There is an old black and white film by the name of The Arsenal Stadium Mystery, but one of the biggest mysteries involving the club at present is their infuriating ability to confound expectation and fall to embarrassing defeats.

This time it was a 2-0 defeat to West Ham at the start of a season when the Gunners are expected to challenge for major honours and tonight on Off The Ball, renowned French football writer Philippe Auclair was as perplexed as anyone else. 

"It's all the more strange. It's that old thing of when they are in a position where they are the clear favourites, they should be able to control a game and take all points - a bit like what happened against Monaco in the Champions League when honestly, they went out to that side is absolutely ridiculous," said Auclair.

"They should never have gone out to Monaco as they proved in the second leg when honestly they had a mountain to climb and nearly went to the top. So it is this frustration and you could question the character of the players. But surely, there is a point where you've got to question the preparation of the manager and their staff." 

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