Here is the first in a series of articles talking about Squad changes.
At this time we should all be aware our current squad has deficiencies in terms of makeup, numbers of reliable squad players, player positioning and a preponderance of injuries. Our current deficiencies are:
1. Lack of height in the DMF and at CB.
2. Lack of a true, pacey winger who can score goals consistently.
3. Many players playing out of position.
4. Lack of all round veteran leadership to steady the “Young Guns”.
5. A Medical/Conditioning staff which seems unable to keep our lads on the field and who seems to lack ability in diagnosing and remedying seemingly innocuous ailments.
First things first, let us overhaul our Medical staff and add a few fresh faces with new ideas and innovative treatment technologies.
Subtractions:
a) Get rid of Hoyte, Kerrea Gilbert and Gilberto. Let Flamini go and Lehman also if he so desires.
b) Send Walcott (Mixed feelings about this), Djourou, Traore and Merida out on loan for half a season to get daily playing time and monitor their progress to see whether they will show they are worthy of a permanent squad position.
Squad and possible replacements/additions:
GK: Almunia, Fabianski, ??????
Note: If Lehman leaves we will have to find a replacement. Should we bring up Vitto Mannone as the third GK or should we go all out and find a world class starter.
Wing Backs: Sagna, Clichy, Eboue, ??????
Note: Gallas can cover at LB if needed until Traore rounds into shape so we may not need to get additional cover.
Central Backs: Toure, Gallas, Senderos, ??????, Djourou (After loan spell )
Note: Maybe we go after Wheater or Dawson
Defensive MF: Song, Diaby, Toure (as needed)
Note: Beefs up our height in midfield and adds pace for counter attacks.
Attacking MF: Rosicky, Hleib, Fab, Denilson, Eboue as cover on the right
Wingers: Vela, Walcott (when he returns from loan), ????????, Eduardo (as cover when he returns from injury)
Note: Could Modric be the answer here, or why not Juan Román Riquelme?
Strikers: Adebayor, Bendtner, Van Persie, Eduardo, Vela and Walcott as cover when needed.
Old Heads: Thuram, ??????, ??????
Note: Give me an “Old Head” like Ray Parlour and Thuram who will show up to play when called upon and provide leadership on an everyday basis. Who knows, maybe Pires would be interested in returning to offer leadership and support in his twilight hours.
Youngsters: Merida, Randall, Traore, Gavin Hoyte, Barazyte, Havard Nordtveit
The only question which remains is whether we should bite the bullet and bring in a “Game Changer”? Do we need someone like a Thierry Henry in his day, Ronaldo, Kaka, Ronalddinho or Robinho who can single handedly create a magical moment to individually score an unassisted goal and create awe and inspiration in his fellow players and on looking spectators alike.
– Barcelona has their Messi, Ronaldinho and Eto’o with up and coming stars Giovani dos Santos and Bojan Krkic biding their time.
– Inter Milan has their Kaka, Seedorf and Pirlo with Gourcuff and Pato waiting in the wings.
– Manu has Ronaldo, Tevez and Rooney with Nani and Anderson looming in the near future.
– Real Madrid Has Robinho, Robben, Sneijder and Van Nistelroy.
– Chelsea has Drogba, Lampard, Essien, Joe Cole and Petr Cech (Although being a GK manages to win a few games on his own every year).
Arsenal has their oft injured Van Persie and Fabregas (Who could surely become an impact player if he is allowed to concentrate on the offensive end). With all the talent assembled around us, could you imagine what the addition of another one or two impacts players could have on the team.
Having said all this lets have some healthy and constructive feedback without the epithets.
69 Responses to “Squad talk”
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April 20th, 2008 at 3:59 am
sorry break the thread, two cents abt Ade, post it here in the new thread:
first to Stag, I think it’s unfair that u made it sound like when ppl criticse Adebyoar, their points are FACT. While ppl who supported Adebayor, their points are OPINION.
The only FACT I know is - he has scored 27 goals in all competitions this season. I know this is fact, cos it’s in the record book.
back in the summer when i predicted him to score 15 goals in ALL competitions, that sound like a tall order. Not too many agreed with me, and if i have to be honest, I wasn’t sure myself neither. as i watched football long enough knowing that he’s not a natural finisher.
Now his goal tally amost doubled the number i suggested, and let’s face it - without his goals, we probably would never had lunched a title challenge this season at the first place.
no one suggested he’s as good as Henry, Henry was probably the greatest player in the English game, players like Henry, Ronaldo are those who only comes along once a decade.
everybody knows Adebayor got his limit, yet despite a poor first touch, an average shooting skill, he still got 27 goals this season, the guy worked very hard for it and deserved our support rather than criticism.
occassion critism is just, but there’s no need to knock him down so regularly. particular even after he scored. tha’ts pretty ridaculous. instead of looking at the goals he scored, some of the folks here chosen to nitpicking every single miss he made. this way, of cos he’s always a crap players, doesn’t matter he score 10 or 40 goals.
April 20th, 2008 at 4:09 am
another point i wanna make : of cos everyone is upset that we had thrown away our title chance.
looking back the past summer though, when Henry left, amid the AW new contract, board take over talks.. if someone came and told us van Persie would be out for a major part of the coming season as well, how did u believe we would finishing this season?
the way i see it, the fact that we had launch a title challenge up until March, it was some soft of an achievement in its own right.
we probably had no right to be up there on the top of the table till mid February. giving the overall strength of our side, and maturity.
lot of credit had to give to Cesc, Ade, Flamster and Hleb to make it possible at the first place. so leave those guys alone, referees are human, they made mistakes (lot of them, including yet another poor offside decision that ruled out another goal of us against Reading, well, but nothing new to me now) , players are human as well. they alll got their strength and weakness.
so those who had defended every poor decisions of referees, give our OWN players a break. they sure hell DESERVED it more than the ref.
April 20th, 2008 at 4:42 am
btw, I want to concede one point Mazza made back in the summer about Eboue. He said Eboue playing at RM won’t work as he got only one move (to the right), and better as RB.
I disagreed back then. But now i must say - yes you are right Mazza (along with Joshuad).
Eboue needs space to make his game effective. He’s not a bad player. In fact, a more than useful player. though not being a particular good defender, his overlap play from RB is still a major weapon of his game.
we fans tend to have short memory, l seem to remember now last season his overlapped from behind had actually given us quite a few crucial assist.
yet as a RM, he doesn’t seem to be that effective, cos he doesnt have that space and momentum to work on, and not being particular a very good one on one player from stand still.
see Mazza, a valid good point people will remember, even if u didn’t remind us! at least i do.
April 20th, 2008 at 8:09 am
@CaribKid: Appreciate the article. The only thing though that will happen is that these pieces are so subjective and everyone having their own favorites that it starts degenerating into name calling — something which you and certainly I would love to avoid.
