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发表于 2010-8-13 20:21:14
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Squad review for season 2010/11
http://thegoonblog.com/2010/08/squad-review-for-season-201011/
So its nearly here already and to be fair it has come around very quickly.
The summer has been a strange one, plenty of on-off transfer saga’s etc. but its time for all of that to scale down and concentrate on the proper football, that will be reflected on this blog. Many people are unhappy with the lack of transfer action – the likes of William Gallas, Mikael Silvestre and Sol Campbell have not been replaced – leaving Arsenal pretty light in central defence.
Laurent Koscielny has arrived but he is young, inexperienced and physically look very weak. Marouane Chamakh has also been brought in on a free transfer to replace Eduardo who left for the Ukranian side Shakhtar Donestk.
This isn’t necessarily the same squad come September as the transfer window is of course still open.
Goalkeepers:
Manuel Almunia: – After some questionable performances last season his number one status was rightly called into question, that had lead to a summer of uncertainty with nobody knowing who the starter will be for the game against Liverpool on Sunday afternoon. At the time of writing there has been no new arrival on the goalkeeping front and so there is a big possibility that Manuel Almunia will at least start the season as the man between the sticks again.
Lucasz Fabianski: – I will be blunt: I don’t see how he can stay on at Arsenal, both for the sake of his career and the club. He does have talent, he can pull off acrobatic saves and is a decent shot stopper, then again most Premiership keepers are. His biggest failing is the mental side of his game, his confidence crumbles more and more every time he takes to the pitch and imagine our number one getting injured in the dying moments of a Champions League semi-final and he came for a cross, missed and we conceded. That is not what you need from your second keeper. There needs to be experience and reliability – Fabianski has neither.
Vito Mannone: – From reports that came from Austria he was said to be looking very, very good in training. It is clear he has potential but at this stage of his career he needs regular football and thats why he will probably go off on loan – possibly to Middlesborough.
Wojciech Szczesny: – A quite brilliant talent but a couple of years short from being ready to be thrown into the pressure of the number one slot. Every Arsenal fan knows how good he is and at 20 he will hopefully have a long, long career with us. As to what would suit him best? I really don’t know, part of me thinks that he should play in the Carling Cup but then what happens to Fabianski? Arsenal need a third keeper and neither of Mannone of Szczesny are suited to that just yet, they need to get minutes under their belts. A big decision is needed here.
Verdict: I really want another keeper brought in, but if Almunia reproduces the form he produced in the 2008/09 season I think we will be ok. There is a possibility that Mark Schwarzer may still come in but the fact that Lucasz Fabianski is still here is a show of blind faith by the manager.
Defenders:
Bacary Sagna: – A fine right-back but the main difference we need to see this season is better deliveries into the box, time after time he hardly beat the first man so with a bit of work, hopefully that has been solved. At least he is a defender that is actually half decent though, one of the finest right-backs in the league and I have no concerns at all.
Emmanuel Eboue: – Got to love him, character, energy, versatility and is the heart of a fantastic team spirit. Will be an important player for us and we could see a fair amount of him to the right of Chamakh or van Persie too.
Thomas Vermaelen: – Really established himself last season and showed a lot of fine leadership qualities that will doubtlessly be needed this season now he is the leading defender. Again I have no concerns, the major concern is the player he will be partnered with – at this point in time we don’t know who the real partner is for him.
Johann Djourou: – How can you rely on him when he spent all of last season out injured and he has a hamstring injury for the game on Sunday, yet another sicknote in a side that is frequently decimated by injury. He does have a lot of talent but I don’t see him as a reliable and viable option to be completely honest.
Laurent Koscielny: – One of the two new-boys, he clearly has a lot of talent but with just one season of experience in a top flight league you have to question his readiness for football at this level straight away. A big concern.
Gael Clichy: – Fabulous defender that you can only truly appreciate when you are at the stadium, the amount of ground he covers is astounding and the speed of which he does it is even more astounding. He has looked very good in pre-season and hopefully we will see the Clichy of pre-injury this season and that he stays fit, but even if he doesn’t there is a more than able deputy waiting in the wings.
Kieran Gibbs: – He will be buzzing right now after making a storming England debut on Wednesday night, he is quick, aggressive and better going forward than Gael Clichy, this adds another string to be bow because he is very versatile being able to play at left back, left midfield or even occasionally in central midfield. He played there for the under 21’s. He should really push on this season and hopefully the chances fall his way. Keep an eye on him staking a claim for the left-back slot.
Armand Traore: – For a third choice left-back there are fewer better around but you do have to question his hunger that at this stage of his career he is not seeking any first team football. Maybe he just has faith that another injury crisis will sweep through the ranks and he will get his chance but you can’t have any complains about the guy.
Verdict: Desperate need of a center back at least, the fact the situation has got this dire is a farce in itself and it needs solving if we have any real aspirations of winning anything this season. Over to you, Arsene.
