I think the outcome of City’s game against L’pool is going to galvanize us further: win or lose. Win and we have to win! Lose and we want the points gap to widen (City looks to be winning this one comfortably). Obviously, Xhaka is always a concern particularly against mobile opposition. I’d start Partey on the bench, as without him at Anfield is not worth contemplating. I imagine Arteta will go with a 433, but I’d prefer a 352 to keep winning the lost ball retention in the middle of the park. I think the 352 suits our available players better ands shores up our midfield.
Leeds have their 3 top players out, so moving the ball with one and two touch football to the final third is essential. Leeds like to play frantic or chaotic football when they get the time and room. Flooding the midfield makes that type of pacey football very difficult for Leeds to navigate.
Our lads will be up for it as the countdown to the Wolves’ game commences again today. Beat Leeds today and we’ll be 8 points clear again today. We need to be at our best at defending in their final third and if we can’t rob the ball there, then upset the Leeds balance enough to be dispossessed in mid field.
Partey looks fit and injury free with him not playing in Ghana’s last game. However, I’d still play him from the bench if need be. Obviously, Tomi, Elneny and Eddie are short with Tomi out for the season. I’d like to see some invention from Arteta for the Leeds game:
Ramsdale
Holding Gabs KT
White Kiwior Jorginho Trossard Zinchenko
Saka & Martinelli
Apart from KT, all our players are playing their preferred positions with Kiwior dropping to 6. KT is the fastest defender in the league, so should keep the high line in tact. Kiwior is no slouch either and can keep Jorginho covered.
I don’t see a Leeds Midfield being more pacey or as technical as the five we would be putting out whether attacking or defensively. Gabs is a powerhouse at the back in the air and Holdinho generally is good aerially and defending if pace isn’t used against him. Kiwior will be a good sweeper in front of the back three. Jorginho can do what he does best and be the midfield general using his experience over his lack of pace with a minder looking after him.
This is what I think we’ll see:
Ramsdale
White Holding Gabs Zinchenko
Ode Jorginho Xhaka
Saka Jesus Martinelli
Xhaka walk about free role the opposition doesn’t care about. Zinchenko inverting and Jorginho getting caught out being speed challenged with Xhaka. Arteta’s main hope is our front three finding the net several times. Leeds are likely to win the MF battles more with this tactical set up giving our defense too much work to do and I’d see a silly goal against at some stage.
Saliba is the biggest concern. It’s too risky to play him against Leeds, but should be saved for the City, BHA and Pool games. Partey is probably ok for today, but again Arteta should manage Partey’s involvements in all the remaining games to keep him as fit as possible by reducing Partey’s minutes per game.
I’ll predict 3:0 if we play 353 or 3:2 if we play our rigid system with keep players missing.
See you at the game.
Aitcho
So bad we should have sold him twice!
So Chelsea have sacked Potter with rumours Nagelsmann is being lined up to replace him.
Really looks like the Spuddies could go for Rogers!
“the battle for the final two CL invitations could be rather epic”
Really could become a dogfight should be good for the neutral fans.
Marc-Potter proved he was out of his depth, especially in a turnaround season with a new owner to boot…I wouldn’t be surprised if Chelsea beat the Spurs to the Nagelsmann punch, as their well-stocked youth project fits his script much better than the latter’s more win now narrative…either way he will undoubtedly be employed in the PL next season, which will present us with another formidable obstacle…all the more reason why we need to secure the chip while the gettings good, then strengthen wisely in the summer window
just to highlight my earlier thoughts about the unusual nature of managerial life in the PLsince MA fortunes started to turn, last season saw10 managers fired, which tied the most ever, whereas this year a record 13 have been sacked thus far…that said, we simply must take advantage of these most transient of times before the pendulum changes course
it will only be a matter of time before Arne Slot is coaching/managing someone of real consequence…could he be on the radar of whomever loses the Nagelsmann sweepstakes?
Marc, you can’t say we didn’t try.
The real legacy of Edu’s ineptitude in the transfer market could be making a hero out of Xhaka.
Morning all
So true, Aitcho.
Marc-The bottler; Rogers as Spuds manager will surely see Kane on his skates out of the toilet bowl. Rogers is the modern day slightly more cultured than Fat Sam & Pulis with his tactical nous or lack of it. Rogers will need to hone his relegation saviour skills if he wants to continue managing in the PL. That or be at one of the merry-go-round manager clubs, such as Wolves & Everton.
