Good day, Gooners of the positive variety.
So we got a new chairman with a funny name but, other than that, there is relatively little news to bring to you fine folk. With that in mind, I’m going to take this opportunity to talk about the team and where additions may be needed. This is not a tabloid newspaper or the blog of a man with an intimate knowledge of crystal balls. There will be no names, there will be no figures.
While the list of players linked with Arsenal grows, the actual squad of players at the club has begin to to shrink. In previous years this meant that we were losing vital team members but this time it’s different. The players who are leaving the club, some loved and some not-so-much, are doing so at the behest of Arsenal and nobody else. The team which was the best one in Britain for the second half of the season will stay together and welcome new players into an already defined system. So what do we need?
Any player joining the team will have to be strong of character and selfless enough to give themselves to our way of defending as a team. They will have to, regardless of price-tag or wages, join the effort to bring The Arsenal back to the top; an effort which is built on hard work and commitment. Most of all, I believe that they will have to bring what we lacked for a big part of last season, and that is confidence. Many times last season, (particularly in the first half) the team looked like it was out of ideas and short of belief. They subsequently went on to prove that they were good enough but as Arséne Wenger says, “If you don’t believe you have no chance at all”. Some new arrivals will be young and will fill out a depleted squad but the ones who join with a view to immediately breaking into the team will have to be the type of player who can be turned to when the new chairman is down.
Goalkeeper – It seems as though the club would like to add a goalkeeper to the party as Fabianski is out of contract this year. Having come back from being dropped, Szczesny proved to most that he’s got the quality to be our number one but there are signs that a new goalkeeper will be added to provide experience and competition.
Defenders – The situation at left-back is about the healthiest one at the club, with two of Europe’s elite battling it out for the spot. At right-back there has been some speculation about Bacary Sagna leaving to return to France. Should he go, Carl Jenkinson will step into the role reasonably seamlessly but there will have to be a player signed to cover. At centre-back, we have the interesting situation of our club captain being unable to break into the side as Mertesacker and Koscielny have forged an awesome partnership. Vermaelen has been linked with a move away but he was very quick to come out and say that he’s happy with us and wants to fight for his place. We currently have three top, top, top quality players in that position and a possible addition would give us a back-eight about which we could all feel extremely secure.
Midfield – Now I don’t know which hip terms we’re using for midfielders this week but with Arteta and Ramsey forming our double-hinge-swivel, we’ve got a partnership that has composure, creativity, industry and guile. This partnership is so strong that one would struggle to find a place for Jack Wilshere. There are a lot of games to be played over the season so a player coming in to make that very impressive three a four would seem to make sense. Last season, on several occasions, Wilshere was played in the most advanced role in the midfield. With Rosicky’s injury record, and Santi’s move to the left, either a creative player must come in to add to our attacking threat or Jack will continue his progression forward and two deeper midfielders would have to come in. It’s a bit of a quandary in the middle but it is one filled with quality players and exciting opportunities.
Wingers (Or whatever you want to call them) – Theo Walcott has had another good season. His new contract and continued progress means that our right side is nailed down for another year. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has been mooted as a central player for the future but this season will probably see him play a more active role in deputising for Theo. The left side has been occupied by Santi Cazorla which has pushed Lukas Podolski to the bench. There was talk about the German leaving but after a strong first season, the happiest man in London will most likely stay.
Strikers – Olivier Giroud has had a very impressive first season. There are elements of his game upon which he could improve but his link play, his power in the air, and often his finishing have shown him to be an excellent acquisition. He needs help and help is coming. Walcott and Gervinho have played there with some success but neither look to be the player to ‘lead the line’, as they say. A new forward to share the burden with Giroud is probably where a good chunk of our new-found wealth will go.
The point of this post is to highlight the fact that the team is already very strong. The overhaul had begun long before the budget exploded and the nucleus of a winning machine is already in place. This is not only a huge compliment to the manager who assembled such a fine squad on a limited budget, but it also tells us that, should we achieve success in the coming season, we will do it with a squad with whom we had the chance to fall in love. New additions will be supplementary and we will not have bought a title. We will do it the Arsenal Way.