Still very quickly my 2 rupees
Theo won’t go on loan; he shouldnt go on loan and he’ll play up front with NB most of next season.
Old head - Wouldn’t mind it for a year but Arsene won’t do it.
Star - Ditto
Defense - If one of the three get sold; mostly Gallas or Sendy get a big CB. Else I doubt anything will happen there.
Mid: Flam is gone for my money so Diaby/Song/Denilson is gonna play there more. Who? I dont know.
Forwards: Nope..no one for me. Definitely not a “big name” forward like in Football manager which I’ve never played BTW.
Wing: Yep would love one…just one…multi functional inside forward who can play on the wing and is not injury prone.
@Andez: The only reason I switched to this site was because of the intellect of the people who posted here. Sadly its gone downhill over the last 6 months.
April 20th, 2008 at 9:47 am
Thanks Andez, that brought a tear to my eye…;^)
April 20th, 2008 at 9:51 am
I would love to see Birmingham and Taylor relegated after what happen to Dudu.
The way their manager and fans acted is a disgraced, at least to my opinion.
April 20th, 2008 at 10:33 am
The boss could stay pat and win a trophy.
Whoever Wenger finds needs to be able to play up to your all’s high, high standard and be able to single-handedly win the treble.
Don’t see that happening.
April 20th, 2008 at 1:24 pm
live_dont_exist, I agree on the Theo opinion. This was written some weeks back before he was getting impact time as a sub. At this point he definitely will stay.
Since then, Lucio and Zapate have been thrown in the mix and would be better choices than Wheater or Dawson although having a few more Brits on the team wouldn’t hurt us PR wise. In that same vein, Manu are looking at 4 new players and they are all non British. Fergie at times speaks with the proverbial forked tongue when needed.
April 20th, 2008 at 1:38 pm
Firstly, Forget talking about bringing in someone over 30 … and thuram will be a disaster buy. he is no spring chicken u know. he is being skinned alive in spain …. i wonder what would happen to him in the faster EPL.
Secondly, why send Walcott on loan??? And hasnt Merida and Djorou already had loan time last season? We need them for DEPTH. Plus Walcott is on the cusp of his break out season, no way Wenger is going to shove him to some stupid Birmingham like team in the championship.
The key to the new season will be Wenger finally LEARNING how to keep a LARGE squad and rotating sensibly.
April 20th, 2008 at 1:38 pm
PS: I really hope Birmingham go down. I dont think I can stand playing them next season.
April 20th, 2008 at 2:00 pm
Fred, agree with your Theo comments at this point. Article was written some time ago.
The problem with young players is they need regular playing time because they are still in a learning phase and when called upon in an emergency tend to be inconsistent. All the training ground work comes to naught if they can’t acquire real time game situations. If we can’t give them regular playing time early in the season it’s makes sense to loan them out for half a season to gain that experience.
Merida has been out on loan but did not get much playing time when the coach was changed and therefore could probably use another spell on loan.
If we get another CB, which is likely, Djourou will only be used sporadically and will suffer the same fate as most young players, inconsistency when called upon. Traore and Denilson were perfect examples of young squad players who did not perform up to their potential this season when called upon for first team durties due to lack of playing time. Even Senderos took some time to get back into game flow and after 5 games back RVP is only just realizing his true potential.
Young, inexperienced players can provide depth, but in most cases not quality depth and hardly ever impacts the game positively. There are exceptions to the rule as Fabregas and Clichy have proven, but they were thrown into the fray, left to swim or sink, and they have become amazing swimmers.
April 20th, 2008 at 7:10 pm
I’d imagine we will pretty much stand pat.
We might let a few players go… I could see Flamini, Lehman, even Hleb go… I could even see Bendtner go, if he asks out.
We don’t bring in older players, and we don’t bring in stars.
So thats why it will take a year or more for a young player to come in and adapt and really have an impact on our squad.
So, thats why next year is probably much like this year. As constituted, we don’t have the horses to go in all competitions for the whole year.
April 20th, 2008 at 7:26 pm
@ stag:
fabregas will be better next season.
walcott will be better next season.
clichy will be better next season.
adebayor will improve next season too.
sagna will be better.
bendtner will be better.
RvP will be better as well.
song will make strides forward too.
we will buy 2 players probably of the sagna/eduardo mold. quality but relatively unknown. nothing more.
we will bring back vela, merida, gibbs, randall from loan.
AND THAT WILL BE IT.
if you cant stand that…go on your way, barca, inter and chelsea are always in need of more “fans”…..just please save us the repetitive moaning you subjected this site to last summer.
April 20th, 2008 at 7:51 pm
Sell Eboue.
The partnership between Gallas, Toure and Almunia at the back does not work. In my opinion there has to be at least one change there. Neither Senderos, Song nor Djourou have done enough to challenge the centre-backs. Nevertheless, the argument and discussion should not be about them as they are adequate back-up. Wenger should replace one of the first-choice three with a new straight-in signing (like Sagna was). My preference is for a new first-choice centre-back to replace Toure who will be first-choice cover at right-back and centre-back. Wheater isn’t experienced enough and Dawson is nowhere near good enough (how could a fourth-choice Spurs player become a first-choice Arsenal player anyway?). Micah Richards may well be a better right-back than centre-back. Richard Dunne isn’t that quick. King and Woodgate are injury-prone, better than a lower mid-table team but not fit enough to play regularly at a top twice-a-week team. Distin is probably too old and slow now. Lescott or Yobo may be worth thinking about but Wenger as always will probably look abroad. As for Almunia, I hope Fabianski gets a chance before the end of the season.
Apart from that, Vela, Barazite, Traore and Lansbury may provide options in the wide positions but with the sale of Eboue, the injuries of Rosicky and the failures in front of goal of Hleb, we need someone else who can come straight in. Lest I be accused of over-criticising Hleb, the way he froze in the last minute of the game when the ball fell to him with just the goalkeeper to beat sums him up. I would continue to play him from the start, his ability to wear defenders out with his close control and his incredible slide-rule passing is unsurpassed but when a cool head is needed at the end of a move to win a game and put the ball in the net, he is not clinical enough. Think of Robert Pires by contrast or Freddie at his peak when Bergkamp could spot his runs. They contributed as wide players but also as goal-scorers.
To sum up, a first-choice centre-back to replace Toure, consideration of the goalkeeper position, and a first-choice wide player, preferably two-footed are the only signings I see necessary provided Eboue is the only departure.
April 20th, 2008 at 10:10 pm
I agree with u in principle irish, but i doubt wenger will sell eboue. he will just revert him back to backup status most likely.
i am starting to think wenger will just buy a starting CB and a strong LB to compete with clichy.
traore will probably then be pushed forward to compete with hleb, rosicky, vela, merida and gibbs. i would prefer we bought a starter winger though.
one of senderos and djorou will leave thats for sure. i hope its senderos.