I feel for Potter. Not too much, though with the millions he’ll walk away with.
He can literally afford to bide his time and plan his next move with full financial security for his family and just at the right age. The experience gained will be invaluable working with the more elite players with their elitist egos/ temperaments that come with a squad full of prima donna divas playing under par. While their vulture like agents are looking for an angle to get more money from the Chavs or threatening moves.
Potter was in a no win situation. Chelsea is the PSG of pampered stars and Father Ted will keep his rolodex busy buying more managers’ services in the coming years. That is until he stops to look at previous successful clubs who kept faith in their managers even if they were the most elite in Klopp, Guardiola and old Red Nose Fergie with his 2 horse races Div 1 & PL.
Chaos wins nothing and The Chavs are chaotic in every way from Boehly downwards.
I’ve got mixed feelings for Wenger Hall of Fame induction. Wenger changed football over an 8-year period give or take. What had he done before and after? He’d been fired from Monacao and Grampus 8 and he ended up being fired by us.
Wenger is famous for 4th is a trophy and a plethora of mindless insults to our fans where he tore his legacy to shreds.
He Never Won A European Trophy!!!!!!! Let that sink in.
That says its all for me. Even with the Invincibles he never won in Europe. How does that make Wenger a Hall of Fame candidate? I guess working for FIFA has its perks to satiate Wenger’s continuing, narcissistic needs.
The current manageress clubs all present different plusses and minuses with their owners.
I’m unclear as to where Leicester’s Thai owners still have the stomach to invest heavily after the tragic loss of the family’s father in the helicopter crash. Let’s face it Leicester had their famous for 15 minutes winning the league. All that’s left in reality is an odd cup win unless £500+m is invested in players at least.
Chelsea and Spuds have Levy and Father Ted running the 2 clubs; one a spend thrift clueless about buying players, but has the final say, and then moneybags Boehly seemingly wanting to drown the dressing room with……..elite talent regardless of what the manager wants.
Levy needs MP as much MP as needs Levy because Pochettino can work with a budget, and also needs to be relevant again after PSG to keep his career alive.
Fortunately, none of the manager-less clubs are a threat to us this title chasing season.
Next season, however, will be far different with at least 13 managers being replaced thus far where 10 was the record last year.
TRVL-Arne Slot? Interested to see if that was serious or not. Is that not a bit like having the donkey Weighorst at Manure?
We have a saying in the west that about the dutch where no offense meant as Dutch friends have also use the words listed below:
Wooden listen
Wooden learn
Wooden minds in Wooden Clogs.
That was from the oil & gas industry where many Dutch worked.
That said Ten Hag was my pick to replace Arteta in his vastly extended ‘Rookie’ days. I feel TH will prevail in the end.
manager-less*
I have a strong hunch Kane will go to the Chavs and keep living in London as aporopos to living in Rainy Cheshire/Manchester.
Ambarish, did you get a copy of the frame when the London Is Red banner was unfolded early in the game?
Would be good to use on the blog.
Tony-in a relatively short period of time Arne has impressed some incredibly football savvy individuals in the Netherlands and beyond…in hs brief tenure in AZ he deployed a possession-based Pep-like system, which led him to earning the highest point total per game outpoint in their history, and was only sacked due to the fact that he was already in negotiations with Feynoord about a potential move in the summer of 2020…since arriving in Feynoord his tactical nous has been on full display, as he’s made significant tactical tweaks to his once possession-based model, so much so that he’s been more recently described as an “attacking maniac”, even though his squad was rife with relatively unknown footballers…much like the MA narrative, whether you fully buy into it or not, organizations are looking for coaches/managers with this sort of age and tactical profile…I guess only time will tell…Cheers
Spurs are so incompetent they’ve handed Everton a lifeline. I’m probably even more annoyed than I expect the Expressions fellow will be. Of course I plan to watch him.
But on the bright side, St Totts is on the horizon. Who’s up for a retro, not even out of April, St Totteringhams?
TRVL- Thanks for the Arne background. I was influenced by Dutch football being one of the lesser European leagues bar Ajax where I made the wrong assumptions. I still feel Ten Hag is going to do well at Manure once he can manage his squad without suits and owners interference, such as the club sale by the unpalatable owners who I think United thoroughly deserve.
A good spot, and one I’ll keep an eye on.
