“Not fit to wear the shirt”, “Costing us major trophies” – Fans urge Arteta to drop Arsenal star after poor performance in draw with Fulham
Arsenal fans have urged Mikel Arteta to drop Aaron Ramsdale from the starting XI after he was caught out of position for both of Fulham's goals today (August 26).
The north London outfit had a bright start to their 2023-24 Premier League campaign, winning both their games against Nottingham Forest (2-1) and Crystal Palace (1-0). However, Arsenal hit a roadblock on Saturday after being held 2-2 against 10-men Fulham at the Emirates.
The visitors took a shock lead within the first minute of the game. Bukayo Saka played a poor back-pass which was intercepted by Andreas Pereira. The latter caught Aaron Ramsdale off-balance, finding the bottom-left corner.
The Gunners went close to finding the back of the net multiple times but Fulham showed their resilience and were able to get into half-time with their lead intact.
Arsenal were able to get back into the game when Kenny Tete brought down Fabio Vieira in the box in the 67th minute, giving the home side a penalty. Saka cooly dispatched his spot-kick to level the scores.
The Gunners took the lead in the 72nd minute through Eddie Nketiah. They appeared to have had the three points in the bag after Calvin Bassey was given a second yellow card in the 83rd minute. However, Joao Palhinha equalized after striking the ball away from Ramsdale following a Fulham corner in the 87th minute.
The Cottagers held on to secure an important point, much to the chagrin of Mikel Arteta and Co.
Arsenal fans slammed Ramsdale on X (formerly known as Twitter) for being ineffective during both of Fulham's goals. The 25-year-old looked exposed on the counter and was partly at fault for both goals. He also had poor distribution, with a 40% accurate long ball rate, and was subsequently given a rating of just 5.7 on FotMob.
Some reactions can be viewed below:
The Gunners signed Brentford's David Raya on loan so they have a solid option if needed to call off the bench. But it's unlikely that Arteta will drop Ramsdale after one poor game.
Arsenal vs Fulham: Exploring the stats from Premier League Clash
Arsenal were held to a frustrating 2-2 draw against 10-men Fulham at home on Saturday. They are currently third in the Premier League table with seven points after three appearances. Let's take a look at the stats to see how both teams performed on the pitch.
The Gunners dominated possession, controlling 72% of the ball and completing 676 passes with an accuracy of 90%. In contrast, Fulham only had 28% possession and completed just 268 passes with an accuracy of 71%.
Mikel Arteta and Co. were also more industrious in attack. They registered 19 shots in total (with 11 being on target), whereas the Cottagers only had eight shots (three on target).
Despite Arsenal's statistical domination, they were unable to make the most of their chances and dropped two points. They next face Manchester United at home on September 3.