Thanks for reading,
Up the Arsenal!
Positively Arsenal 
Thanks for lifting my spirits Ronan.
Its all to east to forget what a potentially wonderful team we have ,amidst the transfer shit storm that surrounds us.
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Great stuff. Those calling for so called ‘marquee’ signings forget AW has built a squad of top quality players on a very limited budget.
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A timely summary of how relatively little, on the playing side, we actually need.
It’s been heartening to see Tommy V rush to quash speculation over his future; in his case I’m confident class will out, the old form being temporary argument being the most likely to apply.
The rumours of Rooney’s apparently impending escape from the red north seem to be fuelled by, as much as anything, a failure to refute by anyone connected to the player. Many of us have reservations concerning both WR’s off and on-field activities. Far be it for me to rush to judgement on the off-field stuff (one can never be too sure which of it is true and I don’t especially care, either). But if one takes into account Manure’s propensity to encourage their players to dive at will – ala Barca – then at least THAT side of his game stands to be improved by a move away from the north-west.
The attraction for the player himself to go to a club – almost any club (with certain exceptions) that would consistently – exclusively, even – play him in his preferred role as Centre Forward would appear obvious. I’ve long wondered whether his relatively poor PR is down to his perpetual frustration at being unable to develop that side of his game – firstly thanks to the presence of Ronaldo and latterly, JvC in the Mancy 1st team.
So a club change for the newly thatched one could be of real benefit to the player and also, I believe, to the national side. In the context of Bradyesque’s article above, it could make equal sense for his supposedly pending move to wind up in North London; I have no doubt he could add real cutting edge to an already dangerous line-up and I for one would certainly welcome him into the side. I think his best years are yet to come. Under Arsene Wenger, his entire career could yet be redefined.
No idea if it is likely to happen, of course, and I don’t normally bother with inward transfer speculation. But if it were to occur – and, given his age in particular, we’d surely be talking of the transfer deal of the decade – it could prove every bit as influential on the destination of next season’s EPL as the move last year of Robin van Persie.
And that would be richly ironic – on so many levels, too.
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The main reason, I believe, why pundits and bloggers get so bogged down in Arsenal transfer nonsense is that Wenger has always attempted to build a team in which every player is expected to perform multiple parts, and “positions” in that rigid digital sense with little drawings showing us “where players are positioned” makes so little sense in Arsenal. Obviously, there are limits and main areas of responsibility, but that’s it.
Most players at Arsenal, with obvious exceptions, have two positions already, or in the case of the wing-backs multiple flanking roles. Santi: attacking and left sided midfielder; Aaron: pivot and a right sided midfielder; Theo; right and central striker; Podolski (and 3Gs to a less degree); left and central striker; Ox; right, sometimes left and central (attacking) midfielder, potentially a striker; TV; central and left back; an so on. Arteta and Jack seem to move seamlessly in and around the centre of midfield. Top and obviously bottom the positional play is more fixed, but look what – sorry to say – RvP managed to do under Arsene with his positional play, he could and would pop up anywhere. Wenger will want more of that from any striker.
Looking for incoming players is a whole lot more than “we need a position”, as if piling that weekend bargain sweetly packaged into the supermarket trolley. It’s about multiple roles and qualities not only defined by positions per se. We think “striker”, well OK, and Arsene in my imagination thinks “this type of player, also a striker, of that type”.
Higuain seems to be the flavour of the month. who knows? Not us. We have a very strong team, and the strength is now expressed in the collective unit, not 15-18 (core) individuals. Therefore, what strengthens the collective, and how, exactly?
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Good stuff number 7, now officially less than a month till our first friendly, and the fixtures come out Wednesday!
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Commendably sober analysis B7 and probably much nearer the real world than 98% of the window fantasy that has been dreamed up on the past month.
