It’s not Arshavin that Arsenal need
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QuartzGooner
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It’s not Arshavin that Arsenal need
It’s not Arshavin that Arsenal need
Some post transfer window blues
By Nick St. George
5 February 2009
http://www.onlinegooner.com/exclusive/index.php?id=995
I think we do need Arshavin, because Rosicky, Cesc and Theo are injured.
Diaby is not performing consistently either, and Vela is still developing.
The author feels a defensive midfielder would have been a greater priority, and I o agree with that.
As he says, we go into the business end of the season with no defensive midfielder.
We do have Song, but he is just not good enough, and Coquelin, who is still young.
In fact, we went into the season with no defensive midfielder, having sold Diarra, Flamini and Gilberto.
Why have we not bought a defensive midfielder.
Is Wenger waiting until the summer to by Inler from Udinese?
Good article Nick.
I think there may be an extra dimension to all this. Regardless of who our players are, as a team we seem to have lost the desire to compete, to play with real pace, to take a chance with a ball over the top or a long pass to the wings, or to take a player on and beat him with pace or skill.
Our game has become obsessed, really obsessed, with short passing and not giving the ball away. We seem to have lost sight of the need to get the ball quickly into dangerous areas, near the other side's goal for goodness' sake, not on the half way line with the opposition all in place ahead of the ball. Put the other team under real pressure, not leave them in the comfort zone.
Arseblog this morning suggests Steve Coppell may have an obsession with Arsenal that he cant get out of his mind. Dont know about that, but does anyone think Le Boss may have a fixation with Barcelona and their style of play? Now Barcelona are an excellent team, but they excel in playing other technical teams in the Spanish League and in the Champions League. That style of play is not always the right style against tough, physical, defence-minded teams in England.
I dont believe it is beyond Song Eboue Nasri and Denilson to play with real appetite, pace and power, I just dont think they are made to understand that they need to in matches against lesser teams. Let's see what happens on Sunday, but I dont want to see another lackadaisical performance in this match.
I think there may be an extra dimension to all this. Regardless of who our players are, as a team we seem to have lost the desire to compete, to play with real pace, to take a chance with a ball over the top or a long pass to the wings, or to take a player on and beat him with pace or skill.
Our game has become obsessed, really obsessed, with short passing and not giving the ball away. We seem to have lost sight of the need to get the ball quickly into dangerous areas, near the other side's goal for goodness' sake, not on the half way line with the opposition all in place ahead of the ball. Put the other team under real pressure, not leave them in the comfort zone.
Arseblog this morning suggests Steve Coppell may have an obsession with Arsenal that he cant get out of his mind. Dont know about that, but does anyone think Le Boss may have a fixation with Barcelona and their style of play? Now Barcelona are an excellent team, but they excel in playing other technical teams in the Spanish League and in the Champions League. That style of play is not always the right style against tough, physical, defence-minded teams in England.
I dont believe it is beyond Song Eboue Nasri and Denilson to play with real appetite, pace and power, I just dont think they are made to understand that they need to in matches against lesser teams. Let's see what happens on Sunday, but I dont want to see another lackadaisical performance in this match.
Lots of good points in the article, especially about the lack of fight, zeal etc in the midfield, the need for a strong defensive midfielder and Wenger's apparent ignornce of this. Wenger clearly believes in his young midfield and wants to allow them time to develop. I don't believe the club has a great deal of money to spend and only one signing was likely to join in the transfer window, and in terms of value and availability Arshavin is a good signing.
So I agree with Quartz that we do need Arshavin, and not just because of the injuries to some of our most creative players. Arshavin is an exceptionally gifted and skilful player who could turn out to be the best we have at the club, even when the others are fully fit again. A top team will always benefit from adding quality and creativity and his presence could give the squad the lift it desparately needs.
If you look at stats and performances recently we are lacking a cutting edge and the ability to create plenty of clear cut chances even against average opposition, whereas the defence has tightened up (in terms of goals conceded) since the appaling loss at Man City.
Titi's excellent point about our obsession with short passing football (keep ball) and the need to attack quickly at times highlights our need for Arshavin. This is one of his strenghths - the ability to take players on and burst forward quickly which unsettles a defence more than anything else. We rarely do this now - Diaby's superb goal at Villa (linking up with Eboue!) one of the few examples of this recently. Watching Arsenal play in a match at the moment is like watching a training session - lots of jogging and passing that doesn't go anywhere - except sideways or backwards.
Hopefully Arshavin's addition to the squad will give the club the necessary impetus and a current player will fill the defensive hole we have. If not Wenger must address this in the summer.
So I agree with Quartz that we do need Arshavin, and not just because of the injuries to some of our most creative players. Arshavin is an exceptionally gifted and skilful player who could turn out to be the best we have at the club, even when the others are fully fit again. A top team will always benefit from adding quality and creativity and his presence could give the squad the lift it desparately needs.
