One of the main men with that golden Arsenal info, Jezza Wilson, has penned a piece that says Arsenal might opt for a cheaper manager. The article basically reiterates what I’ve been telling you for a while, the club don’t necessarily want an all-conquering king to replace a king. The club want a manager who can fit into a system, can coach players, and work with a lower budget.
His shortlist of names is the list we’ve been rocking here at Le Grove. Allegri, Nagelsmann, Arteta, Paddy and Jardim. I’m game for any of those, bar Vieira. I really don’t fancy him, unless it’s as part of the backroom team.
There goes my chance of interviewing him for The AO podcast anytime soon.
The Telegraph writer also pours a bit of cold water over the Buvac rumours, without totally discarding them. The exLiverpool assistant makes very little sense, he was an average manager in 2001, doesn’t like speaking to the press and by all accounts, it seems like he’s left Liverpool to tend to family matters back in Bosnia.
If he were joining Arsenal, wouldn’t he have at least waited until he’d lost in the Champions League final before departing Klopp’s side? There were some rumours he’d had a bust-up, but I think that was off the mark. You don’t tend to have mega bust-ups with people that have helped give you success, especially not at pivotal moments of the season.
Enrique seems to be showering himself in mercenary juice. He’s asking for such an extortionate salary, even Chelsea are turning their noses up at him. What a game he’s playing. I’d not be upset with him, I’d just be a touch underwhelmed.
Give me Allegri, Jardim or Nagelsmann and I’d be over the moon.
In other news, Jack Wilshere is now closer to agreeing a new deal than before. Interesting right? Wenger goes, and all of a sudden, the club is open to a deal. I was told by someone in New York who knew people around Jack that he wasn’t much of a fan of the coach, so it makes sense that now he’s gone things are looking more positive. It’d be great to hire a manager who could extract the most from him. He’s still relatively young, could be a great turnaround project.
I was fed a tidbit that Ramsey signing on isn’t looking very positive right now, it’s not come from a source pure enough to extract spring water, but you could take a drink there and no one would die. Take from it what you will. I know Danny W and Cech are also waiting to see who the next manager is, likely just to see if they’re wanted. Just jokes, Danny has been great of late, Mr Cech, not so much. But he’d make a great coach. One of the greats, so we’ll see.
Outside that, I have very little.
SEE YOU IN THE COMMENTS.
Bankz is here for the Tr4phy again
BOOOOOM
4th
Tr4phy
Nice try TT but I came with the intent to win the most converted Tr4phy in the history of football blogs.
Try again tomorrow
I’m starting to get the usual feelings of being underwhelmed when it does finally get announced… Arsenal do a good job of expectation management.
tr4phy
@Utarse – Im beginning to think that Wenger is but a symptom of a much bigger problem at Arsenal.
Top 10
I am surprised at your Viera comment. For me he is a natural. 1) A born leader and winner 2) Management experience with Man City 3) Has done very well in the USA 4) Not expensive 5) He is an Arsenal man.
Come on lets get behind him, he would make a great manager. If we don’t get him other top teams will.
Hey guys whats the story with Nagelsmann im not sure about him. He’s young but I cant see top stars wanting to come to the club to play for him. Especially if we dont get champ league. Reminds me to much of Brendan Rogers. He had a problem trying to attract top players hence Sanchez picking us over the pool
Bring on Paddy, if he’s out of his dept then sack him. One thing is he’s not a loser.
Frankie,
Agreed, but it’s not like we didn’t know, we feared it but the number 1 target was to get Le fraud out first and then see what happens.
What doesn’t make sense the apparent courting of Allegri last year before knowing that Wenger was going to renew…. Surely he is their number one candidate ?I still hope that only premise behind the announcement delay is that Allegri needs to secure the Scudetto first.
friggin hell ……….what must they think of Rodgers lol……………………….lol
I get why people want an experienced manager but I don’t get why people rate Arteta over Vieria.
