Dec 27
I guess I was right all along. A lot of you doubted that Almunia would be in the squad for a prolonged period of time, in favor of Lehmann. Even though Almunia hasn’t been the best goalkeeper ever, there is now a more relaxed feeling in the Arsenal squad. He has made his mistakes but has learned from them and I for one am proud of him. I think Almunia has been given a lot of stick, but he has come through and is improving every match. I suppose Wenger bought him for a reason, eh?!?!
14 Responses to “Wenger Agrees with Joanne”
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December 27th, 2004 at 8:33 pm
He’s definitely looking increasingly comfortable, but I can’t help but think the improvement has a lot to do with the return of Sol at the back.
That being said, I’ve been very pleased with some of the nice reaction saves he’s been making; while Lehmann is a great sweeper keeper when it comes to raw instinct I’ve found him a little lacking at times.
December 27th, 2004 at 9:35 pm
The jury is still out on Almunia. I think Lehmann lost his starting job when he let in that last second long range goal from Mellor against Pool. A top class keeper is not supposed to be beaten by such a long range effort - it smacks of lack of concentration by Lehmann. As long as Arsenal continues to win and win with a good defensive performance (ie not the 5-4 type of win), Wenger will keep faith with Almunia. Some of the goals conceded by Gunners have to be attributed to Lehmann - so I think changing to Almunia does bring back some confidence to the rest of the defensive players. That said, I do not think Wenger will buy a keeper in the January transfer window.
December 27th, 2004 at 10:23 pm
Never been a Lehmann fan. Dunno about this Almunia, though it could be argued that he could only get better with games under his belt. I however think a keeper should have some command of English, how do you organize things at the back? To think we could have got Paul Robinson instead of Almunia and Defoe instead of Reyes - whose arguing with this one? Jermaine Defoe is the closest thing to Henry in the premiership and was considered instead of Reyes as Henry’s strike partner. Can’t argue with his play, his goals and his ability to stay on his feet. Sometimes I wonder in Wenger’s appetite for players foreign is doing us a disservice.
December 27th, 2004 at 11:36 pm
Agree with Jose. We can’t judge a keeper in a few games. Alex Manninger had a great run for us during the 98 winning season, so did Stuart Taylor in 2002. Yet none of them could hold out a starting place.
Look at what the press and media had pressed about Tim Howard last season, or the so-called best keeper in the world in Barthez a few seasons back… they were soon brought down to earth in Manchester.
I’m not saying Almunia a bad keeper, but it’s too premature to decide whether he’s really up for the job.
December 27th, 2004 at 11:55 pm
I would not exactly count Jose Reyes as down and out. I also would say that he has FAR MORE TALENT than Defoe will ever have. The kid is 20?! Has shown flashes of brilliance… and can only get better with time. Reyes will pan out in a year or 2… Defoe? I doubt he ever becomes a superstar.
Robinson? what has he ever done? British keepers are not usually very good for very long. David Seaman was obviously the exception to the rule, but I don’t know too many world class British keepers at the moment. American goalies are better right now…
Jury is still out on Almunia, but you can’t change a winning side. I feel for Jens… if he doesn’t play much in the coming weeks… he will depart.
Wenger’s appetite for foreigners had brought us all the trophies and accolades we’ve gotten over the past few years. Our best players are foreign. I KNOW there is a Brit contingent that this pisses off… but there aren’t too many Brit players I would currently want on our team, and they are more often than not OVERPRICED because they are British. Bring in Gerrard, and I wouldn’t care what we pay.
December 28th, 2004 at 12:53 am
Andez makes a great point about the recent history of “sensational” keepers in the prem. (Howard especially) I never viewed Lehmann as a superstar, but rather a shaky roleplayer with equal moments of brilliance and tomfoolery. I think Almunia is doing well under the circumstances, and his “episodes” are getting scarcer in number. Is he the long term solution to our keeper dilemma? No. But if he can get us through the next difficult period, or at least serve as a wake-up call to Jensy, then I’ll be satisfied.
Come on you Gunners!