April 20th, 2008 at 10:28 pm
Fred, agree with you 100% on the CB acquisition, Eboue as backup, Traore to LMF but do not see Arsene getting a LB when Gallas and Sagna can deputize in that area.
Like you, would love to see a real winger and a Fab lookalike.
April 20th, 2008 at 10:40 pm
yeah, but thats what we all thought….last year eboue, hoyte, toure, gallas, gilbert djorou and even flamini could all play RB yet he went out and bought a RB.
i think he will look at the rip-roaring success that sagna was and think, hmmm…if clichy could get some actual competition it wont be a bad thing - considering his numerous lapses in concentration.
April 20th, 2008 at 11:04 pm
Wenger played a high-risk game with his squad size/composition this season and it came up short.
I don’t blame him for that, it isn’t normal for 2 first choice attacking players (RvP & Rosicky) to be irrelevant for most of the season and a 3rd (Eduardo) to be maimed in Feb just as he threatened to be really useful. So in the most critical time of the year we had a blunt RvP, no Rosicky and no Eduardo. But I don’t blame Wenger. If RvP and Rosicky had played more meaningful roles this season, particularly in the last quarter, and had Eduardo not been maimed we would likely still be competing in the EPL and the CL. But what’s happened has happened.
Now to this coming off-season. Wenger is really going to earn his money. He needs wisdom and a crystal ball and the balls to makes tough calls.
If all Wenger does is buy one emerging attacking player (be it a striker or wide player) - to me we look pretty much in the same position as at the start of last year. Is that really good enough?
We will enter the season praying RvP and Rosicky come good, praying Eduardo recovers from a horrid injury and praying that Bendtner and Walcott play with much better maturity. Oh, I nearly forgot, and praying that Adebayor replicates this seasons form.
To me that seems a lot of risk. A silly amount of risk in one area. A lot of hoping. Hoping injury-prone players prove durable, hoping a badly injured player recovers, hoping a new (unheralded) signing integrates quickly, hoping a guy with one vastly improved goal-scoring season can front up again, and hoping 2 greenies take more responsibility.
I would think Wenger would want to reduce the odds a bit. If not next season threatens to be a re-run of this one - but one where Wenger is offered no sympathy should the team depth again prove insufficient.
April 21st, 2008 at 12:28 am
ANR says Wenger’s targets are Raul Albiol and Huntelaar. ANR has been rarely right with transfer targets (Campbell to Fener and Cutis Davies to Arsenal, Reo Coker to Arsenal, etc.), so take it with a pinch of salt.
I do think that Wenger will most likely sign two players - a defender and striker/winger. My personal feeling is that we need a striker AND a winger.
If we sign a striker, our wings will be weak - Hleb + injury prone Rosicky + green Vela/Traore/Merdia/Barazite/etc. + not-so-effective Eboue.
If we sign a winger, our strike force will be weak - over-reliant Ade + injury prone RvP + injured Eduardo + inexperienced Bendy and Walcott.
Wenger has to make a BIG call on the injury status of Rosicky, RvP and Eduardo. And if he gets that wrong, we will be in BIG trouble. I think taking a risk with one of Rosicky/RvP is fine, but both is just not worth it.
My summer shopping list would be CB, winger and striker. To generate money for that, I would get rid of Lehmann (wages saved), Hoyte (2-3M), Gilberto (3-4M, if Flamini leaves), Senderos/Djourou (2-3 or 1-2M). Other people who could be sold are Rosicky (too many injuries), Bendtner (asks for a transfer and doesn’t get along with team) and Diaby (unable to play as winger and too much competition in CM).
April 21st, 2008 at 12:34 am
ANR’s transfer targets come from this article by Steve Stammers
http://www.sundaymirror.co.uk/sport/football/2008/04/20/arsenal-line-up-bid-for-raul-albiol-98487-20388970/
April 21st, 2008 at 1:06 am
Can’t see the logic of another striker when Vela and Walcott can also play in that role. Vela has basically played as a striker for most of the time and has only been implemented on the wings for the last 1 1/2 years. They can also be utilized as wingers and therefore we have some versatility there.
Think we definitely need CB and experienced goal scoring winger who can play on right or left.
I am also wary that we have no replacement for Fab (Denilson not ready yet to be impact player) and would love to have a Diego type who can play with and also sub for Fab if needed due to injury. My greatest fear for next season is that Fab gets hurt and we have no one close to assuming his role.
Just my beef.
April 21st, 2008 at 1:18 am
My list of goners are:
1. Lehmann (bad attitude) 2. Flamini (wants the big bucks at all costs)
3. Gilberto (If you can’t accept being a squad player it’s time to go)
My list of maybe goners are:
1. Senderos (will Arsene still keep the faith in you as he did with Cygan)
2. Bendtner ( will you be a team player or still want to start)
My wish list of incoming are:
1. Jaaskalienen GK
2. CB, Zapata,Albiol, ?????
3. Midfielder, Diego, Modric, Arshavin
4. Winger, Quaresma
5. Striker, Huntlaar, Villa, ???
Expected incoming list:
1. CB
2. Midfielder/Winger
April 21st, 2008 at 1:38 am
Interesting take on Flamini by Arsenal Analysis Blog -
“I myself realized that Flamini was really on his way out when he looked so eager to be substituted at Anfield.
As soon as he looked at his ankle he immediately gestured to be substituted. He didn’t want to wait for Gary Lewien’s diagnosis; he wanted to come out. This told me that he was saving himself for his up coming move to “greener” pastures.”
April 21st, 2008 at 1:42 am
I myself have just had this nagging premonition for a long time that Flamini will be leaving and after reading the circumstances surrounding his move to Arsenal it was confirmed in my mind.
April 21st, 2008 at 1:42 am
Vela has scored 3 goals in 24 games for Osasuna. Before that, he scored 8 goals in 31 games for Salamanca (2nd Division). Walcott has scored 2 in 28 for Arsenal and 4 in 21 for Southampton. Bendtner has 3 in 24 for Arsenal and 11 in 42 for Birmingham (2nd Division). Can we put our season hopes on the shoulders of these three players? We will need another dramatic improvement from Ade to even retain our current position. Unless a miracle happens and RvP is injury free all season.
April 21st, 2008 at 1:58 am
One more thing to note is that we started this season in fantastic form. Whatever may be the reasons for that, I believe that teams underestimating us because of Henry’s departure and all that had a big part to play. That will not happen again next season. Add to that, the Euros, which will disrupt our pre season warmup.
April 21st, 2008 at 2:18 am
In Spain, Barca are 11 pts behind Real despite losing one game less. The diff? Real have drawn 3 games, while Barca have drawn 10 games. The same problem has plagued Arsenal this season. Next time, we should concentrate on winning games even at the risk of losing a few. Remember, one win and one loss is one point more than two draws.
