Take a sad Song and make it better – Arsene bring back our DM!

TotalArsenal

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Despite all the diving, the card-waving and general theatrics, I still love to watch Barcelona play football. If you love football, there is no way around it: Barcelona play the best, and most enjoyable to watch, football in Europe at the moment.

But there is something quite despicable about the Catalan club and this is mostly to do with the things that happen outside the football arena, at least initially. Barcelona have a tendency to buy players they do not really need, and will happily let them waste away on the bench or totally on the side-lines, without giving them a proper opportunity to proof themselves. I reckon a lot of this has to do with the way the club is organised from a managerial/governance point of view.

Every so many years, elections are being held in which the members of the club vote to choose their president. Since 2010, Sandro Rosell has been Barcelona’s president, and as the members of the club are all supporters – Rosell received 61% of the vote of a record turnout of 57000 members back in 2010 – one can only become president by promising lots of things.

And the best way to get members to vote for a candidate-president is by promising to buy players. With Barcelona’s fine first squad, and the continuous high-quality output from their youth development schemes, there is usually very little need for the sort of players Barcelona purchase. The likes of Hleb, Afellay, and now Alex Song, and to a certain extent the same goes for Fabregas, are the players who come to mind. But there are more players who were mainly bought for one key purpose: the president giving the members something back for having been voted in by them and/or keep them happy going forward.

And buying players from Arsenal, or from one of the Dutch top clubs – there is a strong historic link between Barcelona and Holland as many of you will know – is a sexy thing to do and which is likely to appease the fans.

Barcelona is not the only club who is guilty of this – indeed it can be argued that Arsenal did the same with the purchase of Park – but we seem to suffer disproportionately from it. Of course, Arsenal do not have to let them go, but a combination of a BoD who loves to balance the books and the gullibility of the players in question, has often led to the club letting key players go to the Catalans without much resistance.

Hleb has become a shadow of the promising player he was at Arsenal and the same could easily happen to Alex Song. He has been used sparingly by Barcelona this season and very often as a late substitute. I reckon he was bought mainly, and simply, because Barcelona could, and Rosell wanted to keep the members happy and on his side.

I hate it when that happens: Song is a fine player who is at a stage in his career when he has to play a lot in order to become better and better. He had a great season for us; finding the middle way between helping out defensively, and providing attacking impetus at the same time. I reckon we miss him even more than Van Judas this season, and he would have been once again one of our key players.

I would love to see him back in the squad and becoming our deepest laying DM. Some of you will say he is not disciplined enough for this, but I reckon that is nonsense. Last season, he was asked to help out creating opportunities up-front, and he did so with great verve. And I am sure if he was asked to fully concentrate on sitting back and protecting our defence, he will do so with full commitment and great quality. And it is also nice to know that sometimes he can produce a bit of magic when nobody is expecting it.

He was a player Arsenal could not afford to let go without replacing him properly. And if there is any chance to get him back for a decent price this summer, I hope Arsene will forget and forgive whatever it was that made him agree to sell the Cameroonian last summer, and bring him back to the home of football as soon as possible.

Let’s hope that his great talent does not get wasted in the same way as Hleb’s got wasted. Arsene if you can, please bring him back home: he belongs at Arsenal.

Written by: TotalArsenal. 

105 thoughts on “Take a sad Song and make it better – Arsene bring back our DM!”

  • If you believe half the rumours about him prior to leaving then I wouldn’t have him back if they paid us £15m to take him! Scum bag by the sounds of it and we are better off without him.

  • We must be desperate to want a player like Song back, he traps it further than he passes it, you must be on a wind up, just remember all those own goals he unerringly manage to put in his net.

  • No thanks. Let him stay at Barca and watch games from the bench like Hleb did.

  • Good post TotalArsenal, I agree. I was trying to figure out the best DM for Wenger to buy and I too thought of Song. He could easily be persuaded to come back if Wenger wants him back but I do not know if he wants him back. I say get Denilson off our wage bill and bring back Song. In a couple of years we could even get back Fabregas if Wenger wanted. However I do feel Wenger needs to buy two DMs to truly sort out our defensive issues. Think of Holland, their defense is one of the worst compared to other top national teams and is extremely vunerable but they had De Jong and Van Brommel (two strict holding midfielders) to protect their back four and done well in the last World Cup reaching the final.

  • Mike, never believe any rumours: they are worthless.

    Mario, please try to put a bit of meat on your one-liners. It is great to have an opinion but putting it in a one-liner is not helping you much in being taken serious. Unless that is what you want?! 😕

  • 15 million for a one paced hopeless reader of the game was fantastic let him rot in Spain

  • Two DM is ok with me, AFC. Your example of Holland is spot on, but then the Dutch manager had no other solution, as there were/are no top quality CB’s to choose from… I would prefer Song to come back and a quality CB over two DMs but it could be a good solution…

  • TotalArsenal, I have seen about 5 articles (including the Daily Mirror and Daily Mali) saying that Jack will be out for the Bayern game. If you hear different news regarding Wilshere let me know.

