The Giroud Question

[DB10GOONER]

A flash of the old Giroud yesterday in fairness to him. Fought well mostly against the Citeh CH's. Some nice lay offs and interlinking passes (particularly the assist for Sanchez's goal and Feo's fucking disastrous miss) but for Wenger to say that is the "real Giroud" is bollocks. The real Giroud is a bang average striker that will have good spells and terrible dry spells, will score a few absolute screamers and miss some absolute sitters, and then spend half the season not scoring and will probably never pass the magical (and requisite) 20+ PL goals a season mark.

At best he is an average second striker in a 4-4-2, but as lone striker in a 4-5-1? Forget it.

But anyone that thinks Welbeck is the answer is deluded. Welbeck ably demonstrated yet again yesterday (in his short spell actually on the pitch) that he has the first touch of a pub footballer (probably why Manure let him go) and his pace is a bit of a myth. If he has that 10 to 15 yards to get up to speed he's grand but from a standing start? Not quick enough. I like Welbeck's work rate but ultimately if he was anything other than bang average the Filth would never have let us have him.

[Gunner Rob]

Giroud and Welbeck are probably good 2nd choice strikers to have.
however they are not the world class strikers that you need to compete for the title.

of course this club doesn't worry about that anymore

[DB10GOONER]

Giroud and Welbeck are probably good 2nd choice strikers to have.
however they are not the world class strikers that you need to compete for the title.

of course this club doesn't worry about that anymore

All true. Unfortunately.

[rodders999]

Leicester won the league with Vardy, the spuds were in the hunt right up until the last few weeks with Kane. City, who despite going on holidays the minute Pep was announced, got to a CL semi with Aguero. Suarez almost single headedly won the league for the victims 2 years ago and JVP did single headedly win it the year before. Defoe's goals looks like keeping Sunderland in the league and so on and so on and so on.

You absolutely need to have a top class striker in the ranks if you want to get your hands on the serious pots and as long as we're going to plod along with Giroud leading the line everything else is a gigantic waste of time.

[Gunner Rob]

the lack of a world class striker is the reason I turned against Wenger in the first place.

I actually defended him until 2012(yes I know I was a bit slow compared to most on here ) but when we got rid of RVP that was it for me.

[rodders999]

Watched the Napoli game last night and seeing Gonzalo Higuain bag his 33rd league goal of the season (2 off an all time record) depressed the s.hit out of me. Another one of the virtual 11 that we dithered and dallied and tried to penny pinch over before eventually losing out on

[northbank123]

Watched the Napoli game last night and seeing Gonzalo Higuain bag his 33rd league goal of the season (2 off an all time record) depressed the s.hit out of me. Another one of the virtual 11 that we dithered and dallied and tried to penny pinch over before eventually losing out on

Higuain was the worst non-signing from Wenger. The bloke was about as cast-iron as can be to bag hatfuls of goals.

[Clash]

While I would have liked Higuain, I tend to think his impact would have been minimal. Not because he isnt good enough. Just because new signings are made to fit into the managers chosen system. They are made to play how we play rather than be allowed to effect or improve how we play.

We've signed some good players in recent years from Arshavin and Nasri to Ozil and Sanchez. We had RvP and Cesc in the same team. The results and seasons were the same with or without these players.

And as good as Suarez is, I personally do not go along with the theory that he would have won us the title. Obviously cant prove it one way or the other but I think he would have found playing for Wenger frustrating.

Thats why I no longer get excited by new players. The impact Podolski had, or was allowed to have, turned out to be a major dissapointment.

As for Giroud, he will always be 2nd rate. At best he is still only good enough as a back up striker and even then not in the same class as Kanu or Wiltord. How strange that in such a key position we have a 2nd rate Frenchman as a 1st team regular

[begeegs]

With a good striker, we probably would have won the league this year. Once Giroud shat the bed, our main source of goals dried up. No one else stepped up to help out.

The thing is, we don't even need a World Class striker with the amount of chances that we create, but we do need a World Class finisher which none of our strikers can do.

A real football manager would actually change his formation or think about that with the players he buys.

