Well, that was a wonderful weekend.
Spurs lost to Carlo’s attack-minded Everton side. James looked every bit the silk machine from 2014. Spurs looked, well, they looked very Jose Mourinho. I’ve been watching All or Nothing, it’s a lot of fun, but I’m not sure the reimagination of Jose Mourinho really came through as strong as he may have liked. He’s living in the past, he’s tactically weak, and his man-management approach just doesn’t sit well with players of this era.
Just look at that headline, then remember how many people were envious that he was going to Spurs.
‘True winner’
‘He’s had some personal problems, he’s finally happy’
‘This squad is perfect for him’
Let’s hope Daniel Levy’s teenage man-crush keeps him at the club for the full length of the deal. He’s the disaster they deserve. Spurs stagnation will continue.
West Ham crashed to Newcastle. What a disaster they’re having. The stories I’m hearing and reading are absolutely unbelievable. Long may that continue. It’s always a tough day out, but a focused performance against a team in open revolt against ownership could be exactly what the doctor ordered.
United lost to Villa in a friendly, also hilarious. On the topic of their team, I find the rounding on Mason Greenwood disgraceful. Harry McG gets into a ruck, allegedly tries to bribe the coppers, and he’s rolled out on the BBC like a victim. Greenwood pulls babe on Tinder and engages in the lamest legal high going and he’s treated like he’s asked to reintegrate from the Caliphate. The bullying of young English kids in the media is abhorrent, I thought we’d seen an end to it after the last World Cup… the only way it stops is if we stop clicking the links.
Chelsea up this evening. I am very interested to see what Frank Lampard has to offer the top 3 this season. Hopefully, it’s a big serving of fuck-all, but we’ll see. They have had a very sexy summer, if things click, they are going to be a force of nature this season.
The big Sunday Arsenal news was the Emi Martinez deal. The Argentine cup hero has moved to Villa in a transfer worth about £20m. It’s sad, because I think he’s performed above and beyond expectations, but the reality is Arsenal aren’t at a level where we can afford to have two elite keepers. That’s a tremendous fee for someone that’s been with us gathering loan dust for 10 years. Emi gets to play regularly and bump his is pay by a multiplier of 6 / Arsenal add some pennies to the SAVE OUR MIDFIELD fund.
The story doing the rounds is that we’re in for Runar Alex Runarsson to replace him (comp here). He’s Icelandic, very handsome, and he plays in Dijon so he must be mustard. Lololol. He looks like a fun keeper, fast off his line, a good shot-stopper… a puncher from crosses though. I have no idea how good my analysis of the four-minute video is, but this is the sort of signing I’m down for. If you-know-who was here, we’d be ploughing pound notes into a 7 year Neto deal.
Aouar and Partey is the summer vision, people at the club think they can make it happen, we just have to push forward and make the deals happen by selling some deadwood and moving our swap plans forward. All is not as it seems, as is always the case with transfers. What certain execs are telling the press might not marry with their true intentions. There’s a lot of posturing going on.
We have almost 3 weeks of the window to go. Keep an eye on Torreira, Kola, Sokratis, Guendouzi, and Reiss. That’s where the magic is likely to happen. Maybe even Mustafi, but I think he might be in the same boat as Mesut Ozil > In love with the deal.
Whatever happens, I’m convinced we’ll end the transfer window with a set of players that will at the very least compete for top 4.
It’ll be a tough season though. Everything is going our way at the moment, but there will be dark times. The reimagination of Arsenal will have plenty of bumps in the road, but for once, you can’t deny that we’re following the correct process.
We have to take the season in mini-phases.
The current phase of games takes us to the international break. We need to have racked up 9 points to be on target. West Ham and Sheffield United are two must-win games. The Liverpool game will always come with low expectations, but at least we’re now in a position as a club where you pretty much know that we’ll show up with a game plan that if executed well, will give them something to think about. Leeds got at them, Liverpool were fragile at the back, there’s no reason we can’t do the same.