  • He’s not the player Wenger deserves, but is the player Wenger needs (Cue Dark Knight Rises Theme Music). There’s not a hope in hell that Wenger will take the guy back, but essentially he would fill the missing link. Clearly needs to be replaced. AFC, essentially by bringing in a player like Song you will have two CDMs, Arteta would play a role of a deep-lying playmaker(in FM terms). You can use cazorla and wilshere for more attack-minded approaches. Essentially provides viable options to play 4-2-3-1 and 4-1-2-3. Also removes the need for box-to-box midfielders like the inconsistent Diaby and Ramsey(who I still like) in most systems you want to play.

  • Hi Rohan, the reason why I said we need to DMs is for a number of reasons. First of all it seems to me Arteta is in decline and might not be good enough to be in the first team next season and might only be able to perform the sort of role Rosicky performs. Secondly, Arteta lacks speed and the other physical aspects to be our DM for a team with such a bad defense. Also I think we do not need a deep lying playmaker to play with a strict DM. We have enough creativity further up the pitch with the likes of with Wilshere, Cazorla and Rosicky. Also because our defense is so bad a at times we cannot afford to have a deep lying playmaker instead of another strict DM. I feel if we only have one strict DM our defensive issues will not be solved.

  • Hi Rohan,

    Good comment and agreed on what Song could bring to the team again. You are probably right re Wenger not taking/bringing him back, but I can but hope. I hate him getting wasted over there…

    Hi Mario

    Fine with me but don’t expect me to blog with you as long as you keep producing unsupported one-liners…

  • AFC, all good points. I reckon Man City have suffered this season without De Jong as one of their disciplined, traditional DM’s, and their defence is better than ours…

  • Ramsey, Arteta, The Ox all are dross. Podolski and Giroud are distinctively ordinary. Cazorla very good player, Wilshere good player, Diaby made of straw, Rosicky possibly could have been a quality player but past it now. I will leave the back line and goalkeeper alone as they are all calamitous under Wenger’s tutorial. He’s making mugs out of you.

  • Hey TA, yeah same I kinda see him as an arsenal child, being destroyed by Barca. AFC, if we were to play with two strict CDMs it would seriously impact our attacking play . Even without a proper CDM when we play 4-2-3-1 one player is deployed as a box-to-box midfielder.And without meaning to sound contrary for the sake of it – I also don’t think our defence is as bad as people make out. In most of the goals from open play we concede I can often find how an athletic or well-positioned CDM could have prevented the goal.

  • I laugh when you bloggers discuss tactics, Wenger doesn’t do tactics he just sends them out and let’s em get on with it.

  • Rohan good point about the limitations of two DM’s as per not having enough support for our attack. I reckon Bould wants us to play with two conservative DM’s whereas Wenger wants a box-to-box midfielder next to a more deeper laying DM… It is hard to get the balance right and in my view we need a disciplined, quality DM, which could be either Song – or Capoue etc, with Song as the box to boxer and Wilshere as our attacking midfielder (in 4-2-1-3).

  • TA….don’t let the Chav get your goat…he is here to bait Gooners because his Chavs suck bigtime this year and they all hate their manager, at least we don’t have the latter problem yet.
    I disagree strongly with your statement, ¨Arsenal do not have to let them go, but a combination of a BoD who loves to balance the books and the gullibility of the players in question, has often led to the club letting key players go to the Catalans without much resistance.¨ It has repeatedly been shown that BOD don’t decide who goes or stays but Wenger and he has always respected the players’ desire to leave for whatever reason. He striongly resisted the tapping up that Barca and their players engaged in for over 2 and a half years but he loved Cesc like a father and knew that forcing him to stay was pointless. Gullible players? You mean gullible fanboys who believe that crap don’t you?

  • Which team do you support ? The Arsene Wenger team who won two trophies (3 League Titles and 4 FA Cups) or the George Graham team who won four trophies (2 League Titles, 1 FA Cup, 2 League cups and 1 Cup Winners Cup to boot).

  • TotalArsenal, that is a perfect idea to have Song as the box to box midfielder with a strict DM. This will mean our defense will be much better but we will not lose our attacking power. Also I think Song is disciplined enough to play as a strict DM because my friend who watches La Liga a lot says that when Song finally does get to play he mostly plays in the defence.

  • Hi OMG,

    There was no need to sell Song and we could have easily kept him (his contract had still two years to go). We got Cazorla and books needed to be balanced; that’s what I believe happened. If you can PROVE the opposite, I would love to accept it as my new reality! 🙂

    With gullibility I mean players believing they will get a proper chance at Barcelona and that moving their will do their career good.