Wilshere NEEDS to fuck off. Lad adds nothing and a new deal means he continues to leech off the club and that’s it
Arsenal have just received an application request from a certain Arsenio Wengerovsky
The close resemblance to the soon to be departing Arsenal manager is entirely co-incidental insists Mr Wengerovsky.
Wouldn’t Wilshere be closer to a new deal because we’ve increased the offer? Hilarious how you can crowbar a cheapshot at Wenger into pretty much anything…
The departure of Ramsay would be a massive blow – he is far and away the most ‘Arsenal’ player in the squad. I can’t see that happening, more likely he will be made captain.
My hope is that Gazidis has Arteta lined up as the new manager. With him you get intelligence, commitment, leadership, EPL know-how, an Arsenal fan, and a burning desire to win, all at a low price.
Just a reminder to those who don’t remember, too young etc – back in 1980 in the semi final of the Cup Winners Cup, in the first leg we drew at home 1-1 with Juventus. No one gave us a chance in 2nd leg but we won 1 nil with the winner scored in 88th minute by our sub Paul Vaessen.
Keep The Faith!
Arsenal is probably as good as it will get for Danny. Deeper midtable mediocrity beckons if he leaves.
Despite the Allegri rumours, I still think we’re going younger and more inexperienced. Our transfer strategy will likely be buy a top star if they’re available but it’ll be based around targeting young players with potential that a manager can develop.
doubt if Allegri would come cheap, maybe not enriques league though
As for wilshere or anyone else, worth waiting to see what the new coaching team can do with them if they stay, it is clear that wengers coaching powers, ability to delegate and desire for new methods has decreased exponentially over the last few years. i bet some of these players are completely bored and uninspired with the same training for years, decades.
why did Stan take so long to see this happening?
Hilarious how you can crowbar a cheapshot at Wenger into pretty much anything…
To be fair who kept him on all these years? He should have been sold before now and a new contract has been on the table for months now at the insistence of you guessed it…skeletor
Wallace
Lol, I have to agree with you.
New manager in, and all of a sudden all that talk about pay incentives for keeping fit don’t matter and is no longer disappointing.
Marko
Personally, if we have only 50m in the bank and we don’t have much to spend…..I am perfectly happy in letting Wilshire go so that the likes of Reiss Nelson have a chance.
Why would anyone want Arteta……No experience. Maybe after he has managed a club, then we can see what his managerial skills are about.
At least with Viera he has successfully managed and is young.
Unless we win tomorrow night, our season (and Wenger’s career at Arsenal) is over in 11 days.
When does the summer window open? When do people think we’ll have an announcement re the new manager?
First out would be Wilshere, he brings nothing to the team as far as I’m concerned. Secondly I would rather have an experienced manager with a strong character who wouldn’t be afraid to tell players that they’re not pulling their weight, and more importantly get rid of a lot of the deadwood that we currently have that are being paid well above what they are worth.
“The departure of Ramsay would be a massive blow – he is far and away the most ‘Arsenal’ player in the squad. I can’t see that happening, more likely he will be made captain.” It’s interesting to see what would happen with Ramsey. He’s probably the one who’d scoop most money if we made him available. At the same time at 27 he’s getting into his prime now and I think in a midfield three with a DM and a controller, he could really thrive given the license to get forward with his engine. He has always said he’d like… Read more »
Pedro “In other news, Jack Wilshere is now closer to agreeing a new deal than before. Interesting right? Wenger goes, and all of a sudden, the club is open to a deal. I was told by someone in New York who knew people around Jack that he wasn’t much of a fan of the coach, so it makes sense that now he’s gone things are looking more positive.” Lol Wow, this is some spin. Before, the favorite pov was Papa Wenger reluctant to let go of his spoilt babies, thus costing the club money and resources. I thought this was… Read more »
Dont think Ramsey would be much of a miss.
