Fulham vs Arsenal

So the end of the season is here and let's just say that a campaign which promised so much has finished very disappointingly. Because of shitty internet signals i missed the first 10 min of each half but judging by what i did see, i hadn't missed much. Defensively we were BAD. Both goals happened because of our mistakes and there were plenty of chances for Fulham to score more. The defending on the second goal was especially bad. Djourou was marking Zamora and when Zamora moved towards the goal, Djourou decided he can just stay where he was initially and watch, instead of following his man. Simple cross, no one in front of Zamora = easy goal. The frustrating part is that this is something so simple that i shouldn't be writing about it and yet we still concede goals like this all the time.

The two goals we scored were the only positive thing we did offensively for the whole game. We didn't have our usual possession and control over the game. For large periods of time Fulham were the team who looked much more organized and threatening when they had the ball. Even when they got to 10 men (deservedly so after a horrible challenge by Gera) you still couldn't tell we had an extra player. We kept sending long balls and crosses into their penalty area despite the fact that their defenders had no problem defending them. Sagna kept his usual ratio of 1 good cross per 10 attempts, and he actually did better with his left foot in the first half when Gibbs almost scored after his cross. The bottom line is that our tactic to cross the ball and hope a miracle happens has even lower chance of success when we have good old Sagna crossing from the right. I love the guy but he can't cross to save his life. The first goal was what our attacks should look like, a few quick passes and great finish from RVP. Too bad we didn't create almost any other chances like this one.

Ramsey, Nasri, Wilshere and Chamakh did not have a good game. Diaby made a great pass for the first goal but after that he disappeared as well. Vermaelen made some mistakes but also had an important goal line clearance and he will need some time to get back into game rhythm. Djourou had a really bad game and that's disappointing because he was having a breakout season. I thought Gibbs was solid most of the time and Walcott scored a great goal.

I have always criticized Wenger for his substitutions being too late and the last two games i have seen a light at the end of the tunnel: Wenger made triple changes and they were made between the 60th and 70th minute. This is a huge improvement for The Professor who usually waits until the 85th minute before he makes a change. Let's hope this is not just "the end of the season" strategy for him.

With next season in mind i really hope we work hard on our defense because if we want to be champions we can't keep conceding silly goals all the time. Scott Parker should be a good addition to our squad, i hope we can get him. He is someone with experience and great abilities and he shouldn't be too expensive since West Ham were relegated. If we do get another defender he better be a big guy with some physical presence, we struggle a lot at set pieces because of our lack of size in defense. Whatever we do over the summer, we need to improve significantly if we want to have a shot at the title next year. This team has a lot of potential but we need to clean up our mistakes and learn how beat teams who close themselves in the back. Crossing the ball and hoping we score with a header won't do it.

 

STRIKERS

ROBIN VAN PERSIE

Easily our best striker. He has pretty much everything. Shoots with both feet; instinctive; good finisher; good control of the ball; very good passer; he is even good in the air. Speed is not his best asset but he is not slow. I also like his personality, he is not afraid to be vocal and be a leader. My only concern with him is that sometimes he makes really bad challenges. When he gets frustrated and tries to tackle people, he can be pretty rough and get himself booked. 

THEO WALCOTT

Theo is someone who I believe can develop into being one of the best strikers around. Right now, I still see flashes of his abilities but he can be so much better. We all know he has the speed. That is good and bad at the same time. He is so fast, that sometimes he loses control of the ball. I don’t think many people notice how good of a crosser he is. Especially when he has the time and he is not being pressured (set pieces; corners) he can deliver great crosses. His finishing when he is one on one with the keeper is very good. I think his best position is where Van Persie is playing right now. He is so explosive and quick that I feel if he plays as the striker up front he will get many more chances then what he gets on the wing. Not many central defenders can keep up with his speed. True that he is a bit small for a striker but he can compensate that with his speed and finishing. Some of the best goals he has scored are from central position with a through ball and great finish (latest example is his goals vs Tottenham this year).  When he plays on the wing two bad things happen: 1) a lot of times he gets to the penalty area and is not sure what to do. His final pass or attempts to shoot are not as good when he is on the right side, compared to when he is in a more central position; 2) many times as the games progress he gets lost over there, especially when teams have pulled back and don’t give him space to operate. In that regard he has to improve a lot in his decision making and decisiveness, because you don’t get that many chances on the right side and when you do, you have to make the most of them. He still has areas to improve but I think he has the potential to be great.