  • Bit of a sidetrack but building on AFC’s comment…. could it be possible that barca are rearing song for use in the back four. We know that they have previously done this to mascherano. When guardiola was at Barca he spoke of using defensive minded midfielders for defence as they tend to possess the technical abilities required for the barcelona defence. Just a thought.

  • That is the thing with Song, AFC, he can play well in several positions, and I just cannot get over it that we let him go so easily… 😦

  • Dunno why we let him go. Never been replaced. Bring him back right now before he rots like Hleb and others did.

    Can’t see Wenger doin it tho – too proud.

  • Hi gooner-girl

    I tend to agree with Wenger’s decision most of the time, but I have not accepted him allowing Song to leave this summer. You are probably right about Arsene being too proud or stubborn, but he must see himself that if he had kept him, we would have done a lot better this season…

  • TotalArsenal, when you say that Song has been used a few times in defence for Barca unsucessfully I can believe that. I read somewhere that the coach of Cameroon had said that Song is a DM but is better going forward and playing as a box to box midfielder and can even play in the no.10 role just behind the striker because of his creativity. I think we say glimpses of that last season when he was playing those lobbed through ball to perfection to Van Persie which resulted in goals.

  • Nice stuff TA19 year

    I am not sure we should take Song back. There are obviously reasons why Arsene seemed to let him go so easily.

    In all the years watching him at the Grove he could drive you mad with his propensity to give away possesion and when caught up field hes pace meant that he was out of the game.

    Saying that, there is a couple of things that song possesssed that made a Club like Barcelona pay good money for him. Firstly the boy has great personality. Booed by his own supporters as a teenager, he did not let it phase him and came back stronger, proving those spoilt brats wrong.

    Secondly, any one who watched him play live will attest to the guys strength. If the ball was any were around him he would win one on one physical battles. i saw him do this to the likes of ya ya toure and mikel. His “crab” like power was quite remarkable.

    Mario, you do realise that your posts make you come over as the worst kind of fan right? Calling OX, a 19 year old kid dross shows that you know fuck all and the disrespect you show Arsene Wenger tells me all i need to know about you.

  • He can do it all AFC, absolutely.

    One of my favourite Song performances was as the sole DM against Milan at home, and that is where I would like to see him back ideally (in 4-1-2-3), but box to box would be fine too.

  • Hi Terry,

    Great points and all agreed. 🙂

    Yes you are right re him losing possession but a) this was mainly at the start of matches (he is a slow starter) b) he liked to take a bit of risk which I personally prefer to the safely safely approach and c) it seldom or never led to us conceding a goal.

  • Hi TA

    I understand the risk taking but he had certain games were his distribution of the ball was very poor. When he went to Catalonia i thought to myself surely they wont play him in midfield?

    Saying that, please dont misunderstand me. There were times he was our best player. He has assets that more than make up for his weaknesses. I like what AFC says about him been a box to box player. When i first saw him play i would never have believed he had the ability to set up Van Persie like he did. Certainly proved me wrong.

    The truth i guess is that we have never realy replaced him and this saddens me more than his departure.

  • Has any one got a cure for insomnia? I tried reading Mario’s comments again but it never worked. hahaha

  • Very interesting views…I think we do lack a real depth in quality in that midfield Arteta is a good passer of the ball but lacks pace and height I’m not sure about his stamina too for this reason I don’t think he should be a definite starter. I reckon Jack can play that box to box role stick Santi on the left and get in another playmaker and a real DM who is not going to take no talk in front of the back four Nigel De Jong style to play alongside Jack. I really think this position has been the reason the defence has been left exposed many a times esp this season. as for Song I think he is more than capable of this role, would have him back as fast as he left.

  • Nice stuff Brian. I feel sorry for the defence. Not only do we play a very offensive game but we do it without a genuine defensive midfielder.

  • I support Arsenal not Arsene. No one heard of him until he was brought over from overeas after languishing in the japanese league. It is he who disrespects you, talking about spirit and mental strength when he should focus his mind on achieving success on the pitch rather than balancing the books by selling our best players.

  • Ok mario. Your entitled to your views but his name will always be positivly associated with the Club long after the likes of me and you are gone

  • So Mario, you are part of the Anti-Wenger Brigade. I thought you were a fan of a rival club trying to make Arsenal look bad. Have you always hated Wenger even before he came to Arsenal or did you only start not to like Wenger when he was at Arsenal?

  • TA….you’re the one who needs to prove that song was sold to balance the books. Its your belief and opinion, that is ok but don’t try to hide behind the I’m right because I believe it argument. Nobody knows or likely will ever know for sure why song went to Barca but here is what i can glean from AFC,Song and Wenger’s statements surrounding the transfer:

    1) Song was apparently having issues with Wenger and his gunner mates and was (as Wenger said) disruptive and negative in training and the dressingroom.