April 21st, 2008 at 3:13 am
Valencia were thrashed 5-1 by Bilbao. They are just two points off the relegation zone.
Milan are still 4 points behind Fiorentina with 4 games to play. They could seriously miss out on the CL.
April 21st, 2008 at 4:23 am
Arseblog says Hleb has only one year left on his contract!! Is that true? Didn’t Arsene sign him on an extension like most others? I am surprised.
April 21st, 2008 at 5:07 am
joining in the fun here, first, this is not my opinion, I want to take a wild guess on what AW will actually be doing in the coming summer….
First, will we let go of anyone? judging from what i read, AW has stressed the significance to “keep this team together”, so I don’t think anyone below aged of 30 will be letting go.
Jens, Gilberto look like going, unless Gilberto doesn’t mind to warm the bench again next season. as i have a feeling even Flamini leaves for a free transfer, it’s not likely AW will resume Gilberto’s starting role.
the only questionable player under aged 30 who might leave is Flamini. because of his contract issue. or maybe Hoyte. Otherwise, the whole team will very much remain intacted.
as for the incoming list. I m pretty sure there will be at least one or two players coming in. but let’s forget the names being mentioned at the press. The way i see it, once a player’s name being linked to Arsenal by the press, it basically means - this player is NOT going to join Arsenal.
let’s dont forget the up coming Euro 2008. traditionally a major tournament is a hotbed for big clubs to scout and buy talents.
yet with Arsene Wenger, we know he’s not the one who would wait until a star’s value rise in a major tournament then go out and buy him. so i have a feeling if one of his targets is involved in Euro 2008, we will be seeing an early new signing before the Euro 2008 starts, just like the way we bought Rosicky.
the rumor of David Villa for instance, if by the start of Euro 2008 AW has not made a bid for him, that means we can forget about him.
April 21st, 2008 at 6:17 am
CaribKid…..”Can’t see the logic of another striker when Vela and Walcott can also play in that role.”
I think this is the point exactly. Are you saying you would rely on either Vela or Walcott to carry our striking hopes in an EPL/CL campaign?
Nipuna gave the stats. And in this instance, when goals are concerned, stats count for everything. Vela hasn’t even set foot in the EPL and Walcott has been demonstrably insufficient over the course of the season. He’s had 1 or 2 nice moments but honestly - hardly demonstrated he can carry goal-scoring responsibility.
Come August I’m not interested in the mass of potential that fill the backup roles - I’m intereted to see who can reasonably be expected to play out a season and take responsibility in the attacking 4 roles. As it stands they are: Ade/RvP/Rosicky/Hleb……..no one else is even close. And out of those 4 - TWO are doubtful to last a season.
Therein lies Wenger’s challenge.
April 21st, 2008 at 6:44 am
I believe Bendtner will go….there is definetly some issue with him when it comes to playing with the team …..you only had to see Cesc’s and a few other players reaction on one of the Reading corners where he failed to cover the near post correctly. Knowing how important a good team spirit is for Wenger I would be surprised if he allows this to continue. I actually feel quite sorry for Bendtner…..I’m assuming that come the end of the season Wenger will give him a choice on whether he can seem himself playing with this team or not…..I won’t be surprised to see Bendtner choosing to go away if a decent offer comes in for him.
@Kiwi….I guess there are differing opinions on the need for strikers and it will definetly be a big challenge for Wenger. I still believe that Wenger will go for 1 guy who can play both on the wings as well as assist the main striker upfront. That should provide enough cover. Anything more than that and it will create team issues which will be very difficult to resolve. Even though both of Vela and Walcott are young players…i don’t think either of them expects to play in the reserves or spend most of their time on the bench next season especially Walcott. If Wenger signs more than one player then I think he risks having both Vela and Walcott being unhappy and seeking moves….and yes the media won’t give him an easy time either. Knowing Wenger i think he will elect to give both Vela and Walcott plenty of first team exposure next season. ..and I don’t know why but I also have the feeling that the real first team ‘find’ of next season will be Nacer Barazite. Hope to see him play against Derby next weekend.
April 21st, 2008 at 7:16 am
Wayne….I saw the reaction to Bendtner and I felt a little sympathetic toward him as well. It’s like at school when your mates feeze you out, but worse……mlllions are watching. Yeah, he might go. Fab & Ade would be hugely influencial in the dressing room…..so if they’re against you why would you hang around?
The challenge for Wenger is putting out a team with strike ability - from August to May. It seems to me that most folk are skirting the issue. We’re assuming that RvP and Rosicky will be fine next season and ignoring the long-term injury and doubt over Eduardo. How can you do that? Both RvP and Rosicky have had 2 poor seasons fitness-wise in a row. It sounds like they still don’t understand Rosicky’s problem. And everytime RvP goes down - you think “oh no”.
I’m really not interested in the mass of potential below the starting team. They should be allowed to progress in supporting roles……not relied upon unduly because of crocked starters. If the aforementioned trio were fit and robust - no worries - but that is not the case. Walcott and Vela are back-up options - not serious stand-in’s. They’re welcome to a few games here and there and sub appearances. And if they really fire….cool….let them compete for a starting role.
April 21st, 2008 at 7:48 am
Walcott on loan, Nuts! Traore is cover for Clichy so his loan is equally Nuts! Selling Eboue is also Nuts! We need Eboue as cover for RW/RB. He’s better at RB than Toure. I told you guys before the CL tie against Liverpool that Babel was going to expose Toure’s lack of quickness. While Toure is fast, he’s not the quickest and that lack of quickness is the reason Babel earned Liverpool that penalty. Toure at RB is the wrong answer.
At DM, for some reason people believe Diaby can play there. He CAN NOT! He lacks the tactical awareness, discipline, or work ethic required to play that position. The strength of Diaby’s game is his technical ability with the ball. While it’s nice, it’s hardly the major facet I’d require for a DM; especially with that being his best quality. As for Toure, I’ve never seen him play there. Can he? I know that Song, Djourou, and Gilberto can.
For wingers, we’ve never seen Vela play there in the BPL so we can’t count on that. I like young Carlos as a striker. He always impresses when he plays for Mexico. He’s definitely better than that kid that plays for Barca (dos Santos). Eduardo sucks at LM. Riquelme, while brilliant, is very lazy and very slow. He’d be horrible out wide. We need to buy in this position or promote from our reserves. I’ve been screaming for Barazite for the past month and Traore for since Rosicky went down.
As a general rule, it would be foolish to expect to see Eduardo back at all next season. We should plan for him not being back and if he comes back the great. But we can’t possible start the season with only three recognized strikers. I would really like to see David Villa here. He’s clinical in front of goal. He’s a true poacher who can strike a dead ball, direct and indirect, with the right foot. Lastly, he’s got pace. We don’t currently have any of those qualities with any of our other strikers.