Ramsey is a Wenger player if ever i’ve seen one.
Spends all his time focusing on scoring goals, and completely vacates his duties elsewhere on the pitch.
Wenger has been building massively unbalanced teams for years with these types of players.
Central MFs are supposed to be two way players that set the tempo, Ramsey doesnt do that at all.
Maybe a new manager could get more out of him, who knows.
Unless Ramsey wishes to move to Everton! I don’t think he’s bound for a big club in England.
Arsenal is as good as it gets for him.
He’s not leaving.
I do understand why he’s going to,push his contract to the brink. Ozil did it and won with a deal he isn’t worthy of. Alexis did it and he’s the highest paid player in the league.
Why shouldn’t Ramsey pursue the same brinksmanship?
Go Ramsey, go get them.
gambon,
“Dont think Ramsey would be much of a miss”
You don’t know what you’ve just done. You’ve opened the gates of Valhalla to the hordes of Helheim. Expect incoming from the Ramsey lovers.
“Dont think Ramsey would be much of a miss.”
Probably not, however, spending loads on a replacement when we don’t know how much we have to spend would make me cautious.
Personally I don’t think we can definitely say what a lot of these players can do without seeing them under a new manager. We said Wenger was tactically deficient and inept, often fielding unbalanced sides so then it’d be unfair to expect a player to play to his optimum when there are so many holes in the team.
Don’t think any of our midfielders would be missed. Worst Arsenal midfield in recent memory
Don’t think our midfield is bad. Just Poorly managed.
A tactically proficient coach could work these guys into something amazing imo.
I still foam over how rambo and xhaka ran the midfield vs Chelsea in the FA cup
Unnecessary cheap shot towards AW from you Pedders. JW is on the hustle and wants to achieve his goal of more money up front. Have no problem with him wanting more money. He’s 26 going on 33 body wise. Would prefer if Everton or West Ham pay him 130k a week instead of us. Don’t want him to stay because it means it will be less likely that we sign a new CM. We need better passing & much more energy along with recovery speed. Xhaka, Ramsey, Elneny & Wilshere are all one paced defensively; Jack.has little running capacity on… Read more »
Good article on how differing tactical approaches (mostly pressing) are changing the game. A couple of good points are made, also, about the pace of the modern game and the fitness level of the modern footballer.
“Liverpool lead new tactical era of ‘storming’ while the likes of Mourinho are left behind”
http://www.espn.com/soccer/uefa-champions-league/2/blog/post/3475595/liverpool-lead-new-tactical-era-of-storming–leaving-jose-mourinho-and-arsene-wenger-behind
We said Wenger was tactically deficient and inept, often fielding unbalanced sides so then it’d be unfair to expect a player to play to his optimum when there are so many holes in the team. You don’t fill those holes by keeping Ramsey and Wilshere they are those holes. This idea for example of getting the best out of Ramsey by playing him in a three man midfield with two others doing all the work he should be doing is never going to happen. You don’t build the team around getting the best out of Aaron Ramsey while you have… Read more »
I don’t get why anyone would want Arteta at the club. Paddy is certainly not my first choice, but if Arteta is deemed a good choice, then Paddy must be one too!
I take a different approach to this Ramsey situation.
The prospect of keeping every other player in this underwhelming midfield except Ramsey is absolutely frightening.
We keep Jack, X.haka and Elneny but let Ramsey leave?
What sense does that make?
He’s flawed no doubt is our best midfielder at the moment,
I don’t see any good reason why we should renew JW’s contract under a new manager.
Wilshere is crocked. No reason to re-sign him, IMO.
Ramsey, however, is worth keeping. Talented, hard-working footballer with a good engine; he could flourish under a better manager and there is no reason to needlessly multiply our needs this summer. IMO.