    2) Song saw an opportunity, like Cesc and Hleb et.al. to play for the best team in the world, in their view. When his agent was able to offer him that possibility, he jumped at it. Did he start misbehaving to influence Wenger’s decision or was Wenger already decided?

    3) We have always balanced the books, even when we sold players at a ¨loss¨ since our sound financial management and frugal approach to transferring players in has always been sufficient to avoid losses.

    4) I think he believed that he’d be a first team player like Cesc but the hard reality is that he’s a benchwarmer and late sub at best….something he didn’t anticipate at the time he jumped ship.

    Wenger won’t close the door entirely but he knows that Barca will try and pry one of our current gunners out of uis for Song and Wenger won’t bargain with his current team. He might swap for Villa and Song, but not with any of his first team or youth players, Maybe Arshavin, Bendtner, Park, Denilson, Chamakh, Djourou and Santos could be thrown in the deal but who wants them anyway?

  • 3 titles, 2 doubles, a season unbeaten, instrumental in the move to a new stadium, and playing great football yet according to a no mark like you his legacy is dwindling. hahahaha

    Goodnight all.

  • Marion must have a very short memory Arsene has brought some very good times at the Arsenal, misterminded the move to a bigger better house now that’s about paid for let the man redeem himself improve and balance the team. Everyone seem to go on about how AW don’t like to spend but he has spent top dollar in the past when there was no new stadium to pay for and we were right in the mix with the best of them if not the best. The man deserves respect, for all these players that you cry that he sold just look back and see how much he got them for in the first place. No one player is bigger than the club there will always be more talent coming through and he talks of tactics you cannot go a whole season undefeated without employing any tactics come on we all realise we a not in the best position right now but don’t be hasty. A few more quality additions in the summer and we right back in the mix.

  • I don’t disagree with you much, TA, but this fixation on Song and his subsequent transfer, is rather…peculiar…I thought Song’s BEST season was 2010-11 when he was asked to do nothing more than protect the back four. He somehow got it in to his head that he is a more attacking player…Maybe Wenger told him to play that way??? I don’t know, but if he’s not willing to revert to being a more defensive minded player, then we don’t need him.

    As for you Mario, you might as well scram and not even bother hitting up this site.

  • Our success under Wenger was magical, best football played consistently by an Arsenal team, but their were always chinks and flaws under his system like giving away soft goals and not setting up the team properly especially in europe where organisation and tactics are a prerequisite for success. I saw Wenger early on more as a Chief Scout rather than a Coach or Manager. And as for that doughnut going on about Wengers legendary status at the club, that 8-2 hammering should put to bed that argument.

  • Sorry TA – I am with Terry, weeDonald, and Milo on this …. but I too, love Alex Song, for all his flaws.

    I think Terry is spot on with his ‘crab like’ tendencies, in fact I would go further .. surround him with 3 opposing players and there is still a 75% chance he will come away with the ball!

    weedonald is probably nearer the mark on his departure, although, interestingly, neither has spoken of it since? That is the one thing that could be in his favour for a return? The big thing against is, it is Barca we are dealing with?

    Milo last(@3.21) comment may well hold the key to the above dispute, and that is he got a real buzz about playing in the advanced midfield role – and who wouldn’t after playing those sublime assists(note the plural, not one-offs!) – that he probably wanted more of the same … and may be got disappointed by Wenger? Then throw in ag£nts whispering ‘Barcelona’ in his ear … ‘They play all out attacking football, don’t they?’ … only to be disappointed again?

    Another time, another era maybe, I would have loved to have seen him develop those skills. Playing right behind quick thinking strikers he could be … Let’s just say that would be my dream, and probably, his dream too?

    I also think he was very popular in the dressing room. He was a fun loving character, and from Frimpong to Sagna(youngest to oldest) all said he was our strongest player. Would I have him back … in my dreams, yes. He certainly deserves better than what he has got now.

  • GReat idea! I thought about it a couple of times during the season as well.
    i think its obvious we need a defensive minded midfielder in order to have a stable defense. But i also think its obvious that we need at least One new top class centre half. Our defense is Not just Bad because we dont have a dm, but also because of our centre-halfs. Bfg is well of the pace and nowhere near the class of a Top 4 pl Team. Koz still has a lot of strange errors to his name.
    now the problem is that any player we bring in would need a certain time to settle at Arsenal and also with the Premier League. That is why Song would be perfect as he already knows all about it.
    I think the most important reason why we need a dm is our high line. Playing without a real dm means no protection for our back four on through balls and no pressure on opposition Player carrying the ball. I thlink the spuds Game showed that perfectly. playing a high line normally means that every midfielder has to press the ball which is something we seem to ignore at times. So often when we lose the ball up front theo santi pod and even jack at times dont Track back leaving our back four exposed.
    So yes we definitely need new players for dm and cd but our front players need to improve their defensive work rate as well.
    And yes i’d love to see alex Song back in an Arsenal shirt!