If you look at stats and performances recently we are lacking a cutting edge and the ability to create plenty of clear cut chances even against average opposition, whereas the defence has tightened up (in terms of goals conceded) since the appaling loss at Man City.
Titi's excellent point about our obsession with short passing football (keep ball) and the need to attack quickly at times highlights our need for Arshavin. This is one of his strenghths - the ability to take players on and burst forward quickly which unsettles a defence more than anything else. We rarely do this now - Diaby's superb goal at Villa (linking up with Eboue!) one of the few examples of this recently. Watching Arsenal play in a match at the moment is like watching a training session - lots of jogging and passing that doesn't go anywhere - except sideways or backwards.
Hopefully Arshavin's addition to the squad will give the club the necessary impetus and a current player will fill the defensive hole we have. If not Wenger must address this in the summer.
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Lord Peter of Highbury
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Nick,
Some good points but an article that typifies the air of negativity that seems to pervade this esteemed organ these days.
Whilst I agree with many of your observations - that Almunia does not have the quality, that we are light in the centre half department etc, I suspect that your state of depression has clouded your judgement a little.
For example, the reality was that Senderos was showing NO signs of overcoming his error prone ways at the end of last season. Think back to the CL Liverpool QF when his lack of concentration and positional sense at this level was so cruelly exposed and ultimately cost us a place in the semis? It was blatently obvious that he was simply not good enough and had no future at the club. Thank the lord that AC came along.
Regarding Arshavin and the creativity side of things? Without doubt, Arshavin is a world class peformer. He is technically excellent, hard working, fast, and knows how to score - exactly what we lack right now. When was the last time Arsenal looked like scoring one of our trade mark quick, incisive, lethal counter attacking goals that so typified the invincibles era? Arshavin will help to bring that to the table.
And when Theo, Rosicky and Cesc return from injury, Arshavin will still be a first pick because of his quality. At 27, he is approaching hs peak, just like Bobby Pires was when he joined the club.
And with all of these quality offensive players available, the team will start to meet the expectations of the fans and the boss. It might be too late for this season, unfortunately, but next season promises much.
So get your chin off your chest Nick - life's too short to be miserable!!
Some good points but an article that typifies the air of negativity that seems to pervade this esteemed organ these days.
Whilst I agree with many of your observations - that Almunia does not have the quality, that we are light in the centre half department etc, I suspect that your state of depression has clouded your judgement a little.
For example, the reality was that Senderos was showing NO signs of overcoming his error prone ways at the end of last season. Think back to the CL Liverpool QF when his lack of concentration and positional sense at this level was so cruelly exposed and ultimately cost us a place in the semis? It was blatently obvious that he was simply not good enough and had no future at the club. Thank the lord that AC came along.
Regarding Arshavin and the creativity side of things? Without doubt, Arshavin is a world class peformer. He is technically excellent, hard working, fast, and knows how to score - exactly what we lack right now. When was the last time Arsenal looked like scoring one of our trade mark quick, incisive, lethal counter attacking goals that so typified the invincibles era? Arshavin will help to bring that to the table.
And when Theo, Rosicky and Cesc return from injury, Arshavin will still be a first pick because of his quality. At 27, he is approaching hs peak, just like Bobby Pires was when he joined the club.
And with all of these quality offensive players available, the team will start to meet the expectations of the fans and the boss. It might be too late for this season, unfortunately, but next season promises much.
So get your chin off your chest Nick - life's too short to be miserable!!
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barnetgooner
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gooner_ess_tee
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Thanks for the comments, I can take a bit of criticism/feedback and it's interesting to see what fellow Gooners think.
I do get the feeling that the article was slightly misinterpreted, though. I wasn't criticising the signing of Arshavin/Arshavin himself, I just feel that we probably need between 3 and 4 players and Arshavin should have been the 3rd or 4th. No.1 for me is a defensive midfielder, and so my belief is that we needed to address other areas before Arshavin. I support the acquisition of an exciting, experienced attacking player, don't get me wrong, but there is more to football than going forward. Had Man City obtained Kaka's services, it may have done alot of things for them as a club but it most certainly would not have solved their pressing defensive problems. Many would argue that the business that they eventually conducted in the window was more benefficial than the sole purchase of Kaka would have been.
After re-reading my article I can see that it appears rather negative and I agree, typical of the current content of the Gooner. However, I see myself as a realist, and still stick by my points. I am hoping just as much as everyone else that Arshavin will be a success and am looking forward to being present at his debut, maybe you're right that my judgement was affected by the West Ham game, however. I support The Arsenal through thick and thin and although I may have appeared negative I promise you I am not a moaner (I've been standing up for Eboue [until Tottenham - though I'm still not slating him] this whole season, for one thing).
