: but at least you’ve won more cups than spurs eh? I mean , that’s the main thing. It doesn’t matter how awful Arsenal are and it never will because they’ve still won more than spurs. Could get relegated and still won more than spurs. And that’s all that matters!
Embarrassed to be an Arsenal fan blud
@Willy: I’m fully aware of that
@Jordo: I think he meant you personally rather than Arsenal the team.
@Jordo: I don’t think you are unfortunately.
@William Motley: that’s all Arsenal fans have to cling onto now. They’re in a very sorry state – a manager who has lost the confidence of his dressing room, highly paid “stars” that don’t want to fight, an American majority shareholder who is too nonchalant to make changes in case he looses money and a board too frightened to stand up to the majority shareholder. I always said they were more a business than a football club, they are a SE London franchise….they’re obsessed with history but that’s what it comes down to now. I’m loving it, Daniel Levy is learning from these mugs and how not to finance and build a billion pound stadium.
AC Milan will pummel these spoofers
@Willy: to be fair, AC are having a terrible season too by their standards so it could go either way…
@Ottoman: do you follow football?
@Ottoman: you know they haven’t lost in 12 games?
@Tadhg: You must have been asleep or out of it for a few weeks there so you replied in true Otto style, not breaking character, I like it.
@Ottoman: not been watching smthe italian footy in about three months m8?
They’ll be grand when Seaman gets back fit again!
Czech s confidence is getting a battering , some of the guys in front of him are robbing a living ? Arsenal should try to recover their form ( wenger s job to get the best from them ) and throw all at the Europa cup ? Not an impossibility ?
@Tricksy: it’s not his confidence he’s just simply not good enough
@Jordo: hey jordo , honestly hope ye win Thursday night . At the end of the day we are soccer supporters . Good luck friend .
I think poor petr is begging to be dropped with that tweet!!