Phase two after is going to be very, very important. City, Leicester and United on the bounce… capped with a final game against Villa. Come out of that run with 7-8 points and we are cooking. The crazy thing is, it doesn’t matter what phase you look at, most games are tough these days. There are 8 teams competing for top 4 this season. That’s mad. You know what’d make all those games a little easier? AOUAR AND PARTEY. Let’s see if this week brings a breakthrough.
Before I go, I would like to point you in the direction of a truly excellent article from Andrew Shanoudi over at Medium. Grab a coffee and take 10 minutes to read his excellent analysis of why Arsenal have been a bit shit over the years. His use of data and clever graphs paints a grim picture of where things have gone wrong, but it also gives you hope, because we’re addressing the issues with some smart moves.
A couple of highlights were that he calculates our ROI on players.
To put matters into perspective, for every million pound Arsenal net spent on their squad, they lost 99% of what that million should’ve added in squad value. It’s the worst possible ROI ratio among the premier league’s top eight teams, utterly unacceptable for a team that is supposedly trying to close the gap.
This graph also shows the value we’ve lost in player sales.
STAGGERING. What a fucking great read that was. I wish I could make graphs and smart arguments like that.
How about a plug for Shadab, a talented creative that worked with me recently. He redesigned some logos of Premier League clubs. I told him my audience was refined, cultured, and artistically inclined. What do you think?
Now for my plug. Get some Arsenal Opinion in your ear holes. This week, I talk to Alex, we chatted about the Fulham game and we have a transfer orgy of sorts. Enjoy, leave a 5* rating, don’t you dare pull the trigger on a 1*. I am watching.
Ernest
Those fixtures are a nightmare – could easily end up with only 3 points from the first 7 fixtures.
Its beyond frustrating Jamie, it’s downright insanity that some just cant move on and look to a brighter future. If many of those, in the current squad, being touted as solutions,were actually decent to begin with, we would not be having such discussions.
I think it’s unlikely that we’d spend over £40 million on a midfielder to then see that player kept on the bench for any period by Elneny.
Am I the only one who doesn’t believe or buy into the Leno hype? lol
Ernest I agree but keeping Elneny would tie in nicely with the whole Mikel Jesus act where he can turn water into wine and drastically improve what has previously been a poor performing player for us. Now don’t get me wrong I’m not attacking Mikel I just think coming in halfway through a season and getting a response from a squad that simply could not be any worse under unai and coupled with extraordinary circumstances post lockdown it’s easy to think that he can for want of a better word work miracles with certain players in the squad. I personally… Read more »
I cant say i would be overly disappointed with zeropoints Marc, cant stand West Ham and those two plugs they call tweedle-dee and tweedle-bum.
I would find it funny if we were to buy Partey and both Ceballos and Elneny were to keep him away from the first team. He may be more dynamic and stronger than Willock, but I have not been impressed by passing ability.
Hard to believe that a player who’s worth 50 million and has comparable stats to the very best DM’s in European football would be kept out of the first team by Ceballos and Elneny and is being compared with Joe fucking Willock. Val you really outdo yourself sometimes
The two plugs being their owners.
Ernest
No they get three points against the Spud’s.
Get it together!
“Thanks Martinez for your heroics. Shame you didn’t have the bottle to fight for your place like every other professional in the team.”
Why should he fight for his spot.. He waited for his chance, done brilliant then was told he’d be back on the bench
Maybe its just me, but does anyone else here question Partey’s age? He looks a lot older than his posted age.
Hahahaha Marc!
Unaaaaaaiiiiiiii
https://twitter.com/TheBuildupPlay/status/1305457570270851073?s=20
Well I heard every player at Atletico Madrid has a +5 age stat. They’re just that poorly run
Wow, what a goal Pedro!
Ernest
Ffs don’t get mentalbris going on that again. Was bad enough the first time.
