Tag: Podolski

Return of the Pod – In-form Gerv to start – Santi in ‘the hole’?

TotalArsenal
Jack the Giant killer is almost fully fit again!
Jack the Giant killer is almost fully fit again!

Recently, it has felt a bit like our season has lost its intensity, after an interlull and games being played only once a week. Luckily, this will change in the coming week with three games in seven days: Norwich and Everton at home and Fulham away. We all know Arsenal cannot afford to drop points if we want to get in front of both the Spuds and Chavs, and we have a golden opportunity to put significant pressure on both of them by winning our next two fixtures. But it won’t be easy.

First up is Norwich and it is time for revenge. I remember our away fixture really well, as I was at the game. Arsenal were disjointed and lacked focus, and after a good run of games, it was a big disappointment that we let them beat us so easily (1-0). Luckily, we have learned and moved on from those sorts of performances as evidenced by our recent cool and professional away wins at Bayern, Swansea and WBA.

Norwich have been in free-fall recently and find themselves only four points from the dreaded bottom three; and they will be keen to start gathering much needed points again. With home games against Aston Villa, Reading and West Brom, they will have better opportunities to both gather points and give their direct opposition a bloody nose – I am sure the Norwich fans would not mind at all to beat a certain manager at Villa – and so they are likely to approach our game without too much expectations, and therefore tension.

We shall see whether this is good for Arsenal or not, but key is of course to concentrate on the way we play tomorrow: we need focus, a high tempo from the start and throughout the game, and take our chances  as soon as possible. Nothing new there!

So, how will Arsenal line-up tomorrow?

Defence

No Mertesacker, so we are likely to see Koz and TV in the middle. On the right, we probably see Sagna, and I am going for Gibbs on the left for this game, as I expect the Pod to start on the left tomorrow, and one of our strongest weapons this season has been the Gibbs-Pod combo on the left wing. More about this in a bit. I also reckon Wenger will stick with Fabianski between the sticks.

It will be interesting to see how Arsenal will cope without Mertesacker organising the defence, but hopefully we will dominate the game mostly in the Norwich half of the pitch.

Midfield

I expect us to play with Arteta and Ramsey in the double-pivot, and as Rosicky is not 100% fit, I am going for Cazorla in the hole tomorrow; as this would also allow Wenger to reintroduce the Pod on the left. Jack is apparently close to being fully fit again and will probably start on the bench; maybe coming on for Cazorla or Ramsey for the last 20 minutes of the game or so.

Attack

I reckon Giroud up-front is a certainty – there is little chance Wenger will surprise us all with either the Pod or even Theo or the Gerv in that position – and on the wings he will have to start the in-form Gervinho; our only specialised, or classical, winger. Theo will probably start on the bench and, like Jack, might play 20 minutes towards the end.

Predicted Line-up:

Will we finally see the return of the Pod tomorrow?
Will we finally see the return of the Pod tomorrow?

We all know our biggest risks are complacency and thinking too much ahead to our crunch game against Everton on Tuesday. Let’s hope the boys continue their impressive recent run of games, focus hard and finish the Canaries off professionally.

Come On You Rip Roaring Gunners!

Written by: TotalArsenal.

Three wins out of last four: are Arsenal finally turning a corner?

TotalArsenal

Abou Diaby

It has been a roller coaster of a season for Arsenal characterized by inconsistency. We began the season on a high note, at some point even being the team with the best defensive statistics in the league. It was all bliss and celebration but before long, the team began to crumble. Losses against Chelsea, Schalke, Swansea and Man United, coupled with consecutive draws against Schalke (again) and Fulham, then Aston villa and Everton, saw Arsenal’s season engage in a downward spiral.

Gervinho, Mertesacker and Vermaelen had lost their early season form, Giroud was still finding his feet in the league, Wilshere and Sagna were fresh from injury, Rosicky and Diaby were still out and Walcott was still in the middle of his contract debacle. This meant that our best players were either injured, adapting, out of from or distracted. We lost ground on the leading pack and ultimately dropped out of the title race. The situation got so bad that at it began to look like we wouldn’t even finish fourth for the first time in a very long time.

Some fans began calling for Arsene Wenger’s head, but he retained his usual obstinate faith in his team and insisted that they would come good. Lately, however, it looks like Arsene may indeed be vindicated for his faith. Three wins and a draw in the last four games shows that the team may be beginning to put together a run that will see us get back in the champions league slots. We are five points adrift third spot, with a much more forgiving fixture list than those above us. We are beginning to display the kind of football that the world has become accustomed to seeing from the boys in red and white.