As I recall Arsene said that we had been very close to adding a striker in the January window but the details just did not work out – that does seem to me to underline where the main recruitment drive will be focussed
With regard to midfield I do not see an urgent need for recruitment but an experienced worker, with a bit of height, would do me nicely – If by Christmas Diaby is fit again then we will have an excess of choices. And if not then we will not spend another season one man short in the squad
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Very balanced piece Bradyesque. I can see a lot of people expecting this big transfer splash to displace half the current squad. But I agree, the nucleus is there and just needs the finishing touches.
AA, I see your Rooney points, but equally, he could be burnt out and past his best, given that he has been playing at the top level since he was 16. The fact that Fergie displaced him with Ronaldo and JVC, could equally mean they know that and if they are prepared to let him go to us they could be trying to sell us an unmotivated dud and we’ve been stung by them before! I would also be concerned about his impact on the current harmony in the squad. I know Arsene liked him when he was at Everton. Whether he still sees him as an option for this squad remains to be seen and I will just have to get over my distaste for him as an individual if he comes here.
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thanks Ronan.
Gk’s – I believe Flappy wants to stay and push Shezzy for a starting spot, both are good keepers who need more encouragement. I can’t see anyone of genuine quality in the market worth bothering about. At least for a decent price. I have never ever rated any GKs from Brasil, they have always been poor.
Defense – promote from within. Our defense was as good as the title winners last season, if they cut down on a few individual errors they will airtight next season, and this will naturally happen as they get more comfortable and confidant with each others postioning. Zonal marking actually works! (look it up on Pozan’s blog). It also helps to have Arteta and Ramsey playing so well and protecting them from MF. even Theo (maybe not so much Poldi) finally has understood part of his job is to stroll back now and then and help out.
Midfield – Promote Eisfeld, Will Coq stay? Will Diaby be back to his best next Christmas,? I wish him well on his latest path to recovery. We have masses of quality all over the pitch, however if Arteta is out for any length of time, I’d worry we don’t have an equally experience player there. cesc won’t happen. none of the mooted French average joes excite me at all. more goals need to be scored from midfielders to win the title, I can probably statistically prove that.
Wingers – Arsenal’s weakest position. We have not a single natural winger on either flank, (not Theo, Santi , Ox or Poldi) or at least anyone who actually wants to play out wide. Ball crossing into the box is usually terrible too, Giroud needs better service for a tall CF. I think (in my very humble armchair opinion) this is where Arsene Wenger could find a couple of new players. please God NOT Nani.
Forwards – Giroud, Poldi, Theo will all get even better. Unless Dortmund are genuinely desperate to make sure their prized asset doesn’t fall into Bayern Munich’s hands then why bother spending big money on bog standard new players? any new striker will expect guaranteed top billing and game time as it is a pre World Cup season and they all will want to be seen to be playing well for the team selections for Brasil.
What to do about Gerv is a real conundrum. I don’t have a clue. I don’t have AW’s brains to figure out how to use him more effectively. he needs proper encouragement, he doesn’t seem to get that from some of our ‘supporters’.
Shrek? It has its pros and cons.(not a pun, really!). It would be the best move available from HIS point of view, but the only good thing in any deal for Arsenal would be to screw over the red mancs, assuming they are not evilly planning this already and have Lewandowski in the bag and are just looking for a club gullible enough to take their fat cheating scallywag bastard off their hands.
It would be worth the money though just to see his Shrekky face when he sees his canteen lunch tray at Colney training ground for the first time. salad! Not chips!
In conclusion, I agree entirely B7, we do not need to go out on a £70m splug this summer at all. at the moment it seems selling clubs are just adding £5-7m onto the typical ‘market’ price for any player linked to AFC.
Imagine the fury come August from the Gooner WOB’s if we don’t spend every penny of £70m? ‘effin Idiots.
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My name is FunGunner and it’s four weeks since I watched Arsenal play.
Really good post, Brady and you always make me chuckle. The cake has been baked and we are just deciding on the icing and the sprinkles. Not an easy decision, as home bakers among us will know!
