One-nil to the Arsenal - Page 9 - Soccer

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Quote: Originally Posted By tracyr on 7/30/2009
i think the first choice team by mid season will be

GK Manuel Almunia
LB Gael Clichy
CB Johan Djourou
CB Thomas Vermaelen
RB Bacary Sagna
LM Tomas Rosicky
AM Cesc Fabregas
CM Denilson or Song
RM Theo Walcott
WS Andrey Arhsavin
ST Robin Van Persie

i just dont see Gallas lasting all season - Senderos is back and altho he has seen some time in a defensive mid role, he doesnt have the pace for that and Vermaelen is a good player

i know they still want a defensive mid, but why not just slot Denilson there?

Arshavin as the support striker (the role he plays on the russian national team for Pavluchenko) is a perfect fit - it remains to be seen if RVP can lead at the top - i sure hope so

i like Bendtner as a late sub for RVP (Bendtner's strike rate was almost the same as Adebayor's last season) - and Eduardo could also come in late when needing a goal, slotting Arshavin back and pulling off one of the midfielders

i think this team is deeper than most do, especially if everyone is healthy

It looks like Wenger is getting ready to spend some of the Toure/Adebayor swag on St. Etienne's Blaise Matuidi while rumours abound about Paddy Vieira returnign to the club, which you can read about here.

After a horrible start, Gallas was the club's best defender from January on and his injury hurt us as much as any by the end of the year.

Denilson didn't convince against some of the tougher sides, which is why you saw Alex Song slot in there more often after January and he looked pretty good in the run-in. However, Wenger did intimate that he was playing central defenders out of position when he sold Kolo. I suspect he was referring to Song when he said that and might re-cast him as a defender, just as he did with Kolo.

Arshavin as a support striker is a great idea.

Bendnter isn't in the same league as Adebayor in terms of his hold-up play or his goal-scoring rate yet. Adebayor was surprisingly unselfish in looking for late runners into the box, something Bendnter needs to do. All too often, he plays with his head down.

Rob is right: the club is deeper than most although they'll need to find some cover at right back if they sell Eboue to Fiorentina, another rumour making the rounds. At least this winter's African Cup of Nations won't stretch the squad as much as it has in years past with Ade, Kolo and Eboue now gone this year.

Here's how I see the midseason lineup (barring injuries, which have KILLED us).

Almunia, Sagna, Gallas, Djourou, Clichy, Walcott, Denilson/Matuidi, Fabregas, Rosicky, Arshavin, RvP.

7/30/2009 5:44 PM

tracyr

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well, it looks like Wenger is committed to the 4-3-3 for now - last 3 games he has used it exclusively

Arshavin Van Persie Bendtner
Fabregas Song Denilson
Clichy Gallas Vermaelen Sagna
Almunia

Djourou is the first CB or LB sub
when Rosicky is healthy, Denilson will be off
Eduardo will rotate up top
Walcott will play both mid and up top
Wilshere has made his case as well to get PT

Eboue has no place on this squad and Nasri will struggle to find PT when he gets fit

once he gets comfortable with Fabregas in the middle, which may well happen - the middle line will be Rosicky, Fabregas, Walcott, with 3 frontmen - that will be interesting, and i think it will happen

8/3/2009 11:57 PM

dsmba

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If this is correct, does that make Song the holding midfielder? Can he succeed? Or is that now our greatest need?

8/4/2009 10:20 AM

tracyr

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i think that is now the greatest need - Flamini would fit perfect in the middle - Vieira could do it, but not every game at his age

i think at times there will be no true holding midfielder (against what they consider lesser teams) , Fabregas can play box to box, and the better he gets defensively, the better the Gunners will be

8/4/2009 2:39 PM

willgibson

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Quote: Originally Posted By tracyr on 8/03/2009
well, it looks like Wenger is committed to the 4-3-3 for now - last 3 games he has used it exclusively

Arshavin Van Persie Bendtner
Fabregas Song Denilson
Clichy Gallas Vermaelen Sagna
Almunia

Djourou is the first CB or LB sub

Wouldn't Kieran Gibbs be the LB sub? He played pretty well when Clichy was out last year? Djourou might be a RB sub but I could see him getting a regular game this year. He's the only true six-foot-plus defender we have unless Song shifts back

when Rosicky is healthy, Denilson will be off
Eduardo will rotate up top
Walcott will play both mid and up top
Wilshere has made his case as well to get PT

Eboue has no place on this squad and Nasri will struggle to find PT when he gets fit

Apparently Eboue is part of a dressing room clique that included Adebayor and Toure and will soon be off. Read about that here. If that's the case, we'll need cover at RB in case Sagna gets hurt.

once he gets comfortable with Fabregas in the middle, which may well happen - the middle line will be Rosicky, Fabregas, Walcott, with 3 frontmen - that will be interesting, and i think it will happen

Wenger certainly appears to be trying to install the 4-3-3 judging on the games I saw at the Emirates Cup.