Defensive Midfield:
Alex Song: – I firmly believe that he will become one of the world’s finest holding midfielders, strong, energetic and with an ever improving range of passing he really is a key member of the team. He is part of this teams spine so hopefully he can stay injury free and continue the fine form he has displayed in the past season and a half. Will be a big player for us.
Denilson: – He covers a lot of ground but at the same time he seemed to give up too easily on numerous occasions last season, I believe he will eventually be a fine midfielder but right now he is a decent player to have to be back-up for Alex Song and really shore the midfield up away in the Champions League where we may play with him and Alex Song.
Verdict: With the emergence of Emmanuel Frimpong I feel that we are fine in this area, depth and youth.
Midfield:
Cesc Fabregas: – Will he stay? Will he go? HES GOING !!!! HES STAYING !!!! OMG I HATE BARCA !!! “Cesc has Barca DNA” Blah blah blah we have heard it all! He is staying at Arsenal for the foreseeable future and at last the team can be relieved of the uncertainty that has been around since the end of last season. It would have been nice on his part if he had released a statement earlier on in the summer but its done now, lets move on. Undoubtedly world class and will win us games all on his own.
Samir Nasri: I’m tipping him for 15 goals this season, he has been lightening in pre-season and seems to have an extra determination after being left out of the France World Cup squad for South Africa – he has the ability to score from anywhere and it will also take the strain off Cesc Fabregas in the creative and scoring stakes. I really do think he will have a very good season for us.
Aaron Ramsey: – Can’t expect anything from him this season, he is expected to be back in around November which is remarkable given the visual impact of the injury, his leg literally hanging in the air snapped like a twig. We just don’t know how he will react to it so lets just let him recover and take it from there. Get better soon, Aaron.
Jack Wilshere: – From one star in the making to another… what a player he looks. Quick, stronger, has a bite in the tackle – the ability to score and create goals in a more attacking position than Cesc Fabregas can grab us vital goals and generally give the defenders another player to worry about. You sense he has not let his budding stardom go to his head and is still working hard to become the best he can be, and as long as he carries on doing that we really can’t complain.
Abou Diaby: – I really don’t know what to make of him, one day he looks immense, the next he can look like a cross between Chris Kiwomya and a daddy long legs – it is clear he offers a big goalscoring threat on his day and built up a decent goal tally last season, scoring the winner at home against Liverpool with his head, thankfully he found the right net that time. Consistency please.
Tomas Rosicky: – A very good player to have in the squad I think, pretty versatile and if he can find his stride, a mighty fine player. Hard to argue against him having a pretty big say in the outcome of our season.
Verdict: Fine – a bit of consistency needed for a few players but I’m happy.
Forwards:
Andrey Arshavin: – Needs to put a bit more effort in, sometimes he can pull off the most outrageous skill but the next he will misplace a five yard pass. Pretty much guarantees between 10 and 15 goals a season and will always be a distraction to defenders who will just not know what they are going to get from him
Robin van Persie: If he stays fit we will win something. Sadly, the chances of him staying fit are small. We know how good he is, how good he can be and what he brings to the team. It will be interesting to see how the manager goes with the front three, Chamakh or van Persie through the middle? I will watch with interest.
Nicklas Bendtner: – Marmite. I love him, he will be a brilliant player once he has fully matured and has nearly all the aspects you want in a front-man, a brilliant header of the ball, a good striker of the ball, decent finisher and a real hard worker. You can’t argue against the fact that he gets goals and pretty much kept us in the title race at the end of last season. It is a shame his groin injury hasn’t cleared up so we won’t see him until October.
Theo Walcott: – He can be so good yet so poor, still hasn’t developed that footballing brain that will take his game onto the next level but his pace alone offers a massive and unique threat, he had looked pretty good in pre-season and was great for England on Wednesday so lets see what he has to offer. It might be his breakthrough season, hopefully it will be.
Carlos Vela: – Without question it is a massive season for him, so much talent yet so little end product of note, a few beautiful goals but nothing to write home about in the quantity stakes. In pre-season he has been really impressive and for the first time in a long time he looks fully fit and ready to really show his obvious talent. Lets see what you have, Carlos.
Marouane Chamakh: – Really suited to our style of play and I think he will turn out to be a brilliant addition to the squad, hard-working and is one of the best headers of the ball in world football. He might not get big goals, but I can’t wait to see more of him
Verdict: Strongest forward line we have had in years
We really need to address the center back area and possibly get in a new number one if it is possible but other than that we really do have a very strong squad, a lot of the players will come back better players and hopefully barring any injury crises we can win something this season – though without that center back, our chances are very slim indeed.
I’m optimistic though, so lets see how they fare on Sunday. |
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发表于 2010-8-9 18:06:36