ZimPaul, typically shrewd. I agree totally about how Arsene sees and uses players. Football fans, as has been noted previously, tend to have rigid and conservative ideas about football, and in *some* cases the call for “a proper DM” is a result of that mindset when it comes to positions.
@ Arsenal Andrew
Don’t feel bad about wanting Rooney (banned smiley face). However, I agree with Passenal (again). Don’t you worry it might be too late for Arsene to work his magic? Admittedly he is the same age as JvC was when he started to develop into the phenomenon he has become but to do the badger justice he is not thick and undisciplined.
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I think you’ve got it spot on there Ronan. We have the making of a great team, with a tweak
here and there, it can be an unbelievable one.
I am looking forward to seeing who comes in.
I have no idea but I’m sure who ever they are Arsene will do his best to get them.
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I bought my Emirates Cup ticket this week. And I realised that it’s only four weeks until the first friendly. So there’s light at the end of the tunnel. chin up, everyone!
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@ ZimPaul
I forgot to add, he is just about the only manager who buys players – even finished articles – with a view to developing untapped potential. Everyone else buys what they see in front of them.
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Passenal/Fungunner – As always, very valid points.
I have no certain idea what contributes to ‘burn out’. Is it, in part, a mental thing? Can injuries contribute?
What I would say about WR is that, for all his faults, he has dug in and played a key role for manure – as recently as last season – despite that role not being his preferred position (we’re led to believe).
He’s not had the injuries of the kind (or any kind, even?) that could yet catch up with RvP.
I’m sure few of us will ever forget how AW practically resurrected the careers – and certainly extended them – of the defence he originally inherited from Rioch.
It’s been suggested in some quarters that WR ‘needs’ to play in every game in order to keep his fitness up and weight down but I have a disproportionate degree of faith in AW’s methods on this front!!
I also think the motivation for WR’s further development could be found in his desire to stick two fingers up to Manure, SAF AND Moyes! So, three fingers then, one each!
The other factor in which a Rooney signing might make sense is his nationality and AW’s apparent move towards a British core. Sling in the Corporal in defence and Arsenal would be perilously close to having a British core, for better or worse …
Not holding my breath on this but equally, I honestly don’t think it would be the worst thing that had ever happened for the club – or the player.
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Interesting the pros and cons on Wayne
The considerable plus is a player who has in visually made the difference between us and his employers, most recently last Autumn when he was by a mile the best player on the pitch as 2-1 a ridiculous score
And weighed against that you have the spoiled petulant stupid greedy little Scouse bastard who opened talks with Citeh in order to lever a massive hike in his already huge wage packet
As for ‘burn out’ check how many players who play regularly from 16 are finished in their late 20s – Owen is a fair example
I’ll give him a miss
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But wasn’t Owen riddled with injury …?
I think Rooney was ready to leave Manure even back then Col. The little boy inside him was already fed up of being forced out of his best position.
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@ arsenal andrew
good and fair points. I’m sure Walcott, AOC et al particularly would love to see him at the Emirates. But I worry that he has no respect for the club or Wenger, has been spoilt by the only partly deserved adulation and would only come to us out of desperation. He would fit in better at Chelsea, if he wants a move. I hope that the rumours about him (and Nani now!) are just smokescreens deliberately created by the club, perhaps.
But hey, I don’t know what’s going on anyway.
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Coincidentally, as we type our comments the Rooney-Higuain rumors are hotting up on Twitter with the ITKs doing their best to persuade the fickle that both signings are all but sealed and delivered. But that is only for starters. Hot on their heels are the signing of Fellaini, Julia Cesar, Jovetic, Nani any number of French-sounding defensive midfielders.
Thanks B7 for reminding us that the core of the team is intact and the only additions are improvements and enhancements. It will be interesting to see what are Wenger’s priorities; strikers, wingers, attacking midfielders, defensive midfielders. I tend to believe that we are lacking another creative presence in midfield or from wide positions. I think Santi is carrying too large a load creator and finisher and that we can’t depend on TR-7 due to his age and injury history. But what do I know.