  • Mario – I am pleased you are putting a bit of flesh on the bone of your arguments, because then it can involve a discussion. Your latest points might even have some merit, abeit, demeaning Arsene Wenger’s contribution to the club.

    One of the weaknesses in people who hold very rigid views is they that they don’t always consider all the facts, only the bits they want to aid their argument?

    It might mean silly for me to pick up on the reference to the 8-2 defeat, but there was something else going on at the time. We had a very weak ‘squad’ and I believe AW took a bold decision to show the BoD just how understrength they were. Now I do not think for one minute he was looking for the 8-2 thrashing, probably hoping a 3-1 would not be too bad to live with? Either way, he made his point. Despite all the setbacks, and there have been many, we have not gone backwards since then?

    It does seem strange that right now we’re on the verge of an exciting new era, and yet those who agree with your point of view seem more desperate to get Wenger out now? Why? For fear he might succeed? That is indeed a strange way of showing support for the ‘AFC’, imo?

  • TA – I know this strays more into the next blog territory, and with (possibly convenient?) injuries popping up, on both sides, – and if I did not know better, but it gets more like a ‘gentleman’s agreement’ has come upon us from an earlier time, whereby a 2-2 is a strong possibility? – I think we need to concentrate on who we have available right now to fill that very needed DM position?

  • Morning all 🙂

    Thanks for the great comments overnight and this morning. I’ll get back to you later this morning.

    Weedonald, if you are still reading, do you have a quote by Wenger (re his remarks about Song)? I will respond to you in detail later anyway.

  • What is surprising is the likes of Mario makes more posts than anyone with far little to say !!
    So he does not like the manager or players. Blames them all for everything when the mere fact that were they constant winners would mean he would ‘love’ them all, Proving that its winning he likes, not Arsenal, If the club had a manager or players who could/did not WIN then Mario would be on here slagging them off.Maybe in Mario’s mind the real world does not exist!!

  • hello,
    Out of the question he chose Barca, he pays!! Arsene’ll never walk rear, but with the Fabregas, he will do;)

  • Good Morning TotalArsenal, how can Mario hate Wenger that much to say those comments. He must be one of two things, either the President of the Wenger Out Brigade or must be Park Chu Young in disguise getting revenge on Wenger for not playing him. Maybe Mario should make his own website but instead of calling it Bergkampesque he should call it AW The Cheque Book Manager. Ha Ha Ha.

  • Morning TA, 🙂

    Well written Post, (of course) well thought through and an interesting read, (per usual)! 🙂

    I agree with a lot of what you say. My reservations are that the old adage “never go back” would probably hold true with Song because their will be a backswell of people who will always treat him the same way they did Denilson.

    If we had replaced Song with a similar or better DM, at the time, we would not be having this conversation, and I think that was a mistake by the club/Arsene.

    Arsene would probably say that he thought Rambo or PingPong would have stepped up, but the purchase of Arteta, and his conversion to a DM showed they got that wrong.

    [Hard to take someone like that Mario seriously — he must have strayed here from a certain other site] Pity!

  • Morning all…..Total, again you have started a thought provoking article, nice one, yet again.

    If we can get Song on the cheap, I see no reason why we shouldn’t take him back. We know he can handle the premiership.

    He may even strike up a partnership with Giroud with some link play, as he did so well with that skunk that went to ManUre.

    At the right price, certainly worth a shout in my book.

  • Hi Guys,

    TA, Good article but i disagree, we all have our opinions.
    In my opinion we should not take him back. He left for greener pastures and we all know that for most that is not the case.
    I understand your reasoning for wanting him back especially if it is on the cheap. Instead if bringing in a player that chose to leave us, let’s bring in a player that we need instead of patching up our defense.
    We have missed him without a doubt but we need to be pro-active and actually bring in quality. Whilst Song did have a couple of good seasons, he did lapse in his defensive duties in search of the glory of attacking and that is when his game suffered.
    Not enough tracking back and covering the defense.

    Having read the comments posted, some would accept him back as we need a DM and Arteta lacks some of the necessary pace. Some say no, simply because he left us. I say no because in order to be where we need, we need to invest in quality and buy that Beast of a DM that you have been calling for. Unfortunately Song is not that Beast

  • Hi Terry, yes we did not replace him and it saddens me too, but we should not have let him go in the first place. Sometimes, the club need to be stronger and more practical imo.

    Hi Brian, all agreed, although I prefer Jack in the hole position rather than box to box, but he can do them both, especially with a strong, disciplined DM next to him.

  • Hi Alex.

    I hear what you say about Song not quite being the beast midfielder we need, and the fact he left us, inevitably leaves a sour taste in the mouth. But we know he can perform in the premiership and maybe is not the best of midfielders but on the cheap he may be our best option.