December 28th, 2004 at 2:20 am
Jury is out on Reyes. Nobody is doubting his talent, but I doubt he’ll ever be as influential as Henry or Pires. Why should he keep getting a chance others never seem to have, his price tag??? I’d take Defoe over him anyday. Today’s potential is not tomorrows ability.
Robinson is better than Lehmann or Almunia. I can’t believe we are having this argument. You used to argue for Lehmann with al his glaring flaws until he got benched. Loyalty is fine, but that’s no reason to cloud fair analysis.
December 28th, 2004 at 2:26 am
Defoe is well on his way to becoming a superstar.
December 28th, 2004 at 5:58 am
Almunia singlehanded saved Albacete last season according to the spanish press, the guy must be made of something good to pull that off. Can anyone name me a single player from that team?? He really was a revalution there. He has been tested by some greath shots and made some excelent reflex saves and not made any serious blunders since his first three games, so he is growing as a player. Let’s not forget that coming into a team like Arsena under the circumstances he did was never going to be easy for any keeper. Replacing a veteran keeper in a team that had lost the confidence and selfbelive and the whole nation and world looking down your neck! He is not proven as a goolie yet but so far he have done all that anyone could ask of him really. It will be interesting to see Wengers next move!
December 28th, 2004 at 7:12 am
Can’t believe we’re still talking about Robinson. Wenger looked at him a couple of seasons ago and he failed the reaaction tests. (He also failed them at Villa so they backed off too.) Toldo will be available on a free at the end of the season.
Miranda
December 28th, 2004 at 8:32 am
I have to agree with others who have said here that an organizing and commanding influence in the back four makes for a confident and solid keeper. Sol’s return is definitely keeping things together, although he was part of a problematic back four before his departure. And Rio Ferdinand being out the bulk of last season I think hurt Tim Howard. Both of these guys have had an enormous influence and that gets noticed when they’re not in.
In my opinion, a keeper can be world class if he has great reflexes and a solid, commanding midfield and back four. No need to do the impossible like run out to the halfway line and sweep a ball. Ashedown was a handful for us at Pompey, and we let him go after 8 games. He’s just having his day with a determined squad and let’s hope that continues against Chelsea.
On the flip side, Brad Friedel and Kasey Keller have had no help, and are still chosen for the 11th ranked US international team. Incidentally, Germany, home of the Kahn/Lehmann legacy, is 19th. Statistics don’t always tell the tale, unfortunately. Replacement Kiraly and Wenger favorite Jaaskelainen have given quality performances, and may end up in the first division, which could make them a fraction of the price of David James.
So if Almunia just stays alert and reflexive (which he has), and as has been said here can communicate where he wants his walls and such, and the rest of our squad pulls their own weight, the rest of the EPL can have their high-priced keepers. Hey, even Cech fell asleep when we went up 2-0.
December 28th, 2004 at 8:38 am
I completely agree with you, Ziggy. He’s under a TREMENDOUS amount of pressure. More so than Petr Cech, in my opinion, who’s had the benefit of the Blue wall and a consistently dependable John Terry to rely on since the start of the season. We’re the defending EPL undefeated champions…that either makes you think you’ve got nothing to lose, or that your options are up if you fail.
And its got to be nice for the defending midfield and back four to know that your keeper is more than thrilled to be there, always in touch with you, and not in any hurry to make his mark or prove himself internationally against another spanish keeper. Not yet anyway!
December 28th, 2004 at 10:33 am
I would still rather Lehmann than Almunia, I don’t deny that. He is more steady. Almunia is a big question mark.
Robinson… never done a damned thing. I don’t think he’s better than Howard, Keller or Friedel. As someone else pointed out… Wenger had his chance at Robinson, and simply wasn’t interested. That says it all on him.
Henry didn’t exactly light up the sky in his first full season at Arsenal… ANELKA was the star. Who is to say Reyes won’t blossom next season.
I wouldn’t trade Reyes for Defoe EVER.
December 28th, 2004 at 10:35 am
I wouldn’t trade Reyes for Defoe in a MILLION years. No contest in my mind.