PS: I watched a replay of City v Dortmund last night and those young creative legs of Goetze, Reuss and Gundogan certainly created a lot of chances vs a defensive-minded City. Confirmation bias.
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Oh, shotta – speaking of Gundogan, I absolutely fell in love with that player, and (like most of the Dortmund team) he would fit in so well here. He would be the next generation Arteta.
So hard to wait until Sep 1st when the team is settled.
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http://www.gunnerstown.com/arsenal/2013/6/16/wenger-the-alchemist-close-to-finally-blending-his-player-ingredients-for-the-recipe-of-success-in-2014
another great article on a similar theme
hashtag waiting for tennis to start…
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Bit of chicken and egg disregarding the effects of injury with Owen and players who play regularly from 16-17 onwards – Shearer is another one who started young
Are they more susceptible to injury because of the pounding their still developing bodies took as teenagers ? Is it mental maybe that you only have so much in the tank. Odd thing about Rooney was even at 16 he never had the physique of a kid.
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The core squad is there. There’s good spirit and morale, a balance between youth and experience, and there is no position which desperately needs strengthening. This window is about adding a sprinkling of quality where it can bring about the most benefit, rather than mending any problems or replacing any key individuals.
I’m probably in the minority but I am wary of adding a centre forward to take Giroud’s place and change the dynamic of the attack. I think there is a lot, lot more to come from Giroud, from Poldi, and from Theo. The two most potent attacking combinations in the Premier League last season were Arsenal ones – Walcott/Giroud and Podolski/Cazorla (http://www.givemesport.com/331103-premier-leagues-deadliest-attacking-combinations) and I think to dismantle those burgeoning partnerships, unless it’s for a very special player, might not be worth the hassle. A great attack is built on chemistry, achieving a high level of synchronicity, and that is not achieved by chopping and changing personnel. Having said that, the strikers/forwards we have been linked with so far could be classed as special. and I certainly wouldn’t say no to a player with 122 Real Madrid goals at the age of 25….
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Rooney is not a player I would pick for Arsenal, and I’m still very sceptical of the rumours, but as somebody put it rather well on twitter, ‘I want Arsene to buy who Arsene wants to buy’. And if that’s Rooney, then so be it. It would certainly make life interesting for Wenger’s detractors who say he won’t buy finished articles or that he cannot manage big egos if he were to get more out of Rooney than the great Fergus ever did.
If the choice were mine, however, I would rather take someone younger, more professional and easier to love than the smoking, drinking, shagging pride of Manchester.
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Interesting, what you say about adding a striker, and I absolutely take your point, LeoS. However I wonder if the point of having another CF or out-and-out striker not dissimilar to Giroud might also be that when teams press our CBs we often have to bypass the midfielders with a long forward pass. Giroud has been a great outlet (obviously Theo is one as well). So given that the other strikers are not target men as such, AW might be thinking of balance. Giroud has said recently that he is very relaxed about the possibility of another CF coming – that it’s a squad game and he welcomes the competition. I know I am getting way ahead of myself, but we would then have more tactical options and more opportunities for rotation.
Or it could just be a case of taking the opportunity to buy a world class player because he is available and affordable.
Anyway, I will nobly refrain from further blinding you all with my detailed and extensive tactical knowledge (insert banned smiley winky thing just to make it crystal clear that I am kidding).
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“…should we achieve success in the coming season, we will do it with a squad with whom we had the chance to fall in love. New additions will be supplementary and we will not have bought a title. We will do it the Arsenal Way.”
*B7 drops the mike and walks away*
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We need another out and out striker.Not because Giroud is not good enough,but because he is the only one we have.Injuries and tiredness will come along.
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Exactly, George – we need the squad to sustain a challenge on several fronts.
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This whole Rooney thing is driving me bat-shit crazy. I do want Arsene to be able to buy who he wants to buy. If WR is on that list (and I still think that is a BIG if), it’s because he has a reason. And I’ll accept it…it will just take me a bit to get past all the off-field crap that I hate about him. I just hope he doesn’t screw up the dressing room.
Ah well, no point worrying about it anyway. It’s all speculation, right?