    Remember Wengers track record regarding cheap (lower quality) purchases. He will undoubtedly try and get someone on the cheap which may not be top quality, or better than Mr.Song?

    All if’s and maybe’s but knowing how the BOD and Wenger work I feel Song may be the best option open to us.

  • Hi WeeD,

    Agreed that nobody really knows why Song went/was allowed to go, and I should have stated more clearly that I BELIEVE/FEEl that he went in the end because the club saw an opportunity to balance the books again. Wenger stated something that he had enough midfielders left to deal with his departure. Unfortunately, he saw that wrong as both Arteta and Diaby, or Coquelin or Ramsey do not offer what Song brought to the party.

    Agreed with your points 2,3,4, but not with ‘1’.

    I don’t believe Wenger has ever said Song was disruptive and negative in training, in fact, I remember him coming out saying this was not the case at all. As far as I can see it – and I don’t have evidence of this – Song wanted his salary to be increased to reflect his good performances/progress he made over the last two years and the club did not want to grant him this. He kept asking (through his agent mainly) and in the end Wenger got annoyed, the club received an offer they did not want to refuse (because they could balance the books again, but that is my gut-feeling) and off he went. A real shame, because he left a gap which will be hard to fill.

  • hi Milo

    Agreed 2010-11 was a great season for Song but so was the following one. I really believe he was INSTRUCTED by Arsene to not be a typical DM and support our attack as much as possible. We did not score enough goals last season and Song’s assists were vital: nobody else in midfield came anywhere near him in this respect.

    Song is often portrayed as a rebel, who does not want to be a DM, but I just cannot agree with this. I am sure he will do whatever he is instructed to do, and under Arsene very few are instructed to just defend and keep it simple. The Frenchman is far too oeh la la for that! 😛

  • Cheers Gerry 🙂

    Song behind the striker, wow that is left field thinking hahaha. But as my previous comments, I believe he will do as he is instructed and can play in any midfield position. The DM one at Arsenal suits him best of all in my view: he could/should be our Ramires (Chav) who in my opinion is one of the very best all-round DMs/midfielders in the game.

    Interesting theory re a possible G-agreement: I cannot see it myself being agreed, but it might happen tacitly during the game….?

  • Nik 🙂

    Fully agreed with your comment from the letters GR to t! I could not have said it better! And for somebody who does not live in a country were English is the going language, your command of it is very impressive. 🙂

  • Macko you are probably right! 😦

    AFC, at least he is making an effort now to explain himself a bit, but yes he still doesn’t make much sense in the process…….. 😕

  • Hi RA 🙂

    You are probably right re your adage, and the post was more written in hope – and anger for the way he is being wasted – than anything else. 😕

  • Hi VCC

    The idea of:

    ———–Song—-Wilshere——
    —————Santi—————–

    Or:

    ————Song——————-
    —–Santi———Jack————

    Or:

    ——Capoue—–Song———-
    ————Wilshere————–
    Theo–Pod(Giroud, Vila)–Santi

    is mouthwatering to me.

  • Haha Alex – happy to disagree with you 🙂

    Fair enough if you don’t believe he is the best DM we could get/need; as always I respect your opinion.

    If you are still reading, what do you make of your fellow countryman Ramires? What sort of midfielder do you think he is?

  • Wilshere out for (at least?) three weeks – bugger me sideways, that is shit news 😦

    At least he will miss the interlull games though! 🙂

  • Arsène Wenger has revealed the latest team news ahead of the Bayern Munich game:
    on the team news…

    Wilshere is out with an inflamed ankle, on the [left side], not the [right side] where he was injured [before] and he will be out for three weeks. He will not be available for Munich, for Swansea and not for the England games.

    on Kieran Gibbs…
    He is back in the squad, yes. It is great to have him back because we play Vermaelen out of position, although he can play left back. I have not decided if Kieran will start, but hopefully he will be fit to start.

    on Sagna and Diaby…
    Sagna is not available, Diaby is back in the squad. He has a test [on Wednesday]. Again, he is a bit short but hopefully he can travel.

  • Hi VCC,

    I do completely understand AW and his cheaper options. I do understand that he can perform at PL standard. Let’s say he comes back, has a great season and another team comes for him. What’s to stop that from happening.
    There is always the risk that we may end up with a player who is not as good as Song. Maybe it is the sour taste in my mouth as you described, but the team needs players who want to be here and fight for the cause, not necessarily someone who wants to come back .
    since his spell at another club did not go as planned. That’s also if he would come back.