NICKLAS BENDTNER

Bendtner is a player for whom I have mixed feelings. I think he has certain qualities: very good in the air; good physical presence; pretty good technical skills for his size even though his first touch on the ball sometimes makes me laugh out loud. I do believe he is put in a very tough position by being played on the wing. You can see that even though he can do something positive there from time to time, it is not his natural position and he is not comfortable there. He is a typical striker and needs to play in the middle. Is he better than Van Persie? Definitely not. That’s why if you don’t want to take RVP out, move Robin a little bit behind Bentner and put Bendtner on the top of the attack. Van Persie is such a good passer that he can create for other people as well. The one thing that I like and don’t like about Bendtner is his confidence. It’s crucial to have confidence as a player but with him its border line cockiness. And I wouldn’t mind it but sometimes he misses unbelievable chances and doesn’t even look bothered by it. The bottom line is, if they want to keep Bendtner, play him at his natural position; if not they can sell him and try to find someone better.

MAROUANE CHAMAKH

Started the season great and then slowly faded away. Overall, I like him and I think he has good qualities but he needs to toughen up a little bit. He goes to the ground quite easily and that shouldn’t be the case for a guy his size. He is also a typical striker and I think him or Bendtner will eventually leave. To his credit, he scored a lot of goals when Van Persie was injured and from the summer signings that Wenger did, he was probably the most successful one. Let’s hope he does even better in his second season.

MIDFIELD

ABOU DIABY

This guy is a good player. I like his size and for that size he has surprising technical ability. Good dribbler and can score goals. Defensively he can be better, but my major concern with him is injuries and his temper. He gets injured all the time, sometimes is bad luck and bad tackles against him but whatever it is, we need him healthier. As far as temper, the painful memory of the Newcastle game is still in my head. It was a really bad tackle from Barton (who I hate with passion) but Diaby put the team in a bad situation which ultimately cost us dearly. He has done that in other games too, getting silly yellow cards.  

TOMAS ROSICKY

I really used to like Rosicky from his days at Borrusia Dortmund. I think he was a great player but unfortunately with us he has been just good. Injuries kept him off the field for a long time and even this year he hasn’t been able to play for long periods of time. He is getting older and I doubt he can ever get back to the way he used to play. I would still keep him for a secondary role and for his experience.

DENILSON

Denilson to me is a misunderstanding just like Almunia is. I have no clue what Wenger sees in him and why for so long he was trying to establish him in the first team. The guy is just average. Doesn’t do anything particularly well. I don’t think I have ever watched an Arsenal game and said to myself: “this guy had a good game”. Some guys are not flashy or big scorers but you see them on the field, you can feel they make an impact on the game. From this guy I rarely see anything. The sooner we sell him, the better.

ALEX SONG

I love Alex Song. This guy can play pretty much anywhere on the field. Great attitude and hunger to do well. Never shies away from a challenge. Does a lot of dirty work in the defensive side of the game but is also keen to go forward. Good technically, and can score goals. Whatever we do, we have to keep this guy for many years.

ANDREY ARSHAVIN

After his first year at the club everyone was raving about him and rightly so. But I am going to talk about this year. To me, he was the second most disappointing performer after Squillaci. I caught myself screaming at the TV in full rage numerous times this season and more than half of them were because of him. Does he have talent? No question about that. Does he have heart? Questionable. I understand players go in slumps, but with him it was more his attitude than anything else. He did score some important goals but overall this year he has made so many mistakes. And after he makes a mistake or losses the ball he is just watching. Defensively he would go back and then look at the player with the ball from 7 feet away and just stand there. No pressure, nothing. Compare his attitude with Jack Wilshere’s and tell me which one shows more desire to play this game? He was supposed to be one of our leaders this year; instead he was walking around the pitch for most of it.

CESC FABREGAS

Oh, Cesc. My opinion about him differs from a lot of other Arsenal fans. I think he is a brilliant player. On his day he is unstoppable. He sees opening and angles which very few other players would see. Some of his passes are absolute genius. When he is on, he helps Arsenal play great football.

My first big problem with him is when he has an off day. I have seen so many games when his touch is a little off or we are playing a team which is defending with 10 guys in the back. And that’s when Cesc starts pushing and trying too hard to make passes and combinations that are way too complicated. I don’t think he has the word “Simple” in his vocabulary. At times he just needs to keep things simple and not come up with the brilliant pass every time. Especially, when things are not working. Instead he keeps trying the brilliant pass and we keep wasting time and possessions without creating any chances.

And my second problem with him is his leadership qualities. Besides his constant flirting with Barca, this year he has said a few times that all the pressure is on him and Van Persie and that he wishes someone could share that burden. To me, things are as simple as this: If you are a captain of a team, you have to deal with the pressure. You have to embrace the pressure and perform despite it. You have to use it as a fuel. If you feel it’s too much for you to handle, say so and let someone else be the captain. If you want to win trophies - do something about it and make it happen, instead of complaining that we haven’t won in so long. Bottom line: If you want to play for this club and be the captain, do it without whining and complaining that it’s too much stress. If you don’t want to deal with all this, go to Barca and play there.

