I have been wanting to post this for a while now but I wanted to wait till our “big tests” got over. Also after reading through Rick’s article which puts a lot of things into perspective - I thought. Yes we WILL have a blip, we WILL lose somewhere to someone and we will moan. However when all that is done and we are in May 08 — Will Arsenal be top of the table?
Here’s what I think:
1.If Toure/Gallas play as well as they have recently we have a big big chance , which increases if Sagna stays fit throughout.
2.Manuel Almunia — He will not face ManUnited every other week and he has not been as woeful as people suggest some places. He made 2 half mistakes in the ManU game; the first one worse than the second I feel where he didn’t need to be running across his goal; no way Rooney was going to get his shot that far with Gallas sticking to him(near post goal). But that said and post Slavia Prague where he made an excellent save — it brings to the fore a point Fred raised. Does a great team always need to have a GREAT goalkeeper? Sure a Petr Cech or a Buffon does help..but can a good defense with an average keeper win the league? VDS for ManU is a decent keeper — not great but they won the league; so lets see what happens.
3.Left Back — Is a problem IMO. Gael Clichy has plateaued in the last 5 games. Maybe he has played a lot; that is why but I cant help but feel that Le Boss needs to think of giving Traore a game here and there or Kieran Gibbs or whoever just to give Clichy a break. If he gets injured, next in line is The Flamster. Which means attacking down the left is going to be pretty much zilch — specially with Mozart being out injured half the time.
Verdict — We need our first back 4 to be fit. Else we will not WIN anything.
4.Midfield — Cesc n Hleb have to play nearly every consequential game. Else our creativity goes for a toss and Diaby and Denilson just havent got a run of games to get settled and try and prove themselves so there will be a drop in quality. Diarra is not going to play unless Flamini gets injured so if he is really better than Flamini its great because it means we’re well stocked there. However this team has players who can absorb pressure and keep ball without creating so if we do need to go ultra defensive like at Prague we have the players who can shut down shop and pass it around. An important ingredient against BIG sides.
Verdict — If our play makers stay healthy and fresh we can do it. The more games the magic triangle plays in the more we will WIN.
5.Strikers — I’m a bit worried here; much more than the other places. RVP injured meant that Ade had to take his place but its not really happening for the big man despite his excellent team ethic. Eduardo has been invisible so far and NB and Theo cannot be relied upon YET. So I think it’s but fair to say that while we do NOT need to BUY any new strikers we need Eduardo in particular to start scoring once in a way just so he slowly gains confidence going into March-April-May. Ade’s goals come in fits and spurts as Fred said once and once RVP is back we will get a major goal scoring threat back as well.
Verdict — I’m not so sure. I don’t think we have enough in the tank to last a season. Then again if Cesc keeps scoring like he has we might not need the other forwards to step up big time. But to feel safe Eduardo n Ade need to find their shooting boots and get at least 10-12 each in the EPL. If they do we can WIN something.
OVERALL???
I will put my NECK out today and say that WE WILL WIN THE LEAGUE. Looking at the last 3 draws has not thrilled me but shown me that the side has some amazing qualities which it did not have last year. Football is not just showboating ; its about working hard and staying humble and believing that you’re only as good as your last result. You have got to do it week in week out; if the kids can keep their feet on the ground and work hard they can win the league; no question. On top of it Fergie is rattled and today Wayne Rooney has mouthed off saying “Kiev was like a training session” ..
Finally to quote a very famous line…
“If you really want something badly enough the whole universe will conspire to make it happen” — The Alchemist
So do the kids WANT IT BADLY ENOUGH???
12 Responses to “A title tilt - Are we ready?”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
November 9th, 2007 at 10:13 am
LDE, i thought of writing something similiar a while ago. Like u, didn’t wanna do it before that 2 so-called “big test”, just in case falling falt on my face!
to response to the subject, I think talent wise we are ready. but to win the title we also have to see how other teams are doing.
Man Utd, as i insisted even after their early season slip, they are always the main threat. It’s not about any individual talent of their side, more down to the fact they have a kind of killer instinct as a team, to get result week in week out.
i look at the rest of the Premiership, apart from Chelsea or Liverpool maybe, it’s difficult to see which teams are capable off nicking a point or two from them.
their main advantage over us is their experience. they have done it before, and probably will be able to hold the nerve a little better than us.
There is also Chelsea. They got a quality squad. And A.Grant has proved that u don’t need to be “special” to get result with this mega million squad.
At the end of the day, i guess it’s down to who hold the nerve better.