    To me it felt that he jumped ship when we needed him the most instead of helping to rebuild this team. I am not saying that he would not add to this team but i feel somewhat disillusioned by him wanting to leave us. Barcelona is Barcelona, but look at their track record of buying players and not really utilizing them. I know Cesc had the DNA (God i was sick of that Crap by their players) but i am not completely convinced that he is happy or settled there. Especially when he gives interviews saying that one day he would like to return to us. Anyway, that’s another totally different topic.

  • TA,

    Ramires, is the kind of person who would be great for us. Fast, tactically a good player and dirty when needed. I rated him until he went to Chel$ki. But he is the kind of player who makes great runs and scores as well.

    On another topic, something you touched on a couple of weeks ago actually.
    SEEDORF – He was superb for his new side (and mine) Botafogo. In the semi final of the Rio state championship, he controlled the midfield and pushed along the wings well. His passing broke down our nemesis Flamengo and did the same in the final. He has won a trophy already with a mediocre team. Just thought that you might be interested to know.

  • Your a wise man Alex. I too believe Cesc slightly regrets his move to Barca. His body language and interviews seem to back this theory????? He makes up the numbers there, whereas with us he was THE man.

    Whilst I’m certainly not saying Song is the best thing since sliced bread, I am saying he might just be the best option (if available) open to us. Taking into account the well known philosophy of our BOD and Wenger towards a “bargain” buy.

    Put yourself in Song’s shoes for a moment and reflect on what may have been the scenario he faced. Barcelona show interest in you…..then you begin to wonder whether Wenger and Arsenal will ever get back to winning ways within your playing career (arguably realistic?)……shall I, or shant I? that is the $65 million dollar question.

    Many would have taken the same route as Mr. Song.

  • Great thought starter TA. On balance it does appear as if we miss Song as much as, if not more than Van Purse. In any case, selling both of our then key players weeks apart was bound to leave us sagging around the belly area. I was of the view that we could have kept Song, like we did Theo, and that maybe his value to the team was underestimated. Not sure though what the psychological impact on him personally and other players would be were he to return and whether he would be able to carry on from where he left off.

  • VCC,

    Many have taken that route and failed. The grass isn’t always greener.
    As I said, Song would not take time to adjust into the Arsenal team as he is more than fully aware of it’s workings and knows how things are done. i am happy to have him back so long as we do have a second choice as well. Our team is too thin and players who are meant to be impact players are simply not getting the playing time necessary (Rosicky anyone??).
    Meaning that we have a squad of only about 15 players and not all are worthy of wearing the shirt. Things need to change. AW to stay but also to accept that the squad needs to be strengthened.

  • Bloody hell Alex: a trophy already! What a player he has been and still is. A true master who would have been brilliant amongst our boys… 😕

  • Hi Arsenal MCH

    Agreed on the potential psychological issues of a return to our team. I guess it could go both ways, and Wenger would need to make sure he would come with the hunger we know he possesses. I reckon he would be more mature and fully focussed again.

  • TA,

    I do believe that he would have been a great impact player for our team. Traditionally we are the weakest of the 4 top teams in Rio but the respect that others have for him is unbelievable. I saw the game and the celebrations alone from the players were all focused around him and he has become a fans favourite over there.

  • Really good to hear that Alex, and good for him. Seedorf is an incredibly confident person who has become less arrogant over the years and more and more likeable instead. An incredible change!

  • Arrogance will get you nowhere. Just look at the best striker the world has ever seen, aka Bendtner. Seedorf will be involved in the World Cup next year. Not sure exactly what his role will be but he certainly is laying down roots for a life after football.

  • Gents,
    I bid you a good night. Time for sleep and look forward to reading your views as per usual tomorrow.

  • Hi.. guys..
    Just back from Melaka..

    TA.. I know Song is a good midfielder.. but if you wanted a classical DM badly.. then Song is not the answer..

    And I think We never will get him back.. As long as I remember.. no one comeback after leaving Arsenal.. except Henry for loan..

    Why don’t just let yesterday behind.. just face the future.. I don’t think Song will have his place back.. who will he remove..?? Arteta..?? Wilshere..??
    Even Cesc will not be easy to fit with Arsenal this day.. Unless Wenger change the formation to 4-5-1.. haha..

    Just take Sahin for example.. he is now return to Dortmund.. but We know what happen.. Before he was the man.. but now they have Goetze and Reus.. Not easy to comeback and change the whole team.. all is dynamic.. moving.. and what was good at that time.. will not always good today..

    So let move forward.. no setback..
    I think Wanyama or Capoe will be great..
    Although I like Strootman or Clasie more.. or Drexler.. hehe..

    For tomorrow.. I hope Rosicky play to replace Wilshere.. Two creative AM.. will be great..
    And Arteta still our best DM for now.. unless he is unfitt then Diaby may play..
    And if Podolski also injure.. Gervinho must start.. Maybe with some new player.. Munchen will confuse and shock.. hehe..

    Go Gunners..