This is a tidy goal.
https://twitter.com/TheBuildupPlay/status/1305457570270851073?s=20
“Ffs don’t get mentalbris going on that again. Was bad enough the first time.”
Sorry Freddie…but…..
“Ffs don’t get mentalbris going on that again. Was bad enough the first time.”
If he can keep pace and delivers, don’t care if he’s 50!
Diss by watching them both play on that thing called a TV i can judge that Partey is three times the player
oh and by him being a mainstay of a CL team and not being farmed out to fernabache
I think as of now, Aouar may be the more urgent acquisition than Partey. We need a quick ball mover in the final third at the centre of the pitch, and someone who can dribble outside the 18 in tight spaces. I’ve seen Ceballos do it but I think Arteta sees more of his value in a 6/8 position so that he can ease pressure off a press (he is a good tackler) and someone who can launch a precise counter.
Ernest
“If he can keep pace and delivers, don’t care if he’s 50!”
I can see that you’re not an expert like mental that has seen 1 million african faces.
smh.
My concern on Aouar, is he “ready to roll” quality or are we looking at yet another French League player who will take a year or more to “acclimatize” themselves?
Hahahahaha Freddie! Honestly, you guys really bust me up! Thanks.
oh and by him being a mainstay of a CL team and not being farmed out to fernabache
It’s a decent indicator I’ll give you that one
@Dissenter, Equally not a fan of ElNeny either, though he has played fairly well since he came back. I didn’t think he’d cope with the high-tempo passing Arteta wants but so far he has kept it moving and tidily enough. My issue is he is not a differentiator in the hard games – where you need a pass threaded from deep to say launch a quick counter. His shooting is also piss poor neither is he strong/aggressive on the ball. That’s the differential between him and Henderson. And to go toe to toe with the top teams, you need a… Read more »
I wonder if Arteta maybe wants to instil a false confidence in some players with the hopes of increasing their value up to at least January for a quick fire sale?
@Ernest,
He does seem ready. He has a nice, low CoG so he can motor away nicely. Actually reminds me of Arshavin in some way…
“I wonder if Arteta maybe wants to instil a false confidence in some players with the hopes of increasing their value up to at least January for a quick fire sale?” I have a feeling thats its not Shad, Arteta has shown himself to be very genuine in his desire to wipe the slates clean for many and see if he can turn things around with them. Saying the above I also recognize that he likely has a threshold that, thus far, only two have pushed beyond and they truly are persona non gratis (Ozil and Guen come easily to… Read more »
Marko, I am not saying that what is going to happen, but that would be funny how some here would lose their shit about Partey not making the starting eleven. You do realise that players have different roles and different characteristics. Managers are also entitled to have different opinions on players. Partey plays in a very defensive setting, he is a lot more physical than any of our players, but right now physiciality and running power is not our more pressing issue, intelligent forward passing is. And on that criteria , Arteta may well decide that until he changes systems,… Read more »
Pedro, thanks for sharing the link to the article charting our position with regard to squad value. I mean, we all knew this and debated it here for a long time, but seeing the data and graphs reveals the true horror of the mismanagement by the club. Kronke thought naively that Big Weng is a deity cost us dearly, and reveals the missed opportunity that was squandered after we moved to our new stadium. But better late than never, lets hope that we can look forward to a modern set up that will sustain us in the long term. Maybe… Read more »
Mr Serge
No rational soul will argue with you had you just wote that Partey is a much better playerthan Elneny
C’mon man, … 3X the player that Elneny
What metric did you use? Whyt only 3X?
Partey passes the ball laterally most of the time. When it needs to be moved forward, it is given to Saul – he’s the one you should be raving about.
Saul is the one that has the total midfield package, it’s no wonder Atletico signed him to a NINE year contract.
Partey was the one being prepared for a transfer. Hope we get him so many can have their Partey-mania cured.
but that would be funny how some here would lose their shit about Partey not making the starting eleven.
That would be funny to you? Very odd supporter that you are I could see it.