[northbank123]

While I would have liked Higuain, I tend to think his impact would have been minimal. Not because he isnt good enough. Just because new signings are made to fit into the managers chosen system. They are made to play how we play rather than be allowed to effect or improve how we play.

We've signed some good players in recent years from Arshavin and Nasri to Ozil and Sanchez. We had RvP and Cesc in the same team. The results and seasons were the same with or without these players.

And as good as Suarez is, I personally do not go along with the theory that he would have won us the title. Obviously cant prove it one way or the other but I think he would have found playing for Wenger frustrating.

Thats why I no longer get excited by new players. The impact Podolski had, or was allowed to have, turned out to be a major dissapointment.

As for Giroud, he will always be 2nd rate. At best he is still only good enough as a back up striker and even then not in the same class as Kanu or Wiltord. How strange that in such a key position we have a 2nd rate Frenchman as a 1st team regular

Fair enough our rigid system doesn't get the best out of most players but don't agree that his impact would have been minimal and certainly don't agree that our seasons would have been more or less the same without the above players.

Imagine van Persie having one of his usual injury-riddled seasons instead of banging in 30 PL goals in 2012 - don't see the likes of Gervinho and Park stepping into that breach. for all the doom-mongering predictions on here every year, we would genuinely have been down in 6th at best that year without him playing as well as he did.

[Clash]

While I would have liked Higuain, I tend to think his impact would have been minimal. Not because he isnt good enough. Just because new signings are made to fit into the managers chosen system. They are made to play how we play rather than be allowed to effect or improve how we play.

We've signed some good players in recent years from Arshavin and Nasri to Ozil and Sanchez. We had RvP and Cesc in the same team. The results and seasons were the same with or without these players.

And as good as Suarez is, I personally do not go along with the theory that he would have won us the title. Obviously cant prove it one way or the other but I think he would have found playing for Wenger frustrating.

Thats why I no longer get excited by new players. The impact Podolski had, or was allowed to have, turned out to be a major dissapointment.

As for Giroud, he will always be 2nd rate. At best he is still only good enough as a back up striker and even then not in the same class as Kanu or Wiltord. How strange that in such a key position we have a 2nd rate Frenchman as a 1st team regular

Fair enough our rigid system doesn't get the best out of most players but don't agree that his impact would have been minimal and certainly don't agree that our seasons would have been more or less the same without the above players.

Imagine van Persie having one of his usual injury-riddled seasons instead of banging in 30 PL goals in 2012 - don't see the likes of Gervinho and Park stepping into that breach. for all the doom-mongering predictions on here every year, we would genuinely have been down in 6th at best that year without him playing as well as he did.

Fair points mate. It just seems 3rd or 4th is like a magnet for us and we get one or the other no matter what while Wenger remains. Nothing is set in stone of course.

I had forgotten about Gervinho

[BFG4]

I have never disliked any player while they were still at the club, but this guy makes it really difficult. He is an arrogant wanker, who has fooled himself into thinking that his goal yesterday, and two assists in his last two games, means all is forgiven for being shit for most of the season. We have had some shit players at the club, but none of them strolled around like they were a re-incarnation of Pele, like this wanker does. Also, the rumours about him leaving are nonsense. He is a Wenger favourite, along with Ramsey, and as long he can do just enough to help finish top 4, then he will remain for as long as Wenger is here.

[northbank123]

Another player who has won the footballing lottery and he doesn't even know it.

Not a coincidence at all that Giroud is catapulted back into the side as his Euros prospects are dwindling. Just Wenger buying more loyalty from shit players.

[Topside Northbank]

Another player who has won the footballing lottery and he doesn't even know it.

Not a coincidence at all that Giroud is catapulted back into the side as his Euros prospects are dwindling. Just Wenger buying more loyalty from shit players.

My thoughts exactly.

A squad player that would be useful in certain games and situations but no where near good enough to score the 20 plus league goals to sustain a challenge for the title.

[Offside]

I thought yesterday summed up Giroud perfectly. The week the title race was finally over, he suddenly remembers how to score.

I do agree with the earlier poster who said Suarez wouldn't have solved our problems. He'd have eventually been sucked into the Wenger malaise and all the spark he normally shows would have been hammered out of him within a year.