There are five particular players I would like to credit for this turn around: Wilshere, Walcott, Podolski, Giroud and Gibbs.

Wilshere has become the heartbeat and engine of the team, giving his absolute best even when the team is against the ropes (like in the first half against Chelsea). He defends, runs at players creates space for his team mates, and rips apart opposition defences with his incisive passing, constantly. Everyone is touting him as the next Arsenal and England captain, some even believing that this should be so immediately.

Walcott has become our most potent attacking threat and has become impossible to handle with his pace, first touch, combination play, movement and incredible finishing. He truly has matured.

Podolski continues to be our Mr. reliable with his goals, assists and defensive work on the left hand side of attack.

Giroud has really found his footing and is constantly finding the back of the net. His work rate, combination play, physical presence and predatory finishing have become too much for some to handle, and he still is getting better.

Gibbs (lately) has become our best defender. Both his defensive and attacking displays have really driven Arsenal to the form we all desire. He and Podolski have formed an incredible understanding on the left hand side.

Arsenal have began playing the kind of one touch football that makes me depressed every time there is an international break and I have to wait two weeks to watch them play. It began in that devastating 12 minute spell against West Ham where we absolutely destroyed them, scoring five goals in the process. That form has continued against Brighton, Liverpool and Stoke.

Our defence, however, was absolutely wanting against Brighton and Liverpool. Against Stoke, on the other hand, it was solid (granted we dominated the game in its entirety and Stoke aren’t known for their attacking prowess). I was particularly impressed with our new boy, Monreal’s defensive contribution. He is a remarkably astute defender, plus he has the ball skills of a winger. Not a bad buy, I must say. Mertesacker must also get some praise as he was our best center back. He dealt with crouch the whole game and this was key in keeping a clean sheet.

If you consider that players such as Rosicky and Diaby are fresh from injury, and will get better as games go by, and Gervinho’s displays at the AFCON are carrying the Ivory Coast, you realize that the prospect of finishing third is very real. Whether Arsenal can maintain this form is yet to be seen, but the initial signs are good.

Laurent Koscielny

We are out of the title race for sure, but we have a chance to go for the FA cup and with the belief, we could be the surprise the Champions league, like Chelsea did last year.

COME ON YOU GUNNERS!!!

Written by: Marcus

‘Nacho’s Anyone’? What this super signing will bring to Arsenal: in-depth analysis.

TotalArsenal

Malaga defender Nacho Monreal 

“What is important is that you bring in players who can strengthen your team, or you do nothing, you’re strong enough to do nothing.  We could do with top quality, one more, but you have to find him.  If I bring a normal player in, I give the club a problem.” – Arsene Wenger

There was much debate that the mighty Arsene Wenger would let us down yet again in the transfer window and that he would not reinforce the team with the necessary parts to at least qualify for Champions League next year.  However, it appeared the old, wise man still had a trick up his sleeve and he deceived us all.  At the 11th hour of the January 31st transfer deadline, Arsene perhaps pulled off the most significant coup in the January window: Malaga’s starting Left Back, Nacho Monreal.

Before you rush to proclaim that Chelsea did good business with Ba and Newcastle with Yanga-Mbiwa and Sissoko, you need to understand my criteria for rating Nacho as the highest quality signing.  Nacho was one of the few transfers not subject to: 1) a buy-out clause or an expiring contract, 2) under performance at his respective club or 3) a falling out with either the manager or club.  He’s also a Spanish International playing back-up to one of the best LBs in the world in Jordi Alba, and the whole Spanish squad itself is considered to represent the golden generation of football.

Nacho was a former product of struggling side Osasuna before making the first major move of his career to Malaga in 2011.  Last season, Monreal out-dueled Eliseu for the starting LB role, and was an integral part of their surprising Champions League qualification and 4th place finish in La Liga.

It was rumoured that he started learning English last year in preparation of a move to Arsenal this summer, and that our very own Santi played a huge role in persuading the Spanish International to join him at the Emirates.

However, the process was immediately sped up due to Kieran Gibbs’ injury yesterday.  This short-term injury could end up being a blessing in disguise, since we had an immediate need for cover at LB and Nacho is widely considered to be the second best LB in La Liga by a host of Spanish papers.  This is particularly impressive when you consider some of the LBs currently plying their trade in La Liga: Fabio Coentrao, Marcelo, Filipe Luis, Aly Cissoko, Adriano etc.

