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.