season preview- do you know jack?
much of the pre-season has been overshadowed by the departures of kolo toure and emmanuel adebayor.
i regret that kolo toure has left, especially for a team like man city. it leaves a sour taste. i think the past year has been bad for him. among all the Invincibles who have left, i think he is the one who has left under the least amicable of terms. which is sad, because he has always been the kind of player who gives everything for the club. i don't like what he is saying to the press, even if it may have a ring of truth to it.
if you ask me, the one thing arsene wenger didn't foresee was probably how badly affected kolo toure was by the handing of the captaincy to gallas instead of him. maybe in 10 years' time, arsene wenger would explain this peculiar decision in a book. between gallas and toure, toure was the one who needed the captaincy more. after he didn't get it, he just wasn't the same player anymore.
as an arsenal fan who has followed the club for more than half my life, i wish that more players can retire at the club. players like vieira, henry, pires, gilberto silva, campbell and even kolo toure.
but when you look at the youth players coming through, you either have to accept a reduced role or leave.
if kolo toure felt betrayed by the club, then it was better to let him go, because there was no point in keeping an unhappy player. i think between gallas, djourou, vermaelen and toure, there is nothing much to choose from.
the defence more or less picks itself: almunia, clichy, gallas and sagna. i personally prefer djourou to vermaelen. but this defence on paper is not better than last season's defence. focus and playing time together to nurture confidence and understanding are the areas of improvement. as well as set-piece defending, which is the job of the whole team anyway. judging from pre-season, set-piece defending is still an area of concern. in any case, our defence is not world-class but can be good enough.
of the other 6 outfield positions, only cesc fabregas is guaranteed a starting spot. the question is: what system would wenger employ? at the moment, everything is open. 4-3-3, 4-1-3-2, 4-2-3-1, 4-4-2, 4-5-1.
i won't be surprised if no further signings are made, even though i would gladly see a player like daniele de rossi at the club. song, denilson and ramsey have to repay arsene wenger's faith in them. cut out passes, keep the ball moving, keep it simple.
it is the attack that is really interesting. bendtner, van persie, eduardo, arshavin, nasri,rosicky, vela, walcott, jay simpson and jack wilshere. on one hand, it means we have many options. on the other, it means we don't have a truly outstanding, indispensable player a la fernando torres for liverpool. really depends on how you look at it.
fluidity will be the theme. playing between the lines. the death of the second striker, the death of the traditional winger, the death of the traditional centre forward. it is simply the reflection of football's evolution.
eduardo looks good, bendtner looks good (you wonder if this could be the season he finally proves his worth), rosicky looks good, albeit a little rusty (18 months out, unbelievable), arshavin is the kind of player who can be quiet for 85 minutes and turn it on and destroy you with 1 touch of the ball. one hopes that vela can bring his Gold Cup winning form with mexico back to europe. walcott has to be very nervous about his own prospects after watching wilshere.
i said last season that wilshere can be our wayne rooney. i think he is ready to play, and deserves his chance to mark his coming-of-age a la wayne rooney with some volley against, say chelsea. honestly, if you can flick the ball past 2 players and lob the keeper, even if it didn't result in a goal because the keeper pulled off a wonderful save, you are ready to play. capello was at the emirates stadium when there was only one englishman playing. i think he will be ok, especially when there are intelligent players like arshavin, eduardo, fabregas around who can guide him.
what we need to see this season is the willingness to shoot from outside the box when teams put 11 men behind the ball. it doesn't matter how, but getting the first goal is very important to settling down in the game.
things look good so far, but friendlies are only friendlies. the real thing starts in 2 weeks.
we have a big enough squad. the question is: are the players ready and able to repay wenger's faith?