A breed unto themselves the Dutch, with humour no one else understands. Great surgeons and footballers, though, the former who saved my life, so always had an infinity with the Dutch where I’m sure they would agree with my aforementioned comments, and also a cool country to be working with music. I enjoyed my time working there with a Dutch producer.
Roll on Anfield. 🙂
Aitcho
Nice one. Remember those decades when finishing above Spurs was a pre-season given? Year after year, knowing that however well or badly we’d done, they’d always be looking up at us over the summer. With or without some dodgy lasagne cooked by a Gooner chef in some miserable hotel. Doubling them this year (and getting our first win at their new place) has been brilliant. It’s like the natural order of things has been restored. I dislike the club and it’s most of its players intensely but while I’ve been alive, they’ve never been real rivals in terms of winning things. I wasn’t even a gleam in my old fella’s eye in 1961.
I had huge fun watching them against the almost equally terrible Everton last night. A really poor game and it gives me huge pleasure knowing each team is royally fucked and on downwards trajectories. Two of the PL’s biggest jokes. Lisping Arry revealed himself to the rest of the non-Gooner world last night as an absolute bastard.
A different perspective bouncer by DeSidpoupolus or Whatever
“ Theres a good reason Arteta tried very hard to sign players that have been coached by De Zerbi i.e Mudryk, Caicedo and Trossard.Just like players coached and tested by Pep i.e Zinch and Jesus. The success rate is high.Big clubs will be going after De ZerbiYou can take this to the bank. “
Hoopah–there’s no doubt that we’ve had an eye for De Zerbi’s current and former players, whether from Shakhtar, Brighton or even Sassuolo, but keep in mind that none of those whom you’ve mentioned spent an exorbinant amount of time under his tutelage before we came knocking…regardless, I’ve been quite impressed by what he’s had on offer, at multiple landing spots no less, and his presence has clearly had a positive impact on a bevy of individuals, especially those who’ve bought into his specific tactical narrative
that said, there are two rather glaring weaknesses in his specific “model”, (1) it’s inability to handle more direct teams who counter with pace and (2) the handling of set pieces, even with the amount of height he’s had available to him at the CB position…this lack of attention to defensive detail usually stems from the the manager placing far too much emphasis on the offensive end of the pitch, which we likewise endured during Wenger’s latter years…in fact, he even went so far as to replace the substantially better shot-stopper Sanchez with the bang average but marginally better “playing out from the back” Steele…sort of sounds familiar except MA’s maneuvering was an asset management nightmare, albeit tactically understandable, whereas although De Zerbi’s decision didn’t cost his club a small fortune,( in fact they might make a good chunk of change in the next window as a result) I’m just not sure it was worth the tactical risk, as Steele has already cost them several goals that I doubt would have happened with his counterpart on the pitch
I would suspect that the defensive realities of adopting such tactics will continue to hit home, much like against Brentford this past weekend, and he will start to incorporate more possession-based tactical tweeks within his model, which could significantly stifle their offensive output…you must remember that this is the same individual who said that passing the ball was akin to “gambling”, so any deviations from his original script could significantly dilute the product on the pitch…personally, I hope he stays the course, gets the requisite amount of financial backing and provides the footballing world with another “watchable” option, as that is always a welcome sight…Cheers
Terrible news guys – Mark Hughes has come out and said he thinks we’ll win the PL so we’ll be lucky to escape relegation!
Only half watching it but Chelsea could be 2 or 3 nil up against Liverpool at a dozen minutes.
The Chavs v Pool games was dismal a total snooze fest and our B team would have beaten what Pool had on the pitch. Got the feeling that Klopp rested some of his starting 11 for the game on the weekend against us. Because what played in this game could have been beaten by a farmers league team. They are so bad with, heavy touches, misplaced passes and extra touches that if we don’t beat them on the weekend it would be a tragedy.
On the bright side, the 200mill on Nunez and Gakpo at this moment look like a terrible investment because Nunez showed nothing in this match. Oh, well up and away with the Bin Dippers on the weekend and 75 points total.
Killroy
Klopp is trying anything. Dropping his sacred cows to prove a point is too little too late.
I don’t think they were being rested, Lolerpool don’t have that luxury right now.