SAMIR NASRI

The first part of this year, the guy was unstoppable. Unreal technical abilities; good passer; moves well; feisty and determined. The second half of the season, I don’t know was it because he got moved to the left side of the midfield or because his form just dropped, he faded away like the rest of the team. I think this guy is a winner and we need to make sure we keep him. Figure out if he prefers to play in the middle and if you have to, play him there more but he is a player who has big impact on our midfield.

AARON RAMSEY

I really like Ramsey. He didn’t play enough this year to grade his performance but he can be the player who substitutes Cesc, if Cesc decides to leave. I don’t think Ramsey is as flashy as Cesc but he is a very good passer of the ball and also a player who can score goals. I am just glad he is back on the field after all he has been through.

JACK WILSHERE

I don’t need to say much about his performance this year. It speaks for itself. I love his confidence no matter who he is playing against. Great control over the ball even though I have never seen him use his right foot lol. Physically strong, covers a lot of ground. He needs to start shooting/scoring more but that will come with time. He just needs to control his temper a bit more but he is the type of player that we need more of: confident, physical, tremendous desire, fighter. He is a good example of why I believe Arsene needs to make sure he has a core of English players. They bring a certain attitude and toughness with them.

EMMANUEL EBOUE

I like a lot of things about Eboue. He is very, very athletic and can cover a lot of ground. Average shooter, but his athleticism helps him create space and chances for others. I think as a secondary player he is very good quality. The thing I don’t like about him and we have all seen it is that he struggles under pressure. A lot of the times when the pressure is on him he makes poor decisions. Most recent example is the penalty vs Liverpool. No matter how controversial the decision was, he should have been nowhere near Lucas as the guy was going nowhere but I think in big moments his nerves get the best of him. I would still keep him as a back up to Sagna, I think he would easily start in many other clubs.

DEFENDERS

BACARY SAGNA

This guy has lungs of steel. Him and Clichy are the two guys that probably run the most of our team. Sagna is a very athletic defender who can play against anyone.  The only liability for him is that he is a little short for set pieces and corners. But he makes up for a lot of that with heart and competitive attitude. Only if he could cross the ball properly he would be so good. So many times the guy makes a good run on the wing and then his cross is absolutely horrendous. Once in a blue moon, he would deliver a good cross but he needs to be much better than that. Overall, I like Sagna a lot and I think he is a great defender.

THOMAS VERMAELEN

This guy is the real deal. I guarantee you, we would have won the Premier League this year if he had played the whole season. He just has this presence about him which makes everyone else around him better. Born leader. Moves well, reads the game very well, great header of the ball and very strong left foot. He has the qualities to be a captain of this side. Excellent defender.

JOHAN DJOUROU

I think Djourou really made some big strides this season. I really like the fact the he is very athletic for his size. He can over power people and at the same time he is not a slow guy. He still makes some mistakes from time to time but after Vermaelen he is our second best central defender.

LAURENT KOSCIELNY

I would say his first season was up and down. Had some good games and showed good abilities and then had games were he looked really confused at times. Since this was his first year in English football we can cut him some slack and I think he can be better than what he showed. Overall I expected more from him, but I think he can still develop and adapt to the Premier League style of play.

SEBASTIEN SQUILLACI

I am not going to lie, I am really disappointed with Squillaci. He was one of the few players that we have who is over 30 and I expected a very experienced defender who could help us at the back. Instead every time I saw him play, I was not impressed. He didn’t look comfortable at the back, at times didn’t look athletic enough to deal with faster guys. I would expect someone with his experience would not take a long time to adjust to the English style of play. Let’s hope I am wrong but to me Squillaci has been a big disappointment.

GAEL CLICHY

As I mentioned above with Sagna, Clichy also runs like crazy. He covers so much ground on the field I have no idea how he does it. Very fast and athletic and his crosses are better than Sagna’s (although it’s not too hard to cross better than Sagna). Overall, one of the best left backs in the league. My only concern with Clichy is that at times he makes very dangerous/costly mistakes. It doesn’t happen every game, but there have been number of occasions where he would put us in a real tough situation with a silly mistake.

KIERAN GIBBS

I really like Gibbs. I think he is the next Clichy and I hope he stays injury free for longer periods of time. Fast, athletic, also covers a lot of ground. I would love to see him play more often and to do that he needs to stay healthy.

GOALKEEPERS

MANUEL ALMUNIA

I am sorry if there are fans of Manuel Almunia reading this, but this guy has single handedly costs us more than one trophy, and the fact that Wenger kept him as our number 1 goalkeeper for so long is mind boggling to me. He doesn’t have the confidence or the presence to be a N:1 goalkeeper for much shittier teams than Arsenal and this is something Arsene should have seen long time ago and kept him at best as a N:3 guy. I don’t even want us to sell him this year, we should give him for free to some team just so he can leave ours.