Lastly, I watched Valencia last night to get a look at Albiol and he was absolutely horrible. He was directly at fault for at least three of the goals that Bilbao scored last night. All of our current CB’s are better than him. If Wenger is interested in him, then I hope he saw that game last night. I say we keep our ten million. I know it’s unfair to judge on one performance but he was that bad last night. Actually Valencia’s whole team was. Their main problem is no one is taking charge. Koeman dropped all those vets and they’re about to be relegated. I wouldn’t be surprised to see that he got fired this week.
April 21st, 2008 at 7:58 am
I am 100% sure that Wenger will sign a striker. When he had Ade + RvP (with Walcott + Bendy as backup), why did he sign Eduardo? Because no title challenging team can go into a season with only two top notch strikers. Wenger has always stocked strikers in his team.
It is possible that Wenger doesn’t sign a winger. He will may use a CM or striker in that position. But not signing a striker? No chance that will happen.
April 21st, 2008 at 8:04 am
@Kiwi …When I said that Wenger will sign one player who is a winger/striker ……i meant that the one signing is a absolute necessity to add to the existing strikeforce….all I am saying is that anything more than that may not materialize..and even if it doesn’t we should still be in a good position to compete.
So we are probably in agreeement somewhat….
I am discounting Rosicky totally for next season..if he’s fit then it’s a bonus for us. With RVP..i think the guy has been slightly unlucky when it comes to injuries….so hoping to see more than half a season from him next season
Reagarding Bendtner and the school comparison..that is exactly what I felt….would be interesting to find out what exactly went wrong with him and the others…i think that some of his comments early on in the season rubbed his team mates the wrong way..and things started going from bad to worse culminating in that goal he ’saved’ against Liverpool which put the final nail in the coffin. To his credit it does look like he’s been trying to mend his ways (notice the almost apologetic reaction to Cesc having a go at him during last game..almost the last thing to expect from a guy who supposedly has a huge ego) ..but don’t think the others are interested in giving him a chance.
April 21st, 2008 at 9:11 am
Fabreagas jumped in Bendtner’s shit because he lost focus and almost screwed up the game. For some strange reason, a lot of corner kicks seem to fall right at the corner of the six yard box. When I play, I like to post myself on that same corner and tend to clear a lot of balls.
If you think, over the past five or so games, who’s cleared the most corners we’ve defended? The commentators always say, “cleared by Adebayor” and it’s no coincidence or because he’s so tall or good in the air. For some reason, the ball just falls there. Arsenal employ a tactic where it’s the striker’s job to mark that space and attack the ball if it comes there. Watch in the next game.
When Bendtner came on for Adebayor, it was his job to attack that ball. When you consider how many soft goals we’ve let in lately after taking the lead due to a lack of focus then that puts Fabregas’ response in perspective. Everyone knows how much the game would have changed if Reading had scored, including Bendtner, and that’s the reason for Fabregas’ reaction and Bendtner’s apologetic look.
April 21st, 2008 at 9:20 am
@josh ..i’m not disputing the fact that Bendtner was at fault there…definite loss of concentration and could have easily been a goal……just looking at the way Cesc and the others reacted…you could sense a definite undercurrent against Bendtner there. I actually would like Bendtner to stay…but from indications over the past few weeks he’s not looking like a part of the team.
And looking like Hleb is going to miss the next 3 games….so hopefully Wenger will give Barazite his chance this week.
April 21st, 2008 at 10:16 am
Don’t get too excited about Gilberto leaving just yet:
“I still have one more year. To be honest, I really want to stay and I’ve always expressed that.”
If he plays like he did against Reading consistently, then he’s an okay back-up. But he’s also past 30 now, so given Wenger’s Logans’ Run policy, he should move on now while he can still get a 3- or 4-year contract.
April 21st, 2008 at 10:37 am
If Flamini leaves, will Wenger let Gilberto also leave? I don’t think so. Our options would be Song, Denilson, Diaby and Djourou (worst case). It would be worth keeping him while one of the aforementioned settle into the role. Our transfer priorities lie elsewhere this summer.
April 21st, 2008 at 11:19 am
“5. A Medical/Conditioning staff which seems unable to keep our lads on the field and who seems to lack ability in diagnosing and remedying seemingly innocuous ailments.”
Bullocks. Sorry, had to say it. Not name calling but this is ridiculous. Gary Lewin is the BEST training in the country and also works on the National team. They are rehabilitatiors, not GOD. They can’t prevent or miraculously heal players. Unless you can specifically find a case where the medical team misdiagnosed a player’s fitness and he ended up more injured. I have not yet seen such a case. The fact that RVP, Rosicky, et al seems to be injury prone all the time has nothing to do with the medical team, but with they players own physical conditioning and sometimes pure bad luck (e.g. Eduardo)
These types of articles often misses the point.
We lost the league because we don’t have a PLAN nor RESOURCES to last 38 games + more cup games. It’s almost a 50-game season and our small squad and no Plan B is probably more the reason why we’d drop points than not having enough quality players.
Given Wenger’s attiude of buying young talent to mold and not wanting a big squad, you can give Arsenal 14 world class players and still we WON’T win anything because having a small squad is a handicap for ANY team over the course of a season.
Even if Wenger buys, he will only replace those that are (or will be) leaving in the summer.
Dream on if you thing Wenger will be buying two first team players for every position like Jose or Fergie.
April 21st, 2008 at 3:11 pm
Wilshire is turning it on again for the reserves. Set up Barazite for the first goal and scored a curler minutes after. Wenger is at the game and he looks like the cat that got the cream. We should play him when Hleb gets suspended for the last few games.
April 21st, 2008 at 3:58 pm
Is Hleb’s suspension confirmed ?
April 21st, 2008 at 4:53 pm
NEOVA, we all have a right to our opinion and obviously our differs. Gary Lewin may be a great Physio, he may work for the national team and he may be great at rehabilitation but that does not make him God.
Take Rosicky for example. His national trainer came out at the early stage of the season and said he had muscle imbalance which led to his reoccurring injuries and that Arsenal trainers were not providing proper exercise to remedy the situation. As the trainer predicted, Rosicky has had a slew of injuries throughout the season.
Rosicky’s sustained his injury on January 26th against Newcastle and it took them 10 weeks to diagnose he needed surgery to repair tendons. My reaction to that is one word, “INCOMPETENCE”. Even if it took 2 weeks for the swelling to go down in order to make a more detailed diagnosis they have no excuse. With modern ultrasound and Cat-Scan equipment and the new techniques in micro surgery at numerous Sports Medicine facilities all over the world I have seen Basketball players back on the court at full strength in 4-7 weeks. He has not even had the surgery yet.
Nuff said.