You’re right, that game was crusty, didn’t even have the gift of comedy. Just dull
Interesting selection decisions by both Klopp and the Chelsea placeholder…obviously, I’m a bit more surprised by the Pool lineup than Chelsea’s, as it’s clear that the boys in blue are looking to the future, considering their current League position…not to mention, they have the “luxury” of hanging their hats on the possibility of a quicker turnaround if they’re not playing in Europe on Thursday evenings next season, as they have the history to prove it
as for Pool, this Carling Cup lineup was rather bewildering, as they’ve still got something to play for and unlike their opponents their off-season recruitment relies far more heavily on having European fixtures on tap next season…the only rationale I can see for Klopp to make 6 significant changes from the weekend, keeping in mind that VVD wasn’t available due to an illness, is that it’s knuckle-rapping time, due to their considerable drop-off in form since the abject destruction of United
of course, it could have something to do with scheduling issues, as this week’s fixture list was and is quite daunting, with two away games against City and Chelsea respectively, followed quickly by what should be a very challenging home match-up against the League leaders…I guess my only managerial criticism might be that today’s affair seemed like their best chance to get a full 3 points, at least on paper, but it’s clear that Klopp favours his odds against us at Anfield…hopefully we can prove that this was a miscalculation on his part…regardless it was a pitifully sloppy performance by Pool today, especially in the middle of the pitch, and if Chelsea weren’t so fucking anemic in the finishing department, they could have won by a couple or three
since their
Morning all
TRVL-Enjoyed your De Zerbi’s tactical issues post. Didn’t see the game or both with highlights after reading the headlines and then comments.
What do we think about Vlahovic’s flip flop in admitting his horrendous mistake being ‘sensationally wrong in not joining us. I mean this wouldn’t have anything to do with Juventus being under the legalities’ microscope, would it?
His stats are poor to say the least 7 goals last season and 8 so far this season. To put that into perspective Xhaka has 7 goals in all comps this season.
https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=vlahovic+stats+at+juventus&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8
Will Arteta be interested? On the above stats he shouldn’t be, but then this is the Arteta who holds the record for being the longest rookie in the game. Therefore, he might just welcome Vlahovic with open arms paying silly money in the process. Who else would be interested in such a disingenuous player and agent?
On brighter news Jacky boy is loving his football again with the u18s who have just reached the finals of the FA youth cup beating Man City in the dying seconds pdf extra time. Seems the teams spirit is permeating through the teams and club. Amario Cozier-Duberry is Wilshere’s pick of the bunch at the moment likening him to Saka saying Arteta is watching as well.
Things seem to be quiet regarding Saliba’s return so hoping it’s the silly mind games managers’ think fools other managers who plan for important players’ inclusions anyway.
A few minutes brief scan through LG last night saw NT aka Pedro decided we are the LG dregs here, but did think the main post writer was good. Poor NT Pedro doesn’t realise there are 3 of us writing them. 🙂 They were saying poor Marc having to put up with us. So childish playground like. Nothing changes there.
Chavs away will be a tough game where Lampard might get to be the interim manager while Enrique and Nagelsmann are interviewed. Spuds fans being all Spursy wanting Pochettino back who won them nothing before. Still, I won’t mind, but we will have to let Spuds win something that will be an inevitable – so my guess is that win would be having the longest trophy losing PL club.
Should we send wooden spoons to Levy? I mean thousands of them :).
Recycled wooden spoons of course. Wouldn’t want to upset Greta T, would we?
Not wanting to bring politics to the fore, but can’t help laughing at Trump, defiant to the end with what looks like the chips stacked against him.
Can’t stand the man or what he stands for. I read Woodwood’s: Fear: Trump in the Whitehouse when it first came out, which bred utter contempt for the entitled, narcissistic monster of a man. Throw away the key and leave him in solitary and let him fight himself. Just thankful he’s not in the Whitehouse now. Biden’s puppet masters aren’t much better from what little I read about American politics or politics at all for that matter. Life’s too short.
Just wading through the click bait when it hit me that we’ve always complained about Arteta’s lack of managerial experience at a smaller club, but are WE the smaller club with Arteta always having Real Madrid in his sights? Has this all been a fait accompli all along with Pep talking to Perez?
Pep probably said to Arteta, “Arsenal are a small club, no? When was the last time they won the league? But they a have money, Mikel, so use their money to blow out the rookie crinkles and conquer the PL in 4 to 5 years. Use the Non negotiables to show you are the master.”
Now, I ask myself why wouldn’t Pep want the RM job? Bad optics because of Barca perhaps or maybe Pep fancies the Spain NT job?