almunia, fabianski, mannone
gallas, djourou, vermaelen, clichy, sagna, eboue, gibbs, traore/silvestre
fabregas, denilson, song, ramsey
arshavin, nasri, rosicky, wilshere, diaby
eduardo, van persie, bendtner, walcott, vela
i regret that kolo toure has left, especially for a team like man city. it leaves a sour taste. i think the past year has been bad for him. among all the Invincibles who have left, i think he is the one who has left under the least amicable of terms. which is sad, because he has always been the kind of player who gives everything for the club. i don't like what he is saying to the press, even if it may have a ring of truth to it.
if you ask me, the one thing arsene wenger didn't foresee was probably how badly affected kolo toure was by the handing of the captaincy to gallas instead of him. maybe in 10 years' time, arsene wenger would explain this peculiar decision in a book. between gallas and toure, toure was the one who needed the captaincy more. after he didn't get it, he just wasn't the same player anymore.
as an arsenal fan who has followed the club for more than half my life, i wish that more players can retire at the club. players like vieira, henry, pires, gilberto silva, campbell and even kolo toure.
but when you look at the youth players coming through, you either have to accept a reduced role or leave.
if kolo toure felt betrayed by the club, then it was better to let him go, because there was no point in keeping an unhappy player. i think between gallas, djourou, vermaelen and toure, there is nothing much to choose from.
the defence more or less picks itself: almunia, clichy, gallas and sagna. i personally prefer djourou to vermaelen. but this defence on paper is not better than last season's defence. focus and playing time together to nurture confidence and understanding are the areas of improvement. as well as set-piece defending, which is the job of the whole team anyway. judging from pre-season, set-piece defending is still an area of concern. in any case, our defence is not world-class but can be good enough.
of the other 6 outfield positions, only cesc fabregas is guaranteed a starting spot. the question is: what system would wenger employ? at the moment, everything is open. 4-3-3, 4-1-3-2, 4-2-3-1, 4-4-2, 4-5-1.
i won't be surprised if no further signings are made, even though i would gladly see a player like daniele de rossi at the club. song, denilson and ramsey have to repay arsene wenger's faith in them. cut out passes, keep the ball moving, keep it simple.
it is the attack that is really interesting. bendtner, van persie, eduardo, arshavin, nasri,rosicky, vela, walcott, jay simpson and jack wilshere. on one hand, it means we have many options. on the other, it means we don't have a truly outstanding, indispensable player a la fernando torres for liverpool. really depends on how you look at it.
fluidity will be the theme. playing between the lines. the death of the second striker, the death of the traditional winger, the death of the traditional centre forward. it is simply the reflection of football's evolution.
eduardo looks good, bendtner looks good (you wonder if this could be the season he finally proves his worth), rosicky looks good, albeit a little rusty (18 months out, unbelievable), arshavin is the kind of player who can be quiet for 85 minutes and turn it on and destroy you with 1 touch of the ball. one hopes that vela can bring his Gold Cup winning form with mexico back to europe. walcott has to be very nervous about his own prospects after watching wilshere.
i said last season that wilshere can be our wayne rooney. i think he is ready to play, and deserves his chance to mark his coming-of-age a la wayne rooney with some volley against, say chelsea. honestly, if you can flick the ball past 2 players and lob the keeper, even if it didn't result in a goal because the keeper pulled off a wonderful save, you are ready to play. capello was at the emirates stadium when there was only one englishman playing. i think he will be ok, especially when there are intelligent players like arshavin, eduardo, fabregas around who can guide him.
what we need to see this season is the willingness to shoot from outside the box when teams put 11 men behind the ball. it doesn't matter how, but getting the first goal is very important to settling down in the game.
things look good so far, but friendlies are only friendlies. the real thing starts in 2 weeks.
we have a big enough squad. the question is: are the players ready and able to repay wenger's faith?
almunia, fabianski, mannone
gallas, djourou, vermaelen, clichy, sagna, eboue, gibbs, traore/silvestre
fabregas, denilson, song, ramsey
arshavin, nasri, rosicky, wilshere, diaby
eduardo, van persie, bendtner, walcott, vela
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