“You don’t fill those holes by keeping Ramsey and Wilshere they are those holes. This idea for example of getting the best out of Ramsey by playing him in a three man midfield with two others doing all the work he should be doing is never going to happen. You don’t build the team around getting the best out of Aaron Ramsey while you have players like Ozil and Mhiki there.” I never said the two others do al the work. I say you liberate him and leave the amount of space he has to cover. Arsenal’s midfield has been… Read more »
A few years would could use the excuse of needing 2-3 players and a little better structure to compete for the title. Not anymore.
We have squad full of squad players. Our mainstays like Cech, Per, Koscielny, Monreal, Cazorla, the spine of our team, can’t play 30-35 league matches a season anymore. Being over 30, they should play 10-15 matches as squad players do. Problem is that the squad players bought over the last couple of years have a low ceiling. Ospina, Holding , Chambers, Kolasinac, Elneny are 10-15 matches per season types in their orimes.
“The same issues that are prevalent now were prevalent when Cesc etc were still here.”
Yes. Finally someone sees it!!
Romford I think Ramsey has huge ability. During the 13/14 season he was a monster, and the most noticable thing was his huge defensive numbers. The first half of the season he was averaging 5 tackles per game, he then just completely eased up. He also had huge defensive numbers in the back half of 12/13 playing alongside Arteta. Apart from that he has spent his whole Arsenal career playing high up the pitch trying to get into scoring positions. I remember one game that was absolutely disgusting by Ramsey. When we beat City 2-0 away a few years back,… Read more »
Anytime Le Grove mentions Welshit and Wilshit in positive terms…I tune out. These two clowns are fucking rubbish. There were, are and forever will be.
To blow millions for Wilshere is mind bogglingly stupid. Looks like Arsenal, even without the horrid Wenger, are still not getting it.
I’m already bored again with Arsenal F.C.
“Ramsey is a Wenger player if ever i’ve seen one.”
You means Wilshere, not Ramsey ?? lol
Marko
“while you have players like Ozil and Mhiki there”
Except that unless we sign new wide players, Ozil and Mkhitaryan will likely be our wide attacking players and not deployed in midfield per se.
And even if you see one of them playing at the head of a midfield three, Ramsey is more than capable of being one of the two midfielders at the base of that three.
For me, selling Ramsey makes no sense and unnecessarily complicates our project this summer.
I think Ramsey is quite liberated in the Arsenal team as it is.
Plenty have noted that at times he plays like an extra forward.
Ramsey is not rated for his overall midfield play let’s be honest. He is rated because he can nick a goal. score goals.
If a new manager comes in that wants to see a more compact midfield we may well see Ramsey reined in a bit but then you will lose from his game what many rate him for.
Again. Ramsay. Not good. Sell him and take the cash elsewhere.
Gambon has pulled out one season that Ramsay did okay in…and that was five seasons ago.
The guy isn’t getting any better so cash the fuck in now.
Bellerin for £35m to United. Yes please. Another shit player.
In 2013/14 Ramsey averaged 5 defensive actions per game, this season its 2.5
Why has he been allowed to half his defensive output?
In 13/14 our partnership of Arteta and Ramsey averaged 12.1 defensive actions per game, Xhaka & Ramsey now average 7.4 per game.
We have become incredibly lazy in terms of doing the basics in midfield and it shows in our league position.
Gambon – Yeah Ramsey’s output in the 13/14 has made him too obsessed with goalscoring IMO. He needs to also focus on the other nuances of being a CM. But it’s Wenger’s fault for allowing Ramsey to get away with so much for so long. That’s why I said a manager who values positional play a lot more would not allow Ramsey to be making lung-busting runs into the box 10 times per game. What I see in him though is a Lampard-type midfielder. Someone who provides support to the other two midfielders but has the ability to break forward… Read more »
gambon
The answer to that question is Arsene Wenger, obviously. Given Ramsey’s engine and capacity for work, however, I think a more demanding manager could get good output from Ramsey on both sides of the ball.