Pep also wouldn’t have wanted Arteta to take the City reins and do a better job that the king himself, now would he? Would be very bad if Arteta won the CL with City while Pep was with the Spain NT.
OK, back to reality and vape deprivation, of course that would never of happened, would it? I have to say, though, with the elite managers available, I think it would be hilarious if RM took Arteta if he won the PL when the top 6 were suffering from growing pains or lack of investment and maybe world cup blues; basically 2016 revisited.
Harry Kane World Cup Blues
da da da dan well, I played liked a cunt
da da da dan all over up front
da da da dan was shit in 2022
da da da dan which is why I I’m feeling blue
Chorus
We’ll II got the world cup blues mannish-i (couldn’t resist as Peter Green manelishi was intended)
Because I talk like a pussy
but all I want is a winer’s trophy
Never happen with Spurs always being spursy
KP 2nd verse?
Almunia anything cooking on this?
TRVL- you have any thoughts on this?
Tony-I’m not surprised in the least that Arteta’s name has been thrown into the mix when it comes to the Real gig, as when one looks across the footballing managerial landscape there aren’t any other truly viable options sitting atop their respective leagues…Tuchel just arrived at the Bundesliga mountaintop, so one can only assume he’s going nowhere fast, Christophe Galtier will be lucky if he’s even an employable entity come the summer, Spalletti has done a stellar job in Naples, but not sure his CV or general demeanor fits the Real managerial script, so unless the now unemployed Nagelsmann or Poch are still unattached come the summer, it makes perfect sense that some would be sniffing around the manager who’s both spanish and currently sits in the catbird seat of Europe’s premier league…that said, I can’t imagine him leaving a gig that affords him considerably more autonomy and infinitely more job security, especially on the cusp of earning a European invite
furthermore, not only is he ill-prepared for such a high profile gig, as his PR-driven fanbase initiatives will be easily exposed in such a cutthroat environment, and he’s ill-suited to traverse such a complex footballing landscape, as his baby steps tactical inklings will come under considerable scrutiny unless everything happens without a hitch…saying all that, I do think that his incredible fragile ego might find it exceedingly difficult to resist the honeymoon phase stroking of this particular recruitment process, so it’s certainly not beyond the realm of possibility, but an ill-advised misadventure for both parties involved…Cheers
TRVL-I did first mention I was wading though click bait when it’s at its most mid weeks. Barca and RM have always got what they wanted from The Arsenal. Maybe they think Ode and Saka will want out to go with Arteta. Loyalty in football is all about what’s-in-it-for-me thinking with how much quickly following.
So much different in the 70s, 80s and 90s when players tended to be more loyal; many coming through the ranks more than today.
You’re right in every way regarding Arteta being ill-suited to such a challenge as Pochettino was at PSG. We don’t know if he’s the right fit for us and won’t until the season’s end and how he fares next season when the PL giants are back to full strength. I’d like to see him go to see if he really is all that his sycophants make him out to be.
One swallow doesn’t make a summer where equally one title doesn’t make a manager. Assuming Arteta has the chops to bring the title home to us. 2nd is loserville in any competition in my book and Arteta and Edu had the money and TWs to make sure last season wasn’t repeated.
I was just having a bit of fun re the RM interest, knowing you’d nail it as you did. Maybe Almunia might be stirred into his satirist best for the end of the season. KP might chime in with the Kane blues and do it far better than I do.
Of course you have to sing it with a lisp. It wouldn’t be authentic if you didn’t. 🙂
Rumours Chelsea might go for Fat Frank as interim manager until they get their guy in the summer.
Now the principle makes sense but why would you go for a guy (a fat one at that) who’s been 3rd rate where ever he’s been?