8/4/2009 5:24 PM

willgibson

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Quote: Originally Posted By dsmba on 8/04/2009If this is correct, does that make Song the holding midfielder? Can he succeed? Or is that now our greatest need

Wenger has been strongly linked to St. Etienne's Blaise Matuidi, who comes highly recommended by former Gunner and current scout Gilles Grimandi. He's a Clairfontaine graduate and compared most often to Claude Makelele. He can also score the odd goal.

8/4/2009 5:28 PM

tracyr

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i read in the past few days that Matuidi was off - thought that was on guardian (about 15 arsenal related stories over the last week)

i believe Gibbs is not totally healthy as of now, but yeah he would be the LB sub - and there is no cover at RB - Traore has been playing what would have been Gibbs' minutes had he been healthy this pre-season

read that about Eboue - i think Wenger has been trying to showcase him as he has started at all 3 spots on the right, including up front so far this preseason

i hope all the hype about Wilshere is real

8/4/2009 5:32 PM

willgibson

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Quote: Originally Posted By tracyr on 8/04/2009
i read in the past few days that Matuidi was off - thought that was on guardian (about 15 arsenal related stories over the last week)

Thisis the last I've read about Matuidi but there's been nothing for the past couple of days. I read that Wenger has launched a bid for Chelsea's Salomon Kalou.

i believe Gibbs is not totally healthy as of now, but yeah he would be the LB sub - and there is no cover at RB - Traore has been playing what would have been Gibbs' minutes had he been healthy this pre-season.

Traore is apparently off on a season-long loan to Birmingham. I didn't realize Gibbs was hurt.

read that about Eboue - i think Wenger has been trying to showcase him as he has started at all 3 spots on the right, including up front so far this preseason.

I'm not thrilled about Eboue leaving but I understand why Wenger feels he needs to sanction the move. It suggests that he's either comfortable with Gavin Hoyte stepping in or he's got his eye on another target. We've banked 40m from Toure and Adebayor's sales. Senderos' move to Everton is rumoured to be another six million and Eboue's fee should be in that range, too, so Wenger will have 50 million quid to spend and sizable savings on the weekly wage bill. I don't think he's through buying just yet.

i hope all the hype about Wilshere is real

I caught the Emirates Cup matches on TV and Wiltshere looked dynamite. They were just pre-season friendlies but the kid looks physically ready to play in the Premier League.

8/4/2009 6:45 PM

willgibson

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When sides successfully stifled Arsenal through a mixture of spoiling tactics, poor pitches or good fortune, Arsene Wenger would demand his growing legion of critics – pundits and windsocks who felt his young side were not “tough” (read English) enough – judge his young side by their performances rather than results.

This observation often followed a draw or tough loss away from , where the Gunners would dominate possession and have their noses bloodied by a defensive lapse on the counterattack or set piece. It would never come up in the aftermath of a result such as the 6-1 thumping at Goodison Park, but it probably should.

While the windsocks in the blogosphere and punditocracy will now tout Arsenal’s “whiz kids” as genuine title challengers following the result, Wenger ought to pour a little cold water on the hype based on the performance.

Arsenal did play some fine football and Denilson’s opener had the look of invention. But the next two goals – headers by centre halfs unmarked on free kicks – owed more to Everton’s problems as much as Arsenal’s invention. But for Denilson’s goal-line clearance from Marouane Felliani’s header, it could have been a far different prospect. And up until Joseph Yobo lost Thomas Vermaelen on RvP’s free kick, Everton probably deserved to be level on the balance of play. Down three going into the half, there was every chance Arsenal could lay back and successful hit the Toffees on the counterattack. In that respect, the scoreline set up the game beautifully for the Gunners and the beautiful, flowing move that ended with Cesc Fabregas nudging the ball through Tim Howard’s legs was easily to predict.

The second Fabregas strike, where he passed the ball into the net after going unchallenged on a 50-yard amble up the middle of the park, owed as much to Everton’s capitulation as brilliance from the Arsenal captain. No other club will have an easier visit to Goodison Park this season and it’s the Gunners good fortune that they played a side shorn of the creative influence of Mikel Arteta and with the distracted Joleon Lescott putting in a performance that should seal his move to Manchester City.