I’ll be honest with you I gave up reading the rest of your comment knowing the kind of commenter that you are. The worst kind of know it all that’s you. Know fuck all but have an opinion on everything
Partey being compared to Willock.
What is wrong with this fan base.
Whats next?
Nelson and Messi? , Eddie and R9?
Partey was the one being prepared for a transfer.
Yes by offering him a 5 year deal in 2018 and refusing to negotiate with any team for his transfer. Makes. Perfect. Sense.
I suspect that Arsenal are waiting out Atleti on Partey. For as much as they truly believe that Partey is worth the asking price, reality tells them to sell for two very good reasons 1. They are in financial trouble with a relatively new stadium to still pay for and 2. Covid-19 is very real and teams no longer can generate the ridiculous revenues of past years Atleti will sell, and sell for far less than they want, its not really to their advantage as with each passing day his value decreases Arsenal may be desperate, but Atleti are in… Read more »
Ernest
Arsenal are waiting out because we dont have money and have to sell to buy.
With Torreira, Aoaur and Sok we’ll have enough to get at least 1 of Aoaur and Partey over the line.
“Partey being compared to Willock.
What is wrong with this fan base.Whats next?
Nelson and Messi? , Eddie and R9?”
Yep Captain Tierney, and there were some on here who went on about Walcott, Gibbs and Wilshere like they were the second coming of lord knows what?
Reality is, Arsenal have cultivated a septic tank of talent over the years, it just takes some more time to realize that air doesn’t smell like crap simply because it does.
Yes CT, and now Arsenal will actually be forced to do something they have seldom done in past – be smart in the transfer window.
‘ The worst kind of know it all that’s you. Know fuck all but have an opinion on everything’
Marko is this your self appraisal?
dissenter on the other hand….
Ernest, No the problem is the “fans” who can’t be bother to read an entire comment and write answer about it. The comparison was about the characteristics of a player. What Partey has that none of our players have is dynamism, physicality and running power. The only midfielder who shares some of this characteristics is Willock. And as was written, Partey is much better than Willock, but I doubt that he is £30 millions better than Willock. For the rest, I find his forward passing poor. It could be because of Athletico style of play, but I suspect it is… Read more »
“I have a feeling thats its not Shad, Arteta has shown himself to be very genuine in his desire to wipe the slates clean for many and see if he can turn things around with them” But to what end? The squad is excessively bloated and he has to cull the team whether he likes it or not. The new title he was awarded (manager) means it comes with greater responsibility. He is no longer all about patterns on the pitch, he has to adjust to making hard decisions (including selling or freezing out players). He no longer can hide… Read more »
Partey has a clause that can be triggered, pretty simple unless your Arsenal and Liverpool with Suarez in the balance and you add a cheeky £1 on the end which implodes entire deal. Imagine if Gazidis just bucked up the extra reported extra £5m they wanted and we got Suarez.
Regarding Partey, could easily see United tuck right in and pull him.
Curious who the alternate options are, would be very this window to pine over two players non stop then have club announce other option.
Elneny is a midfielder for Egypt which is ranked higher than Ghana by fifa
Let that sink in
“Arteta is still molly coddling handing out gummy bears..” Having mentored under Pep, i would suggest that Arteta certainly is capable of being “that guy” who can make the tough decisions, Shad. I believe he is doing exactly what he is saying, wiping the slate clean and truly evaluating what he has available to him. Removing all doubt is likely what he is about at this point in time. As many are saying, the team has little to no money to play with, so you have to make the most with what you have, until such time you can improve… Read more »
“No the problem is the “fans” who can’t be bother to read an entire comment and write answer about it.”
To wit, that was not my reference point Valentin, perhaps taking your own advice may prove beneficial.
Shad, he binned Mesut Ozil and our most valuable youth players. He’s coddling anyone. If players haven’t moved on, that’s because there’s no offer, or no suitable offer.