  • Hi Henry 🙂

    Hope you had a nice time with your family in Melaka, What sort of things did you do there?

    Song is definitely the best answer Henry, but I admit it is unlikely to happen. Looking at ‘tomorrow’ as you put it, I see one of my favourite players being messed about and a career potentially wasted. We should never have let him go. He would replace Arteta instantly and play next to Diaby, Wilshere or Ramsey, or play with Arteta in the ‘2’ like last season.

  • @TA.. I go with my oldman there.. to a famous hospital.. Mahkota Medical Centre..
    Quiet funny.. for me as Indonesian citizen have to go to other country just to have better medical.. and you guess what.. almost 80% patients in that hospital come from my country.. haha..

    TA.. almost every day you talk about a classical DM.. and you know it for sure that Song is not the DM you want.. So why must busy on him..
    But for me.. he was my great DM.. you know why..?? Cause I love Attacking football very bad.. and he just fit to my expectation.. hehe.. a DM who made a damn good and a lot assist and also goals.. haha..

    But as I said.. I don’t think he will easily be our starting eleven in Wenger team nowaday.. moreover Barca had ruined his ability.. by making him a CB.. and he must readjust his kind of playing football if he return.. just like Sahin to Dortmund..

  • Taking your old man to a hospital abroad, is a very nice thing to do, Henry. You must care about him a lot. 🙂

    I have said it a thousand times in the last 24 hours: Song does what he is asked to do and he can do it really well: classic DM or more attack minded box to boxer; he can do it all. He reads the game well, makes great interceptions, can keep it simple, is strong in the air and on the ground, and knows how to play in Wenger’s system/philosophy. If we can get him back and also buy Wanyama or Capoue, even better! 🙂

  • Hehe.. come on my friend.. No player can fit to all position..
    I don’t think Wenger forced him to be more like an AM.. Song have a sense of Attacking and also a good skill on passing.. so he naturally want to Attack and not to defence.. hehe..

    But let’s stop this issue.. hehe..
    Btw I love the title.. reminds me for the beatles.. haha..

  • Henry, that is very nice of you.

    I remember my fat cousin Costas having a heart attack whilst we were watching the Arsenal at Wolves on the box. In my defence i have to say i knew there was nothing wrong with the fat bastard,hes had about 100 attacks and survived them all. Basicly hes just a fat Woody Allen.

    Anyway, just before half time he rolls over and starts complaing of chest pain and starts moaning that i should call an ambulance. I told him look he could borrow my car and drive himself, but he wasnt having it. A few minutes later Mrs Terry comes in, starts going crazy and rings the ambulance for him.

    The second half just started and hes on the floor as the ambulance arrived. Just at that moment we equalised and i went ape shit, running up and down the room and jumping over him in the process.

    When the ambulance crew came in to the room they said “calm down sir, we know its very traumatic, but we will take if from here”. I said “to bloddy right it is, we need 3 points here” hahahaha

  • I just wrote the first draft of the match preview for tomorrow and I am getting really fired up now!

    I will issue it tonight around 10.30-11pm.

    And I will start the hypnotising process from here:

    Look into my eyes, Look into my eyes; you’re gone:

    2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4

    What are the odds Vickers hahaha? 😛

  • Total, the odds are stacked against us…….but don’t forget, we will fight them in the trenches, we will fight them in the fields, they don’t like it up em Mr. Wainwairing. Give em a salvo early doors and make them panic.

    First 15 mins go a goal up. Then keep calm for the rest of the half and hold out until half time.

    Come out for the second half and keep it tight for 40 mins then pounce once more making it 2-0. They will then go weak at the knees and we will finish them off in the last minute with a Giroud pile driver. Hey presto, simples.

    Mind you I will need Terry’s Mrs to call me an ambulance at 40 mins if that was the scenario, my heart would not take it.

    COYG

  • Look into my eyes, Look into my eyes; you’re gone:

    2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4 2-4

    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  • Total….2-4 is not a good score line. Look into my eyes. 0-3 0-3 0-3 0-3 0-3 0-3 0-3 0-3 0-3

  • Evening Slitastics 😆

    Thanks for the post Totes. There have been quite a few players that have been sold which peeved me off by losing their quality, alas, Song is not one !. Good player but not great. As far as I know, AW gave no reason for his release, so I imagine he didn`t rate him highly enough to keep him, I cant go along with the excuse he was sold to balance the books as I`m sure internally, AFC knew about new sponsors, financial results, £120m+ under AW`s mattress etc` long before Song was sold !.

    I personally cant wait for the summer TW. Courteously of talkSPORT, here are some which may take our pain away, because If we dont buy “super quality” at least this lot will make MoTD an enjoyable experience !.

  • I’m fed up with Wenger’s namby pamby ways, and his lily livered underachievements. We should have won the double in 99 no thanks to Bergkamp and Vivas. He’s got to go.

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