November 9th, 2007 at 11:05 am
@Andez: I sent u a Gmail invite on the ID u registerd with here? Did u get it? If u chat online we cn speak online sometime…if u wish
November 9th, 2007 at 12:08 pm
sure LDE! i will go check.
November 9th, 2007 at 12:16 pm
For me, the main concern always has been and will be - GOALS.
RvP is our only attacking threat and that is based on one good half-season. This season, he has shown the same skills and was set to go big before the injury. Once he is back, he should be able to score consistently
Cesc has blossomed this season. Well beyond even my expectations and I predicted 10 goals for him. But how long will he do it? I asked this before the 2 big games and he came up trumps.
Ade has been decent and scored big against small teams. No small feat as we need someone to do that as well, but has run into a dry patch. With his lack clinical finishing, that kind of stuff is to be expected.
Beyond that, we cannot see anybody at the moment. One of Eduardo, Walcott and Bendtner needs to step up, big time. If that happens, I will feel a lot more confident. Otherwise, I’ll be happy to settle for 2nd place, but even that could come under threat by Chelsea.
November 9th, 2007 at 12:23 pm
I am taking a liking to Rafael van der Vaart. He is not a true winger but exactly in the Rosicky/Hleb mould that Wenger likes. One big difference when compared to Rosicky/Hleb - he can score. 52 in 117 for Ajax, 24 in 53 for Hamburg and 11 in 48 for Holland. Not bad at all. He is currently leading the Bundesliga scoring charts and is also a left footed midfielder.
November 9th, 2007 at 3:09 pm
Looks like Rooney is out for 4 weeks. I hope Blackburn can take some points off them this weekend. They should have a decent shot now.
November 9th, 2007 at 6:24 pm
nipuna….yep, i luv the look of van der Vaart…i was hoping we would get him this last summer. he is in the mold of hleb and rosicky but more “cynical” and with a sharper eye for goal. he would definitely give us something special and extra.
and the best part is that he is not CL cup tied!
lets see what AW does in january though.
November 9th, 2007 at 8:21 pm
Well reasoned arguments, however, I differ when it comes to Clichy. His pace and work rate has been exceptional… he’s a lot more talented than I gave him credit going into the season. Against Slavia this week, we looked to be the most fit player on the pitch (as woeful as we played).
I agree with Nipuna about our biggest concern… scoring. It seems to have dried up as late. I would really like to see Hleb and Rosicky start scoring from the wings. When we isolate our stikers up top we are getting nothing.
It’s hard to complain about the season so far. But now is never a particularly good time of year for us and the margin for error at the top is so slim. We need to win the next three game because we SHOULD win them.
November 9th, 2007 at 8:24 pm
I predicted (more in hope) at the start of the season we would top the league. No reason to back down on that prediction now.
The six weeks after the international break are a big test with a lot of away games (many up north) and only a few home games, including Chelsea and Spurs. If we are still unbeaten at the end of December, we are right in there.
Our points tally shows title form but so does Utds.
November 10th, 2007 at 12:15 am
BBC “pundit” Mark Lawrenson tips Reading to draw against us. I think we should win but that game in itself should tell us a lot about our firepower. Will it be Cesc again who steps up or will anyone else score?
November 10th, 2007 at 8:26 am
reading’s defender sonko just discovered that sagna is his cousin. they will meet for the very first time on monday. maybe sonko wanna make a good impression to his new cousin by letting him slip in and score our winning goal. 1-0 to the good new arsenal and sagna the only scorer!
November 10th, 2007 at 8:27 am
while it’s obvious our credentials have been checked and approved by many this season don’t forget we were a team in “transition” just last season and a lot of what’s gonna keep it going is spirit and confidence, man.u is a team that can put a good run together but as soon as they hit a slump that’s going to affect them just as well as it would affect us, that’s the thing about being on top, it’s not how well you performed last time but how well you do next to hang on to it, i’d love to think players like Cesc and Clichy have what it takes but fact is they haven’t been in this situation yet, while that might be an advantage we can’t be sure if their character’s up to par, i think Wenger’s doing the right thing by sticking to his first 11 as long as he can and even fielding midfielders as 2nd strikers just because that’s the best way to keep the team gelled and playing the type of football we’ve been holding up so far, but there’s definitely changes coming up, he said it himself, now i don’t expect any trophies, i wish for some but wishing’s the tool of the fool, we all know it’s managed game by game and all we can do is support, bitch, moan and discuss, i personally love the discussion and love to think that this year we can earn the right to shut some traps, so i suggest all of you keep up your roles and hopefully at the end we’ll all be singing the same tune, cheers.