Sal, Pretty easy to trigger the release clause if you got the cash to do it. If you don’t, you then have to find loose pennies at the back of the sofa and beg for the offer to be accepted. It was reported that Athletico has a clause in their loans covenant that they can only use 25% of the money raised by sale toward replacing players. So it does make sense for them to stay with exactly the same squad or to sell at an inflated price so the replacement less experienced player is only worth 25% of the… Read more »
“Elneny is a midfielder for Egypt which is ranked higher than Ghana by fifa
Let that sink in”
That makes absolutely no sense Sid, and I’m telling you this for absolutely free!
The FIFA rankings are crackers.
England rated higher than Spain and Germany!
Red Army
Do you subscribe to the veiwpoint that Partey is three times the player Elneny is?
Valentin
“For the rest, I find his forward passing poor. It could be because of Athletico style of play, but I suspect it is more due to the player himself.”
Exactly, some of the people presenting Partey like he’s some complete midfielder only watch him play when AM play English clubs. When the ball needs to be adavanced up the pitch at Atletico….it goes to Saul. Partey moves the ball laterally more that Marko may want to admit.
3X the play Elneny is?
I’m no Elneny fan and even I will call BS on that nonsense.
The last days of the TW will be an even bigger mas dash than usual. Everybody is waiting to see who will blink first. I think that we will get Odsonne Edouard as a replacement for Lacazette who will end up in Spain or in Italy. I hope that we get Aouar, but right now I would take Soumare above both Aouar and Partey. My concern with Aouar would be that he could get into a fight with Arteta about his non-negotiables and sulk for the rest of the season. Regarding Partey, unless we switched to a back 4 and… Read more »
The bottom line re Elneny is that he has played well recently and Arteta clearly likes him and has praised him in high terms. Whether you or I or Red Army thinks Elneny is good enough is somewhat beside the point; all that matters is what Arteta thinks. If Arteta likes Elneny and thinks he can rely on him, and you disagree with this, your disagreement is with Arteta, not Red Army.
Dissenter, We are both in agreement about Partey. He is a good player, but his main characteristics is his dynamism, running power. In our current setup our central midfielders are not allowed to run forward, so his main strength will be negated. People need to realise that it is easier to look impressive as a DM in a very defensive team. Most of the actions is about blocking, intercepting play, so any player in that zone is seen a lot more. The most impressive DMs are the one who can combine both aspect defensive, but also running power with the… Read more »
“In our current setup our central midfielders are not allowed to run forward, so his main strength will be negated.”
Could it be because those currently in play are not those types of player, mobile?
@Pedro, Wasn’t binning Özil orders from above re: Raul? Only player I can say he openly binned was Guendouzi – and even he seems to have been brought back into the fold. All I’m saying is, the clean slate makes a good PR supplement but it’s not exactly helping us on the TW front is it? I know we’ll have to take a few more Ls before semblance of a transfer strategy and personnel is recognized but it wouldn’t hurt to say, terminate contracts? Or am I being obtuse? @Ernst, My worry is the bloated squad and who will make… Read more »
“My concern with Aouar would be that he could get into a fight with Arteta about his non-negotiables and sulk for the rest of the season.”
Does Aouar have disciplinary issues? Haven’t seen any article towards that..
I don’t know if I think Elneny is good enough for a top four starting XI — I don’t think Xhaka is— but I do see why Arteta likes Elneny. He’s energetic, he’s tidy with the ball and hardly ever gives it away, and he always shows into spaces, wants the ball and makes himself available. The latter is enormously important to Pep & I assume Arteta.
Comparing Elneny to Partey is unfair to Elneny and doesn’t really make sense. Very different kinds of CMs.
Val
“I think that we will get Odsonne Edouard as a replacement for Lacazette who will end up in Spain or in Italy.”
I dion’t think Laca will be sold. Reportedly he was reassured about his place and I think the manager ispleased with him.