United found a way to get things back on the rails against a rather formidable foe…not the most watchable of affairs, but I’m sure that mattered not to ten Hag, who was clamoring for any result on the heels of their recent dip in form
as for the Hammers, after that shellacking there’s no doubt in my mind that Moyes will become the 14th sacking this term…what a managerial bloodbath this year has become, which speaks volumes about anomalous nature of the current season
Tony-what you were suggesting certainly wasn’t farfetched, as many of the old managerial hats are either already teeing it up or readying their clubs, so organizations are going to have to contemplate the notion of hiring some of the newer blood options…typically though when most believe Real will zig and they zag, the results have been at best mixed, minus the Zidane experiment, which was clearly an outlier…with this in mind, another considerable stumbling block for Arteta will be his inability to man manage readymade “superstars”, as any of his managerial dealings with anyone even remotely fitting that bill yielded shockingly poor results…now if Real have their hearts set on snapping up Jesus and Ode, which some have suggested, they might overlook his aforementioned flaws and make an unexpected push for some sort of unicorn-like package deal, but I very much doubt Real is backing up a Brink truck to the Emirates for that sort of a haul (no offence meant towards the players mentioned) Cheers
Looking over the newswire today, with an eye for the upcoming summer, there’s some chatter about a couple players soon to be out of contract, plus two midfielders who were discussed a fair amount during the last window
as to the former, Real’s Asensio and LC’s Tielimans appear to still be on our radar, although neither are overly appealing to me, as both have made sizeable wage demands and neither has performed to the level that would justify any such bounty…not to mention, Asensio would undoubtedly require some assurances, as that has been one of his primary beefs, and he’s played predominantly out wide right…of course, he could be shoehorned elsewhere, but paying over the number in the hopes that this comes good seems a bit of an unwarranted stretch; keeping in mind, that he’s made 25 appearances in La LIga, including the Copa, and all but 4 were in the RW position
as for Tielimans, he could easily slot into Xhaka’s current left-side, advanced 8 role, which would undoubtedly hide some of his obvious defensive frailties, but I would much prefer that we invested in someone with considerably more box-to-box capabilities
I get the supposed financial advantages of adopting this sort of transfer policy, but one must remember that players opting for “free agency” aren’t doing so just to select a specific landing spot and/or to make it fiscally easier on any potential suitors, unlike at times in the more distant past, they’re doing it primarily for selfish monetary and playing time purposes…as such, we would be wise to stop pursuing these oft-times “settling” and/or unnecessarily expensive practices and just target the best candidates for our most pressing needs
let’s face it, if we had any faith whatsoever in our organizational ability to properly identifying talent, the inherent costs would never be the deciding factor…maybe we should just purchase the whole BHA scouting division, in that judging by what they accomplished in the last 4 years alone they would have paid back any such investment 50 fold by now…it’s shocking to think what might have been if we hand kept our hand firmly on the scouting pulse in the years following our move to the Emirates
as for the latter, Everton’s Onana and BHA’s MacAllister, are logically and rightfully being discussed…unfortunately, Onana could have been ours for a fraction of his current price when his name first arose two seasons ago and for approximately half the price last season…why we didn’t roll that dice instead of spending the identical amount for the similarily untested Vieira, who likewise plays in a far less pressing position, is baffling to me…regardless, I very much doubt he’s on his way to North London, not only because of the price involved, but as the report suggests, ‘Arsenal already bolstered their midfield ranks by bringing in Jorginho in January’, thus potentially confirming my greatest fears…let’s hope that that move doesn’t become a transactional stumbling block moving forward or, even worse, requires us to part company with Partey prematurely
in regards to MacAllister, it’s clear that he’s drawing interest from a bevy of clubs, especially since his stellar performance at the WC, but that sort of scenario reeks of a bidding war nightmare and I’m not convinced the juice is worth the squeeze…it’s certainly beneficial that his relatively small sample size has occurred in the PL, as it should allay some obvious evalutional concerns, but that still might not justify the astronomical initial outlay
any thoughts on these or any other potential moves?
TRVL – I have similar thoughts to yourself. I’m of the mind that Rice, Caicedo or Onana would suit us best for PL tested any of the 3 could work an axis with Partey, and then there is Kiwior as yet unknown with limited minutes.
Mitoma would also be very high on my wish list. Time being what they are I don’t watch the Euro leagues bar the CL and EL being my main feed for new players. Hebesha posted this list I thought was worth adding here, as it gives more names to discuss.
We have enough multi purpose players in Trossard, Zinchenko, Saka, Martinelli and Ode. Soon Vieira should join the utility group of players. These players are so interchangeable on the fly it’s really not funny for the opposition. Mitoma just adds another proven 2-footed goal scorer who defends well and reads the game excellently. Mitoma is a far better fit for us than the the PL untested Vlahovic.
I think we need to assess Patino, Azzez and ESRat the end of the season first, as I feel we don’t need to buy more than one of the aforementioned or who ever fits better.
Finally, I’d like to see what Bolagun can do, as I have the same feeling about Bolagun as I did with Saliba when we should have brought him back.
