August 14, (THEWILL) – The performance of north London English Premier League side Arsenal in Friday’s shocking defeat to newly promoted Brentford is still evoking strong reactions in England among football fans and it has done the same in Rwanda as well with President Paul Kagame reserving tough words for the team.
The fervent 63-year-old supporter of the Gunners was largely unimpressed by the level of Arsenal’s performance and demonstrated this, as did most other supporters of the club’s fanbase, when he said “we just must NOT excuse or accept mediocrity.”
As THEWILL reported, Sergi Canos scored Brentford’s first EPL goal in 74 years to open the scoring before Christian Norgaard also found the net from a free throw to earn the Bees a well-fought and deserved 2-0 win on their Premier League debut.
Even the manager Mikel Arteta was honest enough to concede that the performance was abysmal and deserved to be described as mediocre by the Rwandan President. Kagame showed how much of a fan he is in his pained post-match reaction via a post on Twitter through his personal account @PaulKagame.
His words revealed how he had followed the team’s decline over the years as the Gunners are no longer considered in the same class as Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea. He also queried the management that has brought this about.
He tweeted: “We just must not excuse or accept mediocrity. A team has to be built with a purpose to win win-win. So that when we lose…it was not to be expected!
“It’s been a struggle of about decade(s) -ups&downs-more downs until this point. Can’t we have a plan that really works?? One part to look at is how we deal in the market- players we buy to execute the plan. The touch&go mentality does not bring change.”
As THEWILL noted, it only gets tougher for Arteta’s side that is still without the front pair of goalscorers Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette for their next tougher tie against UEFA Champions League and Super Cup winners Chelsea next Sunday. That will be followed by another hard fixture against EPL champions Manchester City.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