It’s likely that Ramsey will stay imo.
We need a CM that will play will in between Xhaka & Ramsey. Someone who has intensity and can play 50-60 passes a match with high accuracy. Kovacic is best fit that I can think of. He’s a superior athlete to Jack & Cazorla, two players who have played that role. He a sensational dribbler as well.
“We need a CM that will play will in between Xhaka & Ramsey. Someone who has intensity and can play 50-60 passes a match with high accuracy. Kovacic is best fit that I can think of. He’s a superior athlete to Jack & Cazorla, two players who have played that role. He a sensational dribbler as well.”
Kovacic is the best option but other technical midfielders who fit this bill: Aouar/Golovin/Ceballos/Pellegrini/Paredes
Look get this British core crap out now Ramsay and wilshere out
Bring in nabil fekir and max meyer.
“We need a CM that will play will in between Xhaka & Ramsey. Someone who has intensity and can play 50-60 passes a match with high accuracy.”
I would say we need a proper DM much more than a Kovacic. A Kovacic would be to replace Xhaka.
Xhaka is terrible defensively.
We need someone who takes pride in defending in Midfield. Someone that will also play tactically and cover gaps when the fullbacks bomb forward.
This type of player, plus a mistake free GK, would make more difference to our league position this season, than any other players.
Ndombele for a more physical option. He also transitions very well although doesn’t pass with anywhere the same high frequency as the others.
Beside being English and going to the pub what has wilshere done in the last 2years to get a new contract at arsenal?
How many passes in a game is this midfield going to make?
I thought that was the only positive about Xhaka that he can pass the ball a lot.
You want another midfielder that passes the ball a lot?
Although I get what you say about a midfielder with intensity. Basically to do the donkey work for Xhaka.
Please tell me Dream10 what is Xhaka’s real worth to this team?
“I would say we need a proper DM much more than a Kovacic. A Kovacic would be to replace Xhaka.”
Depends on the style of the new manager.
Both Allegri and Heynckes used Pjanic and Thiago as the deepest players respectively and surrounded them with interiors who had a higher workrate. None of those guys are physical but because of the protection they receive, they are able to dominate accordingly.
We definitely need a technical midfielder though who can dominate and play passes at a high frequency rate each game. I don’t really rate Max Meyer like that tbh.
Gambon
We’re not replacing Xhaka next season as he still has three yrs left on his deal. Perhaps we can sign an in between player with a high rate of defensive actions. A player who can play #6 and #8. His Swiss teammate Denis Zakaria from Borussia MG had good defensive numbers last time I checked. Big guy who with mobility.
Jean Seri is one of the best passers in the game.
Maybe Seri with someone like Fabinho alongside him.
My point is I think we need complete change. Wenger has made an absolute mess of squad building in recent years.
Zakaria is far too immature to play the role of holding Xhaka’s hand.
He has discipline problems himself and fouls too often.
Haven’t liked what I’ve seen of Paredes too much. Roma let him go for a reason.
Kovacic is quality, you get the feeling that he’ll surely move on too as it’s hard to see how he breaks in ahead of Kroos-Modric-Casemiro-Isco over the next couple of years, not to mention Asensio and Vasquez.
Modric showing no signs of letting up age-wise even as he nears 33, thought he was great last night and comfortably RM’s best outfielder after Benzema who really rolled back the years and put in a top all-round performance.
We need good scouting to reshape the midfield. I don’t think we need to spend lots of money.
Spuds bought Erikssen for 11 million, Dier from Lisbon for 4 million, Wanyama from spuds for 11 million and Moussa Dembele cost them 15 miliion for Fulham.
That’s a good midfield created over time without spending massively.
Not mad on Seri, sure he’s a quality passer and he’s very quick but he’s average defensively (being kind), doesn’t particularly score many goals and is an absolute midget at 5 foot 6.
I’d rather someone with more of a presence in there.