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B7 , load the gun, cock the trigger and….make us all think, well you’ve definitely achieved that.
The myriad of combinations are whirling through P.A contributors minds .
personally I agree we don’t need much for the winning line to appear in front of us and for the squad to rip it down, however as strange as it seems my primary concern is not about collecting pots and so I want to love my team and the things that make it unique.
A player can come from the four corners of the earth or further and still develop an affinity with the club which is reciprocal. It is for this reason I don’t have to think about we’d talent or which bit of the jigsaw he represents
w.r could play for us for ten years but he will never be an ARSENAL player.
When that elusive silverware finally does come I really hope its with a squad that we can all embrace.
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Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely want us to strengthen. My slight regret would be if that meant the potential of Giroud would go unfulfilled and the potential of last season’s attacking unit as a whole not developed further. I hope we can add to the attack but without disturbing what has been created, because I think what we have is already very good but needs more time to make it great. I see people suggesting we need two attacking players, some even say three, and I think that is such complete overkill that would do more harm than good. It destroys the money and time invested in some very fine players and the connections built between them. One player, a very good one, is all I believe is required.
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Now I have maintained for a long time that we rely too heavily on the transfer market. But also understand the transition the club are trying to make in that regard. A business or more specifically a sporting club that cannot train it’s own staff has no real future. Arsenal have always been exceptional at improving their staff from the time of arrival to the time of departing. What I don’t understand is why we are not seeing more talent from the youth system making that step into the first team? Additionally, this step will only become harder as the current team grows into the winners we hope they become.
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Even among PA there are differences about where Arsenal should strengthen. Best leave it to Arsene.
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What can we talk about Shotta?
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@ LeoS June 16, 2013 at 6:16 pm
There’s just an argument for getting someone (suitable) in to share the load with OG – look at the way Monreal and Gibbs have been rotated since January. There will be plenty of games to go round if we’re going to get that quadruple (I like to aim high!). I totally agree – our team chemistry is our single most precious asset. But we know what AW’s like, he’ll get the right player or go without.
@ shotta
No-one’s trying to tell AW who to sign. I’m just trying to explain what I think could be the reasoning IF he is trying to sign Higuain specifically, or a striker in general, which I feel sure he is doing.
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And well done Andy Murray.
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Interesting point Adam about the need to bring through young players – thinking about the process we have regularly brought through defenders and midfielders
Attackers though have been a lot rarer –
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I think Wenger’s point a month back about there being a bit of shortage of genuine strikers in top flight is valid. Well, this is the manager who nurtured Henry and RvP, so we should probably take the comment seriously. Aside from that we oughtn’t be too subjective about Rooney. Long a hate figure for seeming to epitomize the arrogance of his club and manager, he is in fact a just an ordinary 27-year old working class kid who is good at football, now very rich and in that fearful career plateau. I would be surprised if AW is genuinely in for him, and I think it is the single bluff, to take eyes away from his real target for as long as possible. But, it might not be, it might be the double bluff.
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Anicoll5, apart from a mini golden period in the eighties, only Ashley Cole made it in the nineties some could argue Hughes, then the current two of Gibbs & Wilshere. Not the all conquering youth system lauded by some. Don’t get me wrong I’m not criticising just questioning. Most of the youngsters go on and play pro-ball, but not for us.
Someone pointed out something I never knew recently about the finances of the youth academy, and that was, every time a player is moved from the youth set up to the first team, a fee is paid from the first team to the academy, does anyone know if there is any truth to this?
Also where do we draw the line between youth products and imported talent, because I would love for some London boys to be turning out for us, but does that highlight a little demographic discrimination on my part, and what of the likes of our pole in goal, he went through our academy for awhile and is considered homegrown, so should I/we stick to the rules governing Homegrown or the solidarity mechanisms when deciding who to give allegiance to, or is that solely a emotional choice, because I cannot deny feeling more emotion about a Tony Adams type than say a Davor Suker.