April 21st, 2008 at 5:12 pm
NEOVA, we had a plan B, we just did not have a plan C. Not cheering for Arsene here because I thought he could have added at least one in the January transfer window and never should have let Diarra leave until the season’s end. I also thought the squad was somewhat thin in terms of quality going into the season and needed a couple more seasoned veterans for stability.
However, It would be very difficult to predict the amount amount of injuries we suffered and the timing of those injuries. By the end of January we had Rosicky and RVP out, Toure and Song returning from the ANC with injuries, Djourou out after returning from loan, Eduardo out for the season Feb 23rd, Diaby out in February too, Denilson out in March, and now Flamini and Kolo once again. Add to this other players omitted for minor knocks and for disciplinary action, and “WHO WHOULDA THUNK THIS”.
It is just one of those years we needed to have a plan C and didn’t.
April 21st, 2008 at 5:34 pm
@CaribKid, I agree with the sentiment that injuries have had a major impact upon this season to our detriment. And for that I cut Wenger a lot of leash…..this year.
But we need some lessons learned for 2008/9….
@ Wayne, if you discount Rosicky for the season, I assume you play the new guy at wide left? Accepting that, if during the season RvP goes down again - who plays beside Ade? Even playing a new guy at wide left from the start is a big ask. He will probably be an unheralded player and need to integrate over the season. Just tossing around my thoughts.
I’m normally pretty optimistic but I feel we will enter this off-season in a really invideous position. The fitness issues surrounding RvP, Rosicky and Eduardo leave Wenger between a rock and a hard place. If he trusts them - he may be let down, if he ‘replaces them’ potentially his squad is too big.
If he was a hardnut he would flick Rosicky, and buy a replacement of comparable quality who likes scoring. That would then leave him with one risk exposure area only - striker (RvP & Eduardo). He could then buy one good player to cover/compete in that position. Then add Vela, and Walcotts hopeful development as options and you have the makings of a title-challenging attacking unit.
April 21st, 2008 at 5:50 pm
Dear Fred.
Unfortunately FOR YOU, I will be here all Summer, hoping against hope… on who I would like to see brought in, how I doubt we will, why going with the same squad is a recipe for failure… and many other alluring opinions.
Thats what fans do. We hope, we dream, we speculate, we criticize. Thats what the off-season consists of… its silly season.
You don’t know if players are “going to get better”.
Why? They are a year older, so that makes them automatically better?
Yes, that makes a lot of sense.
Injury prone players, tend to get injured often… over and over. By definition.
So, I doubt thats going to change much.
We didn’t win the league, and we didn’t get 2nd, and we didn’t win a trophy. So… maybe it was a decent year. We played pretty football again. We choked the league away… and not even our best players stepped up when it mattered most.
Maybe you’d go with the same squad. Most people wouldn’t… not the sane ones anyway.
Carry on son.
April 21st, 2008 at 6:43 pm
Yep Jack Wilshire looked hot today. For you who don’t know he is the most talked youngster in the Academy. He has been with Arsenal since he was 8 or 9 and looks like he is going all the way into the first team…. eventually. I think he has a couple of years before that happens though, not ready to be Hleb’ stand in yet Mazza.
Did you see Jay Emmanuel Thomas’s performance. He did not get really involved in the second half I think he was playing like a straight DM mopping up in front of the Defence. However he loves to go forward and when he does like today he makes things happen. Did you check out how well he distributed the ball, how calm and controlled he was as well? My only crticism is that he didn’t run up and down enough, did not show the energy and work rate that you would get from a Flamini type player, nevertheless a great future for him too.
April 21st, 2008 at 7:09 pm
Yeah, I saw the Wilkshire show. That goal was very Bergkamp/Pires-like. You can just tell when some people are special. I saw that quality in Henry and van Persie at a young age and Wilkshire looks like he’ll be about the business. Time will tell.
I know people are upset about this season but we’re only a few signings away from being champions. Wenger needs to send Tomas to see a specialist to get him right. We needed his sword in battle for the title. He can provide a spark that lifts the whole team like no one else. I’m sure he could have proven decisive. It’s hard to imagine him having an injury that would disable him for this long and nobody can figure it out. Technology is too good for that and Wenger needs to stop settling for bullshit answers. Not having Tomas available has potentially cost us silverware this year. Not the right answer.
I don’t know what Wenger’s plans are but I really hope he signs David Villa. He’s already said he’s not interested but hopefully that’s a bluff thinking we might get him a bit cheaper if Valencia go down. The more I think about it, the more convinced I am. The main reason is he has qualities that no one in our team possesses. He would make Arsenal so much more dynamic. With the amount of chances we create, he’d score goals by the boatload. He’d slot in nicely alongside any of our strikers. Villa is the right answer.
April 21st, 2008 at 7:14 pm
Irish Gunner #14… you summed up Hleb perfectly….
I agree with Mazza that he is indispensible with our style of play, but I understand where Fred comes from about his lack of goals, and the fact that it often feels like he wastes his talent.
Put Hleb in a team full of stars and he would be brilliant. It is no surprise that the big clubs want him. But put him in an average team and you will notice his faults (and lack of goals) just as much as his good points. If he could consistently score 10 goals + a season he would be in the running for player of the year.
And Stag #47…. um… yes, it actually makes loads of sense for players to get better as they get older. It’s called experience
April 21st, 2008 at 7:21 pm
Arthur, Jay Thomas looks a good prospect. The typical modern player in the sense he already has the physical attributes and knows it’s all about honing his talent into a coherant footballer. It will be a mental thing with him and finding a good position. He needs to learn to protect the ball a bit better and be more mobile in tight spaces if he wants to play central midfield. But you can forget how young he is so he has time.
Wilshire is almost the complete opposite. The technical game is almost all there but he has to develop a bit more dynamism and strength. Maybe grow a few more inches but height won’t make or break him with the type of player he will become.
Nordveit, Barazite, Wilshire. Now I can see why Wenger excited about our youth. These lads are a different level to players like Diaby and Denilson. Mentally they look switched on.
April 21st, 2008 at 7:29 pm
Joshuad, had Rosicky stayed fit the title would be coming back to Islington. No doubt it. Not only would he have added offensive power and subtlety to our flagging peformances but also helped allievate our problem of conceding goals right after we score. In nearly all the goals we’ve conceded you can almost always trace the first possessional concession down to one of the less technically proficent members of our team.
April 21st, 2008 at 8:11 pm
Well said Kiwi!!! I have also cut him a lot of leash this year but expect the Arsenal brain thrust to learn from their experience.
On paper, Manu, Chelsea and Liverpool have a better squad of players than Arsenal. Their squads have no inherent weaknesses, have cover at every position and a good blend of youth and experience. Tottenham, Everton, Portsmouth and Aston Villa all have squads comparable to Arsenal in terms of individual capability, but Arsene’s methodology is the decisive factor which separates winning and losing. Arsene has effectively managed to win titles with less talent than any other manager I have seen in the recent past.