Finally, as I wrote originally, I think Manuel is a good keeper, however he is not world class. He proved on Sunday his capabilities, which I never doubted, I just feel that there is better quality than him that was available in January.
Not sure what the early-leavers comment was about, unless it was a separate issue. I give you my word, again, that I never leave early, but that may not have been directed at me.
Cheers
Nick (Author)
I do get the feeling that the article was slightly misinterpreted, though. I wasn't criticising the signing of Arshavin/Arshavin himself, I just feel that we probably need between 3 and 4 players and Arshavin should have been the 3rd or 4th. No.1 for me is a defensive midfielder, and so my belief is that we needed to address other areas before Arshavin. I support the acquisition of an exciting, experienced attacking player, don't get me wrong, but there is more to football than going forward. Had Man City obtained Kaka's services, it may have done alot of things for them as a club but it most certainly would not have solved their pressing defensive problems. Many would argue that the business that they eventually conducted in the window was more benefficial than the sole purchase of Kaka would have been.
After re-reading my article I can see that it appears rather negative and I agree, typical of the current content of the Gooner. However, I see myself as a realist, and still stick by my points. I am hoping just as much as everyone else that Arshavin will be a success and am looking forward to being present at his debut, maybe you're right that my judgement was affected by the West Ham game, however. I support The Arsenal through thick and thin and although I may have appeared negative I promise you I am not a moaner (I've been standing up for Eboue [until Tottenham - though I'm still not slating him] this whole season, for one thing).
Finally, as I wrote originally, I think Manuel is a good keeper, however he is not world class. He proved on Sunday his capabilities, which I never doubted, I just feel that there is better quality than him that was available in January.
Not sure what the early-leavers comment was about, unless it was a separate issue. I give you my word, again, that I never leave early, but that may not have been directed at me.
Cheers
Nick (Author)
I agree with a lot of the points you make Nick - I agree that Almunia is a good keeper but not top quality, and Given or Friedel would have been good signings. However, getting involved in trying to buy a player Man City want isn't likely to work out in our favour, especially in the current circumstances with no guarantee of Champs League or even European football next season.
I don't actually think your article was particularly negative - honest or realistic would be more accurate descriptions, which is what Wenger needs to do in order to get the club back on track. The problem with the midfield is that it is too young and we are trying to blend together a lot of inexperienced players all at once which is tricky. If 2 or 3 of Gilberto / Hleb / Flamini / Tommy / Cesc were still here / available it would be easier to slot in 1 or 2 of the current youngsters.
So an experienced midfielder should have probably been our top priority, preferably defensive minded one with a lot of drive who leads from the front, and I fully agree with you that the fact that this problem has been ignored is astonishing. One of my main points is that I don't think there is much money available in the current climate, so 12-15M is only likely to get you one or two players, and there was always likely to be a load of wrangling in dealing with a Russian club which in turn meant that the transfer was always likely to go to (or over) the wire.
Hopefully the returning players and Arshavin will make a difference but we do need a midfielder to emerge like Flamini did last season to make a difference for us.
I don't actually think your article was particularly negative - honest or realistic would be more accurate descriptions, which is what Wenger needs to do in order to get the club back on track. The problem with the midfield is that it is too young and we are trying to blend together a lot of inexperienced players all at once which is tricky. If 2 or 3 of Gilberto / Hleb / Flamini / Tommy / Cesc were still here / available it would be easier to slot in 1 or 2 of the current youngsters.
So an experienced midfielder should have probably been our top priority, preferably defensive minded one with a lot of drive who leads from the front, and I fully agree with you that the fact that this problem has been ignored is astonishing. One of my main points is that I don't think there is much money available in the current climate, so 12-15M is only likely to get you one or two players, and there was always likely to be a load of wrangling in dealing with a Russian club which in turn meant that the transfer was always likely to go to (or over) the wire.
Hopefully the returning players and Arshavin will make a difference but we do need a midfielder to emerge like Flamini did last season to make a difference for us.
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barnetgooner
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The early-leavers comment is just my signature that appears at the bottom of every post, not directed at you!gooner_ess_tee wrote:Not sure what the early-leavers comment was about, unless it was a separate issue. I give you my word, again, that I never leave early, but that may not have been directed at me.
Cheers
Nick (Author)
As for the article generally, I'd say yes we really need a defensive midfielder but we also really needed a winger - Walcott and Nasri are both future world class players but both currently too inexperienced in the Prem to perform consistently.
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gooner_ess_tee
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Arshavin
Haha. Agreed. But I did explicitly say that I wasn't suggesting he wasn't a good player just that we desperately need players in other areas and I think the fact that we still drew that game having gone 4-3 up with a handful of minutes to go proves my point about our defence.