LUKASZ FABIANSKI

You can just read what I wrote above, with the exception that Fabianski didn’t play long enough to costs us a trophy but he definitely costs us some games. At best he could be our N:3 and we have to keep our fingers crossed that he never has to play.

WOJCIECH SZCZESNY

Now, in that guy we have a goalkeeper. Confident; decisive; great reflexes; even if he makes a mistake you won’t see the dumb ass/confused look that Almunia has every time he messes up. Szczesny is vocal, not afraid to yell at/direct people when he needs to, and I don’t need to remind you that his first game as a starter was at Old Trafford and the guy didn’t show any nerves. The way he carried himself that game reminded me of Gianluigi Buffon’s debut for Parma in Seria A vs AC Milan when he was only 17. Let’s hope Szczesny turns out to be as good as Buffon.

VITO MANNONE

Another good goalkeeper. He played a few games in the 2009-2010 season and did pretty good. Made a few mistakes against West Ham when we drew 2-2 and ever since then Wenger decided he is going to play Fabianski instead of him. From what I have seen from both, there is no way Fabianski is better than Mannone. Mannone should be our N:2 and compete with Szczesny for the starting job.

THE START

For starters I will write a few paragraphs about most of the main players on our team and my opinion about them. Starting next season 2011-2012, I will blog after each game that I am able to watch. And who else can I start with but Arsene Wenger. The Professor. The man who has done so much for the club and who is under so much scrutiny right now:

ARSENE WENGER

PRO’s: One of the main reasons Arsenal are where they are right now is Wenger. Obviously every football fan wants their team to win trophies every year. But when you think about what Wenger has been able to achieve with the amount of money he has spent: It’s absolutely remarkable. I am not going to go into details about the “Invincibles” season and the trophies we have won under Wenger, because everyone knows about those.

We have been in the Champions league every single year since the 1998-1999 season. No exceptions. I don’t think some fans realize how hard is to do that without spending the amounts of money teams like Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea have spent.

We built and moved to a new stadium with a good financial plan on how to avoid going into huge debts like many of the other clubs now days. To be able to stay competitive without spending the huge amounts of money some other clubs spend, is a testament to Wenger and his abilities to recognize talent and develop it. I don’t think the move to the Emirates Stadium would have been so smooth and with no effects on the performance of the team if Wenger wasn’t here. 

Wenger has found and developed young players into stars more than any other manager I can think of, with Alex Ferguson being the only one who can claim something similar. Don’t get me wrong, Wenger has some flaws and I will talk about them next, but before I do, I just want to stress that in my opinion the positive things that Wenger has done for this club outweigh the negatives by a huge margin. 

p.s.People make a big deal of how upset he looks on the sideline this year, how he throws bottles in frustration. But that shows one very important thing: That he still cares, and he is desperate to win probably more than anybody else.

CON’s: As big of a genius as he is, Wenger can sometimes drive me absolutely nuts with some of the decisions he makes. Substitutions are one thing that he somehow manages to fuck up completely, most of the time. And not so much the players he takes out and puts in but the fact that a lot of the times he would make a substitution in the 80^th  or 85^th minute and expect that this player will have any impact on the game. This gets particularly annoying when we are having a shitty game and things are not going well but he stubbornly refuses to make a change before it’s too late.

The same could be said about his reluctance to spend money on players even if they are needed in some areas. I don’t think that anyone will argue that if we had just a few more experienced players in the squad we wouldn’t have gone 6 years without a trophy. To this point, if he had held on to some of the older players like Pires, Viera, or Gilberto Silva that would have helped him transition to this younger team much smoother. I understand that sometimes if a player wants to leave you can’t stop him but having a few veterans who do not need to start every game but are available for the big matches would have been a tremendous help for Wenger and this young team.

Always relying and bringing in technically gifted players has backfired on him because sometimes we lack the physicality and hunger of some players with less technical ability but with more determination and desire. I really believe we need to make sure we have more English players on the team, guys who are not afraid to be physical when they need to be and guys who will be passionate about Arsenal and what the club stands for.

His strategy and positioning of players is pretty much the same or at least has been for most of this year (2010-2011). He would always play with one striker up front when sometimes we could be way more effective with two strikers. Putting guys like Bendtner on the wing is something that works once and the other 9 times it doesn’t because the guy is not suited for the wing. If you are going to play Bendtner put him as a striker and move the other guys accordingly. The bottom line is that Arsene is reluctant to make many tactical changes even if it's obvious that the team is not playing well.