Are Arsenal really coming of age? I believe so. Yes, the equalizer against Sunderland hurt like hell, but you know what, we actually lost our ground when Rosicky missed the penalty. That’s what kept Sunderland gunning for the goal. You cannot afford to miss these chances but its just one of those things, and it happened to United as well with Fulham and Everton. But there have been some takeaways for the team from the last few games.
Young Blood
Jack Wilshere has had a fantastic start to the season; he gets into good positions, his passing is good and his work rate is amazing. His finishing though is something he needs to work on, he seems to take a lot of time in front of goal, but at least doesn’t appear to be nervous. Djourou concerns me greatly, he was not at all confident in 1-on-1 situations, was trying for a long clearance instead of keeping possession within the team, and ended up conceding a corner when he did try to hold onto the ball late on. His work rate is questionable at best, and Wenger will need to think about what to do with him if there isn’t too much improvement.
Gibbs did not have the best of games yesterday but, given time, can mature into a good left-back. His technique isn’t too bad but he gets caught too often and definitely needs someone like Vermaelan or Koscielny alongside him. Lansbury got his first senior goal for Arsenal yesterday and what a place to get it! He looked fantastic on the ball but did earn a booking for a stupid challenge. He needs to start more often for us and is definitely one for the future. Vela’s finishing is amazingly clinical; without any fuss at all. He doesn’t ever seem to take an extra touch in front of goal and has shown great vision time and again. His two goals against Braga and the one against Bolton were perfect examples of his ability and, with Van Persie injured, he just needs to start as many games as possible.
Can Nasri replace Fabregas?
I think so. Nasri has all the ingredients for the job. His passing is excellent, he gets into good positions very quickly, and is one of the most creative players in the team – and has a very cool head (the two spot kicks yesterday are examples of it). He has scored some of the best goals for Arsenal over the past couple of years: his strike against United in Nov ’08 and the one against Porto in last year’s Champions league come to mind. But he can be out-muscled very easily; a quality you do not want in your pivot player. The penalty awarded to him yesterday was rather soft and any other referee might have chosen to play on instead.
The Chamakh Factor
Someone coming from Ligue 1 generally takes time to settle at the Emirates. We saw that with Pires where Wenger was very careful. Pires went on to have an extremely successful 2nd season with the club. But Chamakh has had literally no time – just the pre-season games really. He has adapted to the English style of play and doesn’t go down easily. He also keeps hunting for the ball, never gives up, and makes the opposing defence very nervous; he can get you goals like the equalizer against Liverpool and is great in front of goal. On top of all this, he is absolutely brilliant in the air. I don’t think we have seen anywhere near his best headers yet! With him, Vela, Cesc/Nasri, Arshavin and hopefully Van Persie, we can get the perfect attacking combination – one of the few reasons why we have been scoring goals consistently.
Back line is the key
Koscielny has proved to be a good signing. He had a pretty good game yesterday and if it wasn’t for his brilliant challenge on Lennon, Arsenal would have conceded (lets face it, we don’t trust Fabianski to save from that distance, at near or far post). He still needs to get better in the air; his headers have the uncanny habit of landing where they shouldn’t but he’s not afraid to go for the goal in times of need. Given time, along with Vermaelan, Clichy, and Sagna he can form a great partnership. The goal we conceded against Sunderland may not be attributed to anyone in particular but we just seemed to hit the panic button in extra time when at least 4 mins of play was remaining. Long clearances are good but not when you have someone near to pass the ball to. Keeping possession is better than giving the ball away and letting the opposition come up again.
The No. 1 position is still up for grabs: Almunia has had a decent season so far but not a great one. Fabianski is still far from decent and Wenger needs to get himself a proper No. 1 in the January window otherwise I very much doubt our ability to win against teams like Chelsea and Man United.
Written by Naveen Nathani
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gibbs had a fkin stormer yestday wat game wer u watchin m8? he had lennon in his pocket
If the gunners can get four points from the games against MU and Chelsea,then I would say they have come of age.It’s no use beating the likes of Blacburn/Bolton/AV if the gunners can’t perform against the top two. These two have been the gunners bogey teams the past few seasons.Banish them and then we shall see.
We kept possesion well against spurs but still played too much football in front of them and when we had chances to shoot we didn’t. We need to shoot immediately we get sight of goal if we are to make our superior possession count
Gibbs what outstanding, what are you on?
Anto, I agree. Gibbs has been good. Another thing is Koscielny not being good in the air – against Sunderland he and Squillaci won EVERYTHING.
Naveen, I think Arsenal still harbour the same issues as previous seasons; the draw against Sunderland is symptomatic of the same problems (having the opportunity to put a game to bed but not taking them coupled with defensive lapses in concentration…and injuries!). It’s only fair to judge at the end of the season obviously but at the moment I think we’re seeing everything great about Arsenal (goals, especially Vela’s v Bolton for example) and also what’s infuriating (random lapses in concentration). Having said that, I hope a corner can be turned.
Agree about Chamakh doing an exceptional job to settle in, even more so with the added pressure of striking injuries. On a side note, Almunia had a very good game on the weekend.
i agree suminder
wat are u on about naveen?????
kos is 1st class in the air
apart from jack gibbs was our best player last nite.shud hav had a goal but for a dodgy linesman aswell
Wilshere is already awesome and will only get better.
Agree with Anto, Gibbs had Lennon in his pocket.
Chamakh is better for our game than van Persie.
Koscielny was a beast last night.
But Nasri needs to do more work pressing defensively if he is to replace Cesc. Left Denilson and Wilshere doing too much work. Ramsey is the more likely to replace Cesc in the long term if he sufficiently recovers from his injury.
mate u obviously havent looked at kos the last two games.im chuffed with him.getting better evry game
Sorry author, stopped reading after u said Gibbs had a poor game. U obviously know nothing about football. Just wanted to advise u to find another hobby. All the best…
ha ha i did the same sam
good post but having a go at Keiran Gibbs? What exactly did he do wrong? Oh yeah, getting called offside when he was blatantly onside for what should have been 2-0. Or was it his continous work up and down the wing, tackling back, covering in central defence and winning balls he wasn;t entitled to? Yeah Gibbs had a shit game and spurs won 4-1. Ermmm no get on the same planet and actually praise our lads when they play well.
Agree that Kos is getting better but Gibbs is still not “à point” in defending.
Djourou will grow fine, i guess he only needs more games but with Squillaci around with good performance, i doubt if he has the chance.
Allez les Gooners !