A cheeky question to help us while away the time before we resume in earnest at City. It’s always a little unfair to compare teams of different generations but do consider that the Invincible team was ahead of its time.
Size: The Invincibles were big boys who were physically imposing. Our current team have an average height of 6′ 1″, look at our defensive unit: Saliba 6′ 4″ 204 lbs, Gabriel 6′ 3″ 173 lbs, White 6′ 1″ 168 lbs, Kiwior 6′ 2″ 163 lbs, Tomiyasu 6′ 2″ 183 lbs. Add to that Rice at 6′ 1″ 183 lbs, Partey 6′ 1″ 170lbs and Havertz 6′ 4″ 183 lbs and we have some serious tall and powerful players, all of whom know how to use their considerable frames.
Raya is 6 ‘ whereas Lehmann was over 6’ 3″, but Raya has distribution skills better than the German. And Raya isn’t mad. He wouldn’t grab Robbie Keane’s head, and he wouldn’t get sent off in the Stade de France. (Still simmering after all these years).
Arsene Wenger’s early teams from 1996 to the Invincibles were all imposing in terms of size and had a commensurate level of success. His thinking changed as he started to collect talented but smaller players, looking to emulate the Barca model of mobile tiki taka. We saw some magnificent football but were often frustratingly bullied by physically bigger opponents, and our successes were limited to three FA cup wins over the next decade and a half.
Mikel and Edu have 180’ed building a team of warriors which compare well with Arsene’s early teams.
Skill: Look at my composite team below and notice it is all Invincibles down the left and present team down the right. Skill levels, much like physicality seem to improve year by year and have we not been blessed over the years with the likes of Santi, Hleb, Rosicky, Cesc, Wilshere, Ramsey, Eduardo, Robin, Ozil and Sanchez demonstrating astonishing skills, but has anyone approached the level set by Bergkamp as much as our present pass master, Martin O? He’d be the first name on my bench.
So, if you were tasked to pick a composite team, would it look much like mine?
Raya
White Saliba Campbell Cole
Saka Rice Viera Pires
Bergkamp Henry
To answer my own question, with a nod to the 2008/9 team, I think this present iteration is the finest Arsenal team since the Invincibles. What do you think?
By Kiwi Stu
Bergkampesque 