Positive signs do abound. The 4-3-3 held up well, with Nicklas Bendnter impressing on the right side, although that may have owed as much to a dreadful Leighton Baines, who looked dangerous moving forward but completely useless in his own end.

The midfield trio of Fabregas, Denilson and Alex Song dominated against a strong Everton midfield. Song, in particular, provided an answer to Wenger’s critics who insist he brings in a holding midfielder with a tidy performance.

Vermaelen and Gallas put in an attractive but hardly probative performance. They still looked a touch unconvincing on headers, but seemed comfortable on the floor. Tougher tests await them than what Jo provided on Saturday.

All in all, a good start for Wenger’s kids but their suitability as title contenders will be better judged when they run into sticky opposition. Their response to adversity will tell whether they are mature enough to bring back silverware to Ashburton Grove.

8/15/2009 4:39 PM

tracyr

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cheap goal, but i'll take it

i dont understand how Caldwell wasnt carded when he basically tackled Song at midfield in front of the ref

also - Celtic is giving them plenty of room to run up the middle, but they are passing it instead - Wenger better say something about that at halftime

8/18/2009 3:42 PM

willgibson

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A very poised performance from Arsenal against Celtic. Both goals had a major slice of fortune to them, but Arsenal controlled the match for long stretches.

More impressive than the slick passing or aggressive pressing of the ball, they reamined unruffled by the pressure of the occasion, the atmosphere, hard fouls or the failure to break through with an early goal. That patience is a sign of a maturing side.

All in all, another attractive performance on both ends of the pitch with Vermaelen and Song again standing out in their individual efforts to stifle Celtic.

Whether they are ready to seriously challenge for silverware remains to be seen. That moment will come when we see how they respond to adversity, whether it's a poor decision, hard luck or a key injury.

Right now, the Cascarinos, Hansens and others are writing off Arsenal as title contenders because they believe the kids will crumple come the winter, when frozen pitches and hard fouls will undo the kids. Perhaps it will but not shrinking at a ground where Celtic have seen off Milan and Barcelona in recent years is a pretty good sign that the kids are becoming battle-hardened.

8/18/2009 6:10 PM

tracyr

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i thought Vermaelen played great, and Song has very nice touch and the ability to shed dirty play with his nifty feet - if he had more pace he would be one of the best defensive/holding mids in the game

you have to think Bendtner loses his job on the right (altho he played well) when Theo comes back, and Denilson his whenever Rosicky is fit

not really a bad individual performance on the field by a Gunner today - no idea who man of the match was, but Arshavin ran around like the effin energizer bunny, no wonder he had to be subbed, and Fabregas played really tough considering how much he got fouled

8/18/2009 7:33 PM

willgibson

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Song is more in the mold of Emerson or Gilberto Silva rather than a box-to-box dynamo a la Keane, Vieira or Essien. His pace won't be a concern as long as he doesn't get caught upfield.

Gallas or Fabregas would have been my MOTM. Gallas really has formed a nice partnership with Vermaelen. The only cause for concern is an injury to either one of them. Djourou looked pretty good but after that, it's Silvestre or Senderos and both look unconvincing.

I'm flying to London on Thursday with my kid. We're catching catch the Portsmouth match on Saturday before heading up to Brum to see Aston Villa (his club) play Fulham. If there's tickets available, I'm going to try to check out the second leg of the Celtic tie, too

8/18/2009 8:51 PM

tracyr

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cool

8/18/2009 9:09 PM

willgibson

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A very nice win on Saturday. The club is really trying to educate its supporters to turn the Emirates into a more intimidating venue. They distributed supporters scarves on every home seat at the stadium and urged us to hold them aloft as the teams came out for the kickoff (to Queen's We Will Rock You). Hard to tell if it will work or not because Portsmouth were pretty dire.

A couple of quick comments. In his program's notes, Arsene Wenger says he sees Alex Song's future as a centre half but he's very happy with the start he's had to the season as the holding midfielder. Cesc Fabregas said in his program notes that he likes the new formation because he doesn't have to run as much (singling out Song's contribution to free him up from his defensive responsibilities).

The other thing that amazed me was how well Vermaelen and Gallas played together -- it's like they've been paired together for six seasons, not two games. Hopefully they can stay healthy. The litmus test will come this weekend against United.

8/24/2009 8:03 AM

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