Eagle – Roma are quite silly tbh. They’re prioritising the likes of Nainggolan and Strootman over more technical passers. Their balance is all wrong. They’re about to let their only technical midfielder (Pellegrini) head to Juve.
Kovacic is quality and with Modric slowing down you’d imagine he’ll get even more chances next season. Ceballos is another who barely even plays for Madrid but a fantastic press-resistant midfielder.
I see Ramsey as anti-Wenger.
The typical Wenger player in my mind always come towards the ball, and has no interest in making off the ball runs and hurting teams in a non-nonsense direct way.
Wenger player is Ozil, Wilshere type. Drop deep, play sideways passes, and shift scoring responsibility to everyone but themselves.
This team has conceded far too many goals again this season and yet still fans want to get in an aesthetically pleasing player. All this talk of dribbling and carrying the ball.
The team has a terribly weak defensive player in Xhaka in midfield.
The side needs a midfielder that can defend.
Ishola70
Thanks for the Zakaria update. Don’t follow him that closely. We definitely could use more passing. It’s one of the reasons why are defense was better with Cazorla on the park, even though he is 4ft2. Having multiple passers allows your defense to be in position.
Wilshere is definitely a crock but we should have a midfielder who can do what he did at his best. Turn defensive into attack through transition with the ability to dribble past a couple players. What Moussa Dembele does very well and what Naby Keita will bring to :overpool next season. Press-resistance is important,
“Zakaria is far too immature to play the role of holding Xhaka’s hand.”
Agree.
We need someone who relishes the defensive & tactical work.
Fabinho would be by far the best option. He used to be a right back, so would be excellent at covering when Bellerin & Monreal go forward.
He defends well, and also scores fairly regularly.
Fabinho alongside any of our current options gives us a much much better midfield, even if we keep Xhaka, Ramsey & Wilshere.
Sanllehi has a history with Jean Michael Seri, that’s the player he was about to sigh for Barca before he was publicly humiliated by Barcelona.
He had led the counquering Barca delegation to Nice and just when thendeal was to be signed Barca sent word that Sanlehi no longer represents them.
“The side needs a midfielder that can defend.”
The side needs a manager that can organise a team properly. That in itself is going to mitigate a lot of the goals we concede.
I’d like an athletic CM with good defensive awareness and passing skills alongside Xhaka with Ramsey ahead of them. AM-N has the attributes, but not sure he’s ready to play every week in that role.
Fabinho seems nailed on for PsG. It’s a transfer that could have happened last summer, but Monaco stopped him from leaving.
I think if Ramsey goes then you have to sell Ozil. Almost think those two come as a package because they start off in different positions but end up taking each other’s place as the match goes on.
You can accommodate a non-scoring threat in Ozil if you have a runner in central midfield, but if you replace Ramsey with a sitting type then Ozil needs to be replaced with a direct Mahrez type to have the right balance, otherwise we won’t have enough real scoring threats or look particularly dynamic in open play.
RP
Pellegrini looks good, more impressed by Perotti, Dzeko and Kolarov though who for me have been Roma’s 3 best players this season, outfield anyway as Allison has been tops too.
I dunno Paredes for me is a technically sound player but he’s not particularly great at anything besides passing. He’s getting excluded from a very shit Argentina NT midfield which isn’t a good sign.
After shitting on Coquelin and getting ‘The Arsenal’ kind of player in Xhaka, many have now come to realize they’d rather have the no-nonsense defensive type back in midfield.
RP
I get from your posts that you like a pretty team. One that is pleasing on the eye.
Just think mix and match didn’t do anybody any harm.
There are plenty of teams that have a worker midfielder who does the less glamorous stuff that wants to defend and allows others to benefit from that.
The problem with Xhaka is he doesn’t fall into any category.
“I’d like an athletic CM with good defensive awareness and passing skills alongside Xhaka with Ramsey ahead of them. ”
Where does Ozil play?