However, Chelsea raised the bar 4 years ago and Arsene will have to adjust in order to bring home more hardware. Manu, Chelsea and Liverpool, along with the current crop of wannabees like Everton and Manchester City are throwing up to 100,000,000 pounds plus per season in getting it right. Even though Arsene has the financial capability now it still is a coin toss as to who will prevail in any given season. As the best league in the world at this time, winning will be determined by squad strength, luck of the footballing gods, lack of injuries and team chemistry.
If Arsene were to bring in 5 great new players it might greatly assist but still will not guarantee hardware at the end of the day. But, as I said in an earlier blog, we probably should offer Eboue as a human sacrifice to the footballing Gods in order to ensure our success next year.
April 21st, 2008 at 8:19 pm
Mazza, IF is a big word but you are probably correct, it certainly would have enhanced our chances of lifting some hardware. We can only try to lift the “IF’S” from the equation and move on.
What if Ronaldo was injured like Rosicky and RVP for Manu, what if Lampard, Gerrard, Tevez, Rooney, Czech were injured like Rosicky and RVP? We most likely would have won the title.
Unfortunately, that’s what make the EPL so thrilling. No one can say for sure who will be the champions.
April 21st, 2008 at 9:11 pm
need 2 get sell senderos lehmann flamini eboue if got good offers 4 adebayor and helb wud let thm go adebayor first touch like a donkey helb plays good every 5 games never get him self on goal sheet.
wud like Ricardo Quaresma,Micah Richards,Luka Modric, Aaron Ramsey,Diego Capel,Mark Noble, Charles NZogbia,Per Ciljan Skjelbred,Diogo,Hatem Ben Arfa,David Villa love any of these players at The Arsenal and cant wait 2 see Carlos Vela in the Arsenal shirt
April 21st, 2008 at 9:43 pm
@ stag: stay….hopefully u dont get too emotional and flee at the end of summer to the barca fansites like you did last year.
interestingly enough if u had taken up my bets from last summer you would have had to pay up 50 bucks by now. i guess u are not as utterly idiotic as u let on.
the dummy who claimed 8th position and ade wont reach 10 goals (but refused to bet on it), now u coming here to gloat … LOL
am looking forward to more bets with you this summer….hopefully u dont CHICKEN out again. i fully expect u to though.
April 21st, 2008 at 11:06 pm
Over the last 3 seasons RvP has started:
13 games
17 games
12 games
That’s roughly 1/3 of an EPL season each year for 3 years.
When does ‘unlucky’ become ‘bad investment’?
I’ve discounted the first 2 years that he was at Arsenal as ‘development’ years (during these he started 12 & 13 games).
The impact is broader than simply failing to contribute during the season. Worse still, he clogs up a ’starting space’ in Wenger’s mind. Each year when Wenger reviews the squad depth he puts down RvP as a key component. Yet the reality is, he has never been a key component - never.
Am I against the guy? No way. But sooner or later you have to be hard nosed and see the impact of players contributions - or lack thereof.
Wenger may chose to stick with him on the basis that he has rare skill and that medical opinion is there is no underlying physical problem. But if he chooses to keep him, I would argue he needs to buy a comparable player - and simply let them battle it out.
The same goes for Rosicky, although I’m more inclined to think sell him and get a direct replacement. He’s nice, and looks the part, but he’s physicaly weak. In a way he is worse than RvP because he tends to be in and out regularly due to annoying injuries. This means that even the games he plays are often sub-par because he is rehabilitating. I know this is really hard - but when it comes to the experienced ’starters’ the stakes are very high. When the backup is generally very green youngsters we have nowhere to turn if the starters are fundamentally unreliable.
April 22nd, 2008 at 2:23 am
i also feel it’s pointless to blame our medical staffs for Rosicky, van Persie’s injury problem. take Henry, apart from his last season, the first 7 seasons when he’s with us he was virtually free from any major injury. Fabregas as well, relatively injury free since breaking into scene. in fact, Eduardo has come out and credited Gary Lewin for saving his leg.
truth is, nobody knows what’s the real problem with Rosicky and van Persie. perhaps it’s just sheer bad luck. in football, some players are more phroned to injury and some are not, those soft of things u can’t really explain.
Luis Saha at Man U for example, what’s his problem? that Man U medical staffs suck? And Solsjaker, shame that his career ended prematurely, who’s the one to blame?
the best example is Gael Clichy. anyone remember during his first few seasons with us, he’s always got himself injuried, and at one stage had a concern about his career might have ended prematurely. then after he became the first teamer last season, all a sudden he’s an ever presence. how to explain that?
maybe it’s just luck guys.
April 22nd, 2008 at 2:33 am
Mazza I don’t mean this as an insult but sometimes I wonder if you really believe what you say, or you just make things up to give people the impression you actually know what you’re talking about.
Jay Thomas has immense mental strength especially for a 16 year old. He is so CALM with his passing doesn’t hold the ball up when not necessary, he makes good decisions under pressure from the opposition the way he plays footabll suggest mental as well as physical maturity. He is a CM only he is so versatile and we have a good squad of youths older than him that he is often played out of his proper position i.e in defence. And to say he is not moblie in tight spaces is ridiculous considering his extremely tight close control you only need to look at the dribbles he made and the goal he scored against Derby, he weaved his way through tight spaces before getting a shot on goal. As for learning to protecting to protect the ball better I do not know what you are on about.
Jack Wilkshire is on the next level to Barazite, Barazite has improved a lot over a the couple of seasons I have seen him, and his physical presence and age might get him a run in the first team before Wilkshire and Thomas. But he is not as not as outstanding as those two IMO, had a great game yesterday though.
Joshuad I would welcome you to watch Jay Thomas over a few games when you get the chance and give an assessment, I respect your opinion.
April 22nd, 2008 at 2:38 am
I’m a bit worried about AW’s latest comments regarding the FIFA rules on players being able to buy out their contracts……points to more or less confirming that Hleb is seeking a move away from the club.
If i’m not wrong…Hleb signed in 2005 on a 5 year contract ..and would presently have 2 years remaining on his contract with Arsenal. If Wenger doesn’t agree to selling him this year when there are apparently a host of clubs in for him …..then he risks Hleb leaving for a pittance next season….since he will eligible to just buy out his contract and leave the club. Tough choice for Wenger….i’m sure he doesn’t want Hleb to leave….but if all the reports emanating are true…then we might just see Hleb being sold for a considerable sum in the transfer season.
April 22nd, 2008 at 2:47 am
As for the theory that Rosicky would single handly have won us the premiership this season is a bit far fetched. But it it is strange coming from Mazza who said that we had no chance of winning the title this year. Rosicky is an excellent player but the way our team were playing after “Eduardo-gate” not even the great Rosicky on form could lift us enough. An example being the Portsmouth game 0-0. Rosicky was outstanding but no matter how much he tried he was unable to make the breakthrough directly or provide the spark to help us finish them off, them was simple too bad collectively.