Ffs keep KT and anyone fancy a decent RB?
https://www.transfermarkt.com/spieler-statistik/wertvollstespieler/marktwertetop/plus/0/galerie/0?ausrichtung=Mittelfeld&spielerposition_id=alle&altersklasse=alle&jahrgang=0&land_id=0&kontinent_id=0&yt0=Show
Being reported that we are after a German MF from Frankfurt whose name is Sow and who apparently idolizes Xhaka. Quite what part of Xhaka Sow likes or if their play and pace are similar is unknown?
Let’s hope Sow can bring home the bacon if we buy him and not be a porker like Xhaka.
Sorry couldn’t resist 🙂
Tony-I rate all 3 midfielders you mentioned, but I still can’t wrap my head around the possibility of any of them landed here in the summer…Rice and Partey would undoubtedly play the same position in our base 4-3-3 (tbh it’s really a 4-1-2-3), so unless we’re selling off Partey, I very much doubt we’re going to do a complete 180 when it comes to our DM portfolio narrative…after all, we weren’t willing to invest properly in one reasonable DM option for more than a decade, so imagining us earmarking 450-500,000/week for that particular position seems difficult to fathom
now when Partey first arrived I had hoped that he would be deployed in a more advanced position, but that never panned out and as such I think it would be unwise to rewrite his positional script at this juncture…likewise, I would never want us to invest heavily in Rice with the offensive side of things in mind, although he can contribute on occasion, as he’s simply not dynamic enough with the ball at his feet…that said, if we’re moving all our chips into the middle and replacing Partey and Xhaka with the likes of Rice and a far more dynamic readymade option in the 8 hole, I would sign off on that proposition…I guess a lot would depend on how much could be realistically raised by selling off those two aforementioned overagers…in regards to Caicedo, I love his up-side and the fact that he’s an engine room//box-to-box talent, but after what transpired in the winter window I think that ship has sailed
as for Mitoma, I agree with your sentiments, as he’s been impressive thus far…I would say that managerial tactics have played a rather significant role in his unexpected rise, as BHA create far more direct pressure than us visa vie their attacking midfield options, so he faces considerably fewer doubleteams than Marts…so unless we were willing to show more tactical flexibility, he might struggle to match or exceed what he’s accomplished under his current manager
personally I believe that if BHA were willing to actually invest in their Striker position, instead of relying on the likes of Bambi Welbeck to provide , they would be squarely in the 3 hole or possibly even ahead of City…problem is when you’re fundamentally a selling team you rarely deviate from your investment startegy, especially when it comes to what’s traditionally the most expensive and difficult to predict position on the pitch
when it comes to the academy pieces you mentioned and ESR, I just have a hard time believing that either Patino or Azeez are destined to play significant roles for us in the future…maybe Patino, if he can carve out a name for himself while out on loan in a top division, but I think the Azeez dream is dead and buried…I’ve always been an avid supporter of ESR, but that might have had more to do with the fact that there were times when he appeared to be the only player on the pitch with a real desire to bring some directness to the mix…fact remains he’s too frgaile to be a regular starter so he might just be shopped…I just can’t see him getting enough minutes between now and season’s end to change his somewhat problematic narrative, so it worries me that when push comes to shove we might use him to raise funds…btw I’m not sure what’s on tap for Balo, but I so wished that we had kept him in-house last summer and let Eddie go on his merry way…Cheers
LOL Tony—I read that piece on Sow too…he seems like too much of a settling option, but he’s certainly not a scrub
Herb – Thanks for trying to get NT (really Pedro) and Bob N16 to join the human race and end the mud slinging at us and LIR. It’s appreciated, but it’s clear that LG is mostly for fantasists who spend their days dreaming up VAR and northern Refs’ biases or 4th was this season’s target, when we should have easily been placed 4 last season
This season has been the season to make out assault on the title. I said that for the last 2 years and got kicked off LG for it. Nothing changes with the insults if you don’t fall in the Arteta line.
Bob who owns nuances and gray areas as his fence sitting go to when things are poor and is out sniping at whoever puts Arteta down saying we must be unhappy or similar. Bob can’t accept tough characters pointing out Arteta’s faults and indeed praise when praise is due.
We are realists, and yet we still kick every ball a feel the same emotions win, draw or lose.
All of us have or own successful businesses and or worked corporate to senior suit level or is a retired professor. Because of this, our make up is different to employees. For us it’s sink or swim, employees can fail as ofter as they like because they can move from from job to job. Some make a career out of it.