Im not saying I dont like it, I have wanted to see a 4-3-3 for years. I just dont think we will be able to shift Ozil any time soon.
Anyone here like Milinkovic-Savic?
My only worry about him is that he’s not terribly mobile. Does everything very well on the ball though and can defend.
Eagle – TBH there’s s much politics in the Argentina squad that I wouldn’t pay much attention to it. Icardi doesn’t get called up despite the fact his record is awesome, especially as Aguero and Higuaín have been stinking it up internationally for ages. Then there’s plyers like Lo Celso and Lanzini who deserve more playtime considering the lack of technicians.
Rambo Ramsey
“After shitting on Coquelin and getting ‘The Arsenal’ kind of player in Xhaka, many have now come to realize they’d rather have the no-nonsense defensive type back in midfield.”
Yep he was snubbed and ridiculed by the football snobs and yet the last decent Arsenal midfield Coquelin was backing up Cazorla and allowing him to do his stuff. Of course what Coquelin in backing up Cazorla was totally overlooked. It was just all about Cazorla as far as many fans were concerned.
Coquelin was nowhere near good enough.
His defensive numbers were fine, but he was crap on the ball, and contributed literally nothing in the opponents half of the field.
Even average DMs get a few goals and assists per season, which means the rest of the team need to find less goals.
Pedro
Interesting what you’ve heard about Rambo, been told he’s likely to stay but he’s seeing what offers he’ll get before signing.
Something I’m not exactly a fan of, prefer to have players absolutely keen to be here. Long been told he’s one of those rare breed brits that DOES want to go abroad and play.
‘AM-N has the attributes’
No, he does not. Another overrated young player that’ll achieve nothing.
When will fans get it? These players can come-in and produce one-off performances because they don’t have any pressure. Play well,great, if not, go back to second string or the reserves. No biggie.
It is when they get in to or near the first team and they are expected to perform on a consistent basis, that pressure will start to take its toll and you see them for what they really are.
Veretout for Fiorentina has been eye-catching too.
Jack wilshere needs to play for a pub team that way he can drink and play football.
“I get from your posts that you like a pretty team. One that is pleasing on the eye.” I like well constructed teams that play attacking stuff, yes. As long as it’s ell-balanced that’s all that matters. There isn’t a single player outside Messi who doesn’t have a weakness in their game. What a good manager does is try to mitigate as many of his players’ weaknesses as possible while trying to accentuate their strengths. I’ve not said that I’m opposed to shifting Xhaka but considering we don’t know how much money we have, we need to be smart in… Read more »
WE
I like Sergej, but dont think he would be great in a midfield 2.
Think he would need to be the third man in a 3, a la Pogba, or where Ramsey really should play.
I quite like AMN but think his tools are better suited to being a FB rather than CM, despite his encouraging performance against United. Too lax for CM and isn’t overly physical, nor technical. Could see him being a good RB though.
RP
Yeah agreed on Lanzini, have always liked him. Scored a great goal vs Italy there recently.
With Sampaoli at the helm you wouldn’t expect as much interference though, and tbf to him he was playing Argentine CF’s from the Argentinian league like that Boca Juniors CF in qualifying.
Argentina NT is literally just about figuring out who plays best with Messi, it’s why Dybala despite being their 2nd best player arguably doesn’t even play for them.
“After shitting on Coquelin and getting ‘The Arsenal’ kind of player in Xhaka, many have now come to realize they’d rather have the no-nonsense defensive type back in midfield.“
Absolutely not thanks, can only get away with that if you’re stacked like Real Madrid up top.
Maybe if people stopped lazily touting Xhaka as some midfield enforcer we’d get somewhere. He’s half of a midfield pivot that sees him partnered with Elneny at BEST. What could go wrong?
gambon
Yeah he doesn’t strike me as the most versatile and at a heavy 6 foot 2 is a bit cumbersome on his feet.