“Look, even Kola now says he’ll fight for his place because he knows he won’t get anywhere close to the £100k p/w he is making now,”
Criminal what he is getting paid, part of the Insanity Collection from Wenger-Zidis.
Athletico have reportedly rejected a whopping 89mil bid from Man City for Jimenez.
shad
Valentin has inside sources everywhere.
We’ve agreed 22m torreira deal to Torino
10m up front 1 year loan with the rest next summer
Surely this deal will be enough for us to finally bring in our next player….pretty please!!
City have pissed all over FFP, gotten away with it and just keep on rolling.
Shad,
At Lyon his last 3 managers have complained about his attitude and in some case lack of professionalism. He missed on getting a cap with France earlier because he had a fight with his club and Deschamps who did not like his attitude decided against selecting him. If I remember correctly Deschamps called Guendouzi from the U21 instead.
He is ambitious and know what he wants, but that lead to accusation of choosing the games he applies himself and a lack of respect toward some of Lyon’s staff.
“City have pissed all over FFP, gotten away with it and just keep on rolling.”
He who has the most money generally calls the shots, Sal. Unfortunate.
Thats very concerning Val, if actually true.
Must admit I was jealous of Everton midfield purchases. Allan + Rodrigues. Seemed to run the game against Spurs, apparently without any time needed for acclimatisation to the new league. Spurs did give them time and space to play, but still impressive nevertheless. Exactly the profile of players we also need and are looking to bring in this window. Richarlison also a massive potential if he could only find his shooting boots, or pass it to a teammate. Everton will be up there this season….
Dissenter no I don’t I think it’s an exaggeration. It was more the opinion on everything…without anything but guess work.
@Bamford, Interesting between Xhaka and Elneny. Elneny is good to have as a rotational CM. Good engine, tidy on the ball, won’t screw up a 5 yard pass at least. He also won’t bomb into a two footed lunge. However in a dead-locked game, he doesn’t have the confidence or guile to attempt a cross field pass to exploit an overload. He won’t take a crack at goal even when given the space (always side foots his shots, not a laces-through guy) and he doesn’t add value attacking wise (can’t take or meet set pieces, dribble to draw fouls, or… Read more »
Wasi,
No need to have source about Aouar, you just need to read l’Equipe (the top French Sport newspapers) and their interview.
More difficult than sniping at people.
G ““Thanks Martinez for your heroics. Shame you didn’t have the bottle to fight for your place like every other professional in the team.” Why should he fight for his spot.. He waited for his chance, done brilliant then was told he’d be back on the bench Fair enough point, however the principle remains… the manager should have the sole choice to play who he wants to play. Martinez was played in the Charity Shield… you didn’t have Leno bleating on did you? In demanding a starting spot he is showing ambition but unfortunately he is also undermining the manager’s… Read more »
I hate all those redesigned badges. The Arsenal one is an abomination.
Red Army sounds like Un’s Dariano to me. It might just be the petulant, immature way of writing though.
Un is that you?
I’m like most would love to see youth thrown in where possible.
However for this season not to be over by November he needs to drip youth into the team as first subs.
Sad to see emi go.
Good luck to him
But as Leeds says should be a yard stick for Macy.
@Valentin,
Aaah. That sucks.
Though players do change based on also their new sorroundings, dresser and the coach. We were all regaled with tales of how Auba was a problem child, toxic to the dressing room, would miss trainings..yet here we are, worshipping his Golden Lambo, laughing at his Insta stories, creaming our pants over how he has saved our season and how he deserves the Ballon d’Or, Nobel Peace Prize, A FIFA rating of 97…
Ernest, Aouar may have finally grown up and realised that if he wants to be in the French squad for the Euro, he needs to play consistently for his team and be professional. Toward the end of the Lyon season, he had patched up thing with Garcia. But he could as well relapse in his bad habits if things do not work his way. He is the same type of character than Guendouzi, fiery, independent and ambitious that need to handled with a firm but a light touch. Also his entourage may be the kind that bring more baggage and… Read more »
RVP had a reputation of being difficult etc which was never an issue for us. I’m sure Arteta and Edu would have done due diligence on the player.