To say “nearly all the goals we’ve conceded you can almost always trace the first possessional concession down to one of the less technically proficent members of our team.” is another one of those sweeping statements you make with little evidence , what you should do id count how much times Hleb loses possession with all his technical ability, Cesc too does the same on a bad day. Technical ability alone does not bring success of infallibility.
The only thing that would have brought the title to the Emirates is if the refs during the Brum game and after had made the right refereeing decisions the majority off which would have been in our favour. Analyse those matches again if you think what I am saying is untrue, poor refereeing is partly to blame for much of those dropped points
April 22nd, 2008 at 2:56 am
Ufortunately I think you may well be right Wayne. Hleb is a great player but a chicken also, but who can balme him the way he has been targetted i.e kicked this season, nothing much has been done about it. Also the Eduardo incident and the fact the British media tries to brush it under the carpet, must make him think he is in a barbic footballing nation. The man wants to ensure he has a decent playing career. I think that slap in Murty’s face and kicking the ball away to get booked is his frustration showing and maybe he wants to dish some back to the bullies as well before the season is over.
But sad to say I think you are right… Hleb’s gone.
April 22nd, 2008 at 5:27 am
I hope Hleb doesn’t go.
If you accept he won’t score many goals and won’t attack the box with any real purpose I think he is an excellent player in our team.
Overall Hleb has made a good contribution this year, IMO.
The problem is that the attacking side of the team has lacked balance. Too often we had too few quality attacking players. So we looked to guys who simply didn’t have the accuracy and courage to convert our chances.
Think back, how often did we have a decent option on the other wing to Hleb??? Too often it was Diaby, or Walcott, or Eboue, or Eduardo - none of whom are quality in that position.
Add to that the lack of a quality second striker for the majority of the season…….RvP played a handful of games at the start and looked good…….then we struggled to replace him, often changing the formation to fit the players we had - none of whom looked particularly convincing - except the improving Eduardo who ironically then got nobbled.
Truth is Ade, Hleb, Fab and Flam have held this season together. We did incredibly well because of them - with precious little mature quality in support.
Hleb in a good team with adequate backup and options could be a real diamond. But it’s a little silly to think that he will grab things by the scruff of the neck and carry a team. It won’t happen. He’s not a Fabregas.
If he goes (surely he won’t) Wenger will be getting his drawing board out again. With Hleb gone and Rosicky impotent the masterplan is undone.
Wenger has invested 3 years in Hleb and 2 in Rosicky. He would be expecting next season to be jackpot time. When all his patience starts to be repaid through consistent influential play and a balanced wide partnership.
April 22nd, 2008 at 5:33 am
Go back to pre-season. I said if Rosicky and Hleb somehow stayed fit then we could finish second and posssibly win the league. I said we had no chance because I knew there was no way he was ever going to stay fit. Low and behold, that proved to be true.
That Portsmouth game illustrated it perfectly. He didn’t make the breakthrough that game but he was creating chances by himself. Around the time of the Fulham away game he had found his form but sadly got injured.
I saw Jay Thomas versus Reading away and he was losing the ball time and time again when the Reading midfield pressed him. He couldn’t protect the ball and was did not have the confidence or ability to pass around the pressure. He passed it nervously back to the defence. He may look good when he has has space to run into but in a congested game he looks very average. In other words, I don’t think he is that good. Comprende?
April 22nd, 2008 at 6:13 am
@Kiwi and Arthur….Agree with you..it would be very sad to see Hleb go
Hleb is important for the balance of the team..and I hope Wenger takes the risk and makes him stay for one more season….just may be if Arsenal have the magical season next year he will change his mind and stay on ..without him in the team Wenger will have to start all over again and I don’ think too many people have the patience to wait for another transition season. Right from the first match he played for us…i’ve been a big fan of Hleb…..he was really good last season as well..but people somehow failed to notice his ‘indirect’ assists …. ..at the beginning of this season he finally got his due…but stilll a lot of people are unconvinced….I for one would hate to see him go….he may not score the goals…but you only have to see the number of opposition players he takes out of the game with his dribbling ability to see his true worth and the problem is…I don’t see any other player like him whom Wenger can think of replacing him with.
April 22nd, 2008 at 10:28 am
Fred, thats the joy of sport.
You can predict, and hypothesize, disect, and complain, hope, and react.
We all have our opinions, and our favorite players for whatever reasons.
I can appreciate Ronaldo’s game … and be an Arsenal supporter. I can NOT like Ade’s game… and be an Arsenal supporter. I can think we won’t make the top 4… and still hope and pray we do.
Thats a fan… short for fanatic.
At the end of the day… I support the club. I spend my hard earned money to travel to see them play… and pay for tickets etc.
So, no… sorry… I don’t support Barcelona … but I like they’re style. I don’t support Palermo, though I watch them with interest as well…
I watch all football… from all over the world.
If we stand pretty much pat… then I’ll say again next year, we ain’t winning feck all… and Ade STILL won’t be a great scorer.
You don’t have to like it… but you aren’t going to stop me from saying it!
No matter how much you BITCH.
Next time I’m in London for the match… I’ll meet you down the pub.
Thats the way supporters are.
April 22nd, 2008 at 10:30 am
oh… the rumors of Hleb buying out… and Ade being a target for teams…
very very interesting.
Season isn’t even over yet… and its already getting silly.
Just gotta watch and wait… with many comments in between on who we’d like to see in the Red & White… and who we wouldn’t… and why.
And no, it doesn’t even have to be rational!
April 22nd, 2008 at 11:13 am
I wrote this a few weeks ago but the problem with Hleb is he doesn’t have the technique or confidence to hit the ball first time. He has to take a touch and when you take a touch aganist BPL opposition, you’re going to get closed down. We’ve seen Hleb try and hit the ball first time and put it into Row Z.
On the other hand, when given time we’ve seen that he can spank the ball something serious but he knows volleys are not his forte. So instead of embarassing himself with a wild mis-kick, he passes to somebody in a better position. It seems unthinkable that someone with as much talent as him can’t hit a volley. It’s not that he doesn’t want to score, he just has limitations.
If not for this one missing ingredient, he’d probably be the world’s best. I remember when he was at Stuttgart I saw a documentary on Cruyff and thought to myself that Hleb plays exactly like Cruyff. Not getting into the game until the mid-nineties, I’d heard of Cruyff but never seen him play. But there was no mistaking the glaring comparison in their styles. It’s no wonder so many big teams want him. I’d surely hate to lose him.
April 22nd, 2008 at 11:25 am
Balakov said he had as much talent as a certain Diego Maradona.