No, LIR is for people who want to express their honest opinions – not take pot shots or try to undermine other people whose opinions vary. Ambarish welcomes people from all walks of life who simply follow The Arsenal where we enjoy different points of view.
I’ve no idea how Bob N16 thinks he’s remotely qualified to decide how we should enjoy supporting our club? Perhaps he get’s it from his psychologist wife or it’s just that Bob lives his life around The Arsenal and has no time for anything or anyone else. One thing is clear Bob loves his psychobabble. All Bob does is snipe or agree with the sycophants.
Thanks again, Herb, you’ll never get what I refer to as the “Football Shirts” mentality (think AFC Forever, MarkyMark and their ilk) we see abroad and cringe, to even begin to comprehend that there is another POV that could be considered. It’s amazing when you see that Don Un is an upgrade on the aforementioned LG myopic dregs.
Tom’s plight on LG sums it up, but Tom’s a scrapper with intelligence, which is something his detractors severely lack so he has fun with them similar to the ozil GOAT supporter: Pierre who always makes good sense unless he’s baited his hooks and is reeling the trolls in.
It’s amazing how 2 Arsenal blogs can be so different in their posts, discussions and general dispositions/pleasantries.
Talk football later.
TRVL – we’re never far apart with our thinking.
I’m planning that, with the new suits’ structure, there will be enough oversight to create the confidence in buying in the £100+m bracket and a couple from the £50+m bracket to bolster our midfield to acceptable levels. We can afford CL salaries now we’re back in the CL. Unfortunately, they have risen exponentially since our last brief outing out of the group stages. £300K to 500+K is the going rate for elite proven talent or in Mickey Mudflap’s case unproven.
Purely from a hindsight projection we know only too well the difficulties of offloading a player on elite money, but Ozil and Auba saw us coming and HO suits at the time we’re looking more after their nest eggs than doing what was best for The Arsenal. We are doing the reverse this time in buying an elite proven talent just as he’s coming into his prime: a luxury we have rarely had for around 20 years (Vieira, Henry, Bergkamp (Rioch) et al .
A 5-year contract at CL income won’t be a problem if managed well providing the player is around 25 and wanting to be part of a winning vision for the foreseeable future, playing intelligent and heart pumping football at break neck pace.
Junior and I have watched Rice a fair bit and have always commentated on the lack of expression in his play because of the lack of experienced ability in the players around him. Playing for a mid table, tactical inept manager as Moyes is always going to limit Rice. Junior and I feel there’s much more to see from Rice where he could be coached to play 6/8. He’s already a very good 6 in a defensive counter attacking team unfortunately with a porous back 4.
I’d put my money on Rice, so we’ll see how that prediction works out as it seems he’s Arteta’s top target? 🙂 Mind you, Arteta’s missed out on his last 2 top targets, so here’s hoping three’s a charm.
If we want to but from BHA then make them an offer they can’t refuse for either Mitoma or Caicedo or both. £160m would set BHA nicely, as I’m pretty sure since January Tony Bloom has been readying replacements knowing the hounds will be back at his doors come August’s silly season.
The other player I forget to mention is Chav’s Conor Gallagher he would be a perfect fit for Xhaka’s #8. He was Paddy’s reliable engine for Palace and would be even better for us with our squad. Probably get him for £45m and £150k package a week including bonuses.
Can Southampton upset City’s fortunes today? I sincerely hope so and dent their ardour for the title.
Hi Herb
I agree with Tony about your skewering of negative/nigel/Tufnell/positive/Pete/pedro and the clear and justifiable position you hold on where Arsenal is at the moment. Newcastle (and the disaster away to Spurs) were crucial and depressing milestones from late last season which still need to be borne in mind. Slightly further back in our collective psyche and history were the two abject displays against Emery’s Villareal when apparatchik Pedro was even calling for the removal of that stubborn piece of lego atop Mr Arteta’s cabeza. Anyway, just wanted to say that whether it’s on here or the blog favoured by 8 out of 10 antichrists, your writing and thoughts are much appreciated by this aging grizzly old Gooner who is banned from saying the same – even if he wanted to – by le grove’s answer to a pound shop citizen Kane. Pedro and his multiple personalities all have one thing in common – they’re arseholes, not to put too fine a point on it.
Talking of Arsenal (!) , I’m going to bore you later with my wonderful day out watching the Bluebirds win 3-1 up at Bloomfield Road yesterday. One for the ages. 🐦