“Un is that you?”
It’s him. 5th iteration. As long as he keeps politics and insults to a minimum, he’ll be ok. Until he can’t.
Diss
Agree it’s the bro mance with auba that works
Look what happened when ozil n flamini were pulled apart…
your disagreement is with Arteta, ________ Huh? Why would my disagreement be with Arteta because two numbskulls on Le Grove were arguing over whether Elneny is vastly improved or not? Arteta had to play the hand he was dealt in the preseason and early season because he wasn’t sure whether even Ceballos would be back or not. And because Ceballos wasn’t ready and LT is being moved on by all accounts. . As it turns out Arteta’s system allows many different players with more limited ability to excel..AMN, Xhaka, Elneny, Luiz,Holding, Eddie to some extent. That’s good coaching. Pretty sure… Read more »
Red Army. No record in the system.. Play nice everyone. Blog of love.
Shad,
I try to make the distinction between the character that people want to show off and how they behave at work.
Auba has always been an extrovert and sometimes that rubs people the wrong way.
Most of the story that he was a bad influence were when he wanted to leave Dortmund. Having told them, he was not going to extend with them, Dortmund had a massive offer from China that they wanted him to accept and he refused.
If he had been so disruptive, Dortmund would not have tried to extend him beforehand.
I’m really excited if the torreira deal is confirmed as I’m growing tired of the endless transfer statements and constant talk of loans leading to nowhere 22m is either enough to get us over the line with our next player or one more sale would likely be enough. Make it happen arsenal! Also I hope it’s true we sell laca and replace with edouard. I think Laca will have a good year under arteta if he stays tbh, but he’s late 20s and his value is not going to go up. If we replaced we could have a better player,… Read more »
Goobagooner
Good point
10.10
Fully agree.
Someone was earning ala George Terry. Brian. Alex.
Christ stop making sense Mid.
Plot twist – dariano was Pedro all along
China
75% of posters on here are Pedro – there’s only a handful of us who are real!
Don’t write Aouar off yet. Remember that Aubameyang threw a massive hissy fit to make his move out of BvB… and over to us. He’s been amazing. Plus,I have more than enough faith in Arteta’s man management skills.
Here’s a thought. Imagine if we acquired PEA instead of Olivier Giroud… in 2012. If we had.I reckon by now PEA might have seriously challenged TH14’s all time scoring record… even if he had to develop with the club.
Anyone else agree?
Sal-
Well.. To be fair it’s early. I haven’t had any adult beverages, yet.. I could still launch a rant about how we need Coutinho to complete our Samba time revolution.
‘Blog of love’
🥰
Plot twist – Pedro was Marc all along
“Here’s a thought. Imagine if we acquired PEA instead of Olivier Giroud… in 2012. If we had.I reckon by now PEA might have seriously challenged TH14’s all time scoring record… even if he had to develop with the club.”
Interesting thoughts Leeds but we’d lose a quite a bit of Giroud’s link-up play. His one touch around the box and also hold up play served well. And he is more of aerial threat than TH14.
I also thought Elneny has performed pretty well his last few appearances, and this is from someone who had written him off as absolutely nothing player years ago. If he can perform to this level consistently, he might be considered someone good enough to spell the first team for stretches in case of injury or emergency, but you can’t really be expecting dynamic performances from him. Would have been happy for him if he scored his chance yesterday, still no PL goals for Arsenal from him. But surprise surprise that he looks better when the team’s positioning has improved and… Read more »
I. am. Dariano.
No I. am. Dariano.
@Midwest,
To be fair, Arteta really did play the hand he was dealt. Even the kitman and groundsman are more aggressive by Elneny’s version of events.
Lot of sniping going on chaps.
Relax started well, club looks like it’s going in right direction after some bad driving previous years.
I still expect chambers to Fulham soon btw.