Plus, should it matter where a player was trained, if he is good enough for Wenger that’s really all that matters, but again, I cannot hide a certain local pride and knowing that the players turning out for us have been educated solely by our great club shouldn’t that be a target. And as stated with the continued growth of the first team squad that break through for a youngster is only going to become tougher.
Sorry for jabbering on.
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Only too delighted to read something that is not about the window – gawd help us Adam
Who is a player we have developed and set on their few first faltering steps to professional success I tend to be a bit flexible about – it’s a bit if a shame for the Lansburys of the world cos 20 years ago he would have been a first team.regularly by now
Strikers though – a tricky breed these days – other than Messi and Thomas Mueller doesn’t everyone everywhere buy them ?
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I suppose your right, Campbell being our last breakthrough youngster who played upfront. Also compare these players individually (those from the eighties to today) I think only Davies and maybe Rocky had the technical abilities Wenger now looks for. Maybe Merson?
I wonder how many of the eighties mob would have made in under Wenger?
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Unfortunately the time when a young striker could have 8-10 games to find their feet – to have a few blank sheets before refining their mojo seems long gone
Ask Chamakh
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Well Henry got that courtesy. Would be a shame to miss out on a talent like that because of a lack of patience.
Looking forward to seeing Akpom progress.
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Adam
The last season was a bit different from the norm from Arsene, ordinarily he would have given more chances to the youth team; but the cup games were difficult, Reading & especially at Bradford he went in with very strong teams. In the FA we didn’t get teams we could take a gamble on, Swansea , Brighton and then Blackburn (less said about that game the better).
In the League and CL we had to go in at full strength for every single game, no rest at all for Santi, Arshavin wan hardly used and Coq and Ox were used very sparingly.
Point is, our backs were to the wall for most of the season. AW wasn’t able to call up as many or as frequent reserve players. At least 3-4 look like they could step up to first team level.
I’m very sorry to see that Conor Henderson has left the reserves this Summer. He has good prospects, I wish him well in his career. I think that’s the last Irish player gone.
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I haven’t given up on Frimpong making it.
I’d put him out on loan under Mick McCarthy again, he seems able to handle him.
Dench.
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@DC, with regards to the Irish, we get everywhere, can guarantee there’s a little still left in the squad even if the players don’t know it themselves.
Would love to see the youngsters in the league cup again. And who knows maybe we will if the first string can mount a challenge up the table.
God, I miss proper football, I’m going out me nut already.
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hey posa nostra rooney huh? it has its logic, i agree but maybe too expensive and disruptive plus its like kissing something that you previously spat on…
i agree with zimpaul ..batistuta henry ronaldo raul….
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suarez instead of wayne all day
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and night
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“Even among PA there are differences about where Arsenal should strengthen. Best leave it to Arsene.”
– Sorry, I was not trying to end the debate, just trying to highlight the difficulty of getting the right player, for the right position and at the right price.
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Bradyesque7,
I don’t think I like this post. It is filled with common sense when this is clearly the silly season. You did not bother to call Arsene an idiot once. Seriously, not even once? Neither did you demand firmly the signing of some players whose 30 second videos you’ve just seen on Youtube. What kind of Arsenal fan are you? Clearly, you are the deluded type! How can anyone be happy with a team that only got 4th in a 20 team league? Who cares if it a record 17th qualification against all odds? What if we have a brand new stadium and there has been influx of sugar daddies to our rival teams? I don’t care. I want trophies to fill my empty life with and I want them now. You have no idea how miserable I am from the taunts of my fellow losers who support trophy winning teams. What is the point of following any team if they are not buying ‘world class’ players and winning trophies?
In future, you article must include (but not limited to):
– Arsene Wenger has lost it
– the board is useless and they are lining their pockets
– the team is filled with deadwoods
– we must buy players X,Y,Z etc
– why haven’t we concluded our player transactions yet when Man City has bought all the available players?
– Wenger is an idiot (you must write this at least once)
– Kroenke is a tightwad…….and so on, and so on!
Now that is how you write an article about Arsenal. You better get with the programme or I will never visit this site again!
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excellent
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