He has a relatively good track record for avoiding injuries and the only significant time he missed was two months in both 2008/09 (malleolar injury) and 2010/11 (meniscal laceration).  This season he dealt with some back problems in October that kept him out for just over a month, but everything seems to be cleared up now.

I’ve had the pleasure of watching Nacho play with Malaga for a little over a year now and I truly believe we have bought a special player who is astute at both ends of the pitch.  Defensively his positional play and awareness are good, he’s not afraid to get involved physically and is noted to be quite decent in aerial duels.  Still, like most Spanish players, he is better known for his great ball control and the innate ability to play tiki taka football to escape pressure.  Nacho has good pace and the stamina to run up and down the pitch for an entire game, with a penchant for good link up play with his forwards.

With that said, Nacho’s game is not flashy and he doesn’t have one particular skill that will blow you away.  He doesn’t have blistering pace or slick dribbling skills; he’s a well composed, steadying presence at the back that Arsenal will be able to rely on game after game.  His tackling and ability to close down on players one on one is quite outstanding, as he’s had an 83% tackle success rate this year, compared to Kieran Gibbs’ 69%.  Nacho has averaged 2.1 tackles and 2.1 interceptions per game, while also contributing 1 goal, 2 assists, 0.8 shots/game and 0.4 key passes/game in 14 appearances for Malaga in La Liga this year.

In his Osasuna days, he really had to work on his crossing and delivery since the aerial attack was the focal point of their offense (Osasuna’s playing style is the closest thing to StokeCity in La Liga).  Despite Nacho’s statistics showing that he has only successfully completed 6 of 25 crosses this year, one must bear in mind that Malaga’s attack is focused around playing the ball along the ground, with a balanced approach down the wings and through the middle.  I suspect that Nacho’s crossing ability has been under utilized at Malaga and believe that Giroud can be the immediate beneficiary of his early or late crossing ability; now that Nacho will be given the license to do so more often.

There has been a lot of praise about the blossoming partnership between Podolski and Gibbs, and fans were particularly concerned when Gibbs went down with a hamstring injury for the second time yesterday.  I see no reason why the partnership cannot continue, and most likely improve, with Nacho at the LB position – his passing is more accurate and his defensive play is stronger since he was brought up through the ranks as a genuine fullback.  One must bear in mind that Gibbs was originally a winger who was converted to a fullback and this is the cause for his occasional mental lapses in defensive zone coverage.

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One might wonder what the signing of Nacho means to the long-term future of Kieran Gibbs.  Fortunately, Nacho is not seen as a long-term replacement for Gibbs since he will turn 27 this February, and will bring some much needed competition, experience and depth to the LB position.  Nacho will act as an invaluable mentor and his natural talents in crossing, positional play and technical ability can be passed on to Gibbs.

Gibbs’ injury history has been well documented and this will give him the opportunity to not be so heavily relied upon, and the necessary rest to prevent injuries.  However, Nacho is cup tied with Malaga and will not be able to feature for Arsenal when they take on Bayern Munich on February 19th.  Luckily, Gibbs may be back to full fitness by then and Arsene can ensure that when he does return, he will not be unnecessarily rushed back into the first team for both Champions League and domestic games.

Going forward this purchase will undoubtedly be a massive boost for our team and perhaps reignite the play of our own little creative wizard, Santi, who formed a fantastic partnership down the left with Nacho at Malaga last year.  It’s also a signal of intent to the rest of the Premier League that Arsenal is still capable of attracting top quality talent and actually has the financial resources at its disposal.  Don’t be fooled by the relatively modest £8 million transfer fee involved with the purchase of Nacho Monreal; Arsenal were just fortunate to once again capitalize on the dire financial situation plaguing Malaga CF and most of Spain.

Here’s to wishing that Nacho has a successful Arsenal career and that his transition into our squad is seamless! 

Written By: The Gooner

Five Arsenal positives for the rest of the season

TotalArsenal

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As our anxiety is growing bigger and bigger, with only three days left till the transfer window shuts again and, as yet, not a single purchase made, I thought it would be good to look at the areas in which Arsenal have made progress over the last few months.

I have said in previous posts that, whether we like it or not, Arsenal are going through a major period of transition again this season. Transitions take time and are hard to speed up; and they come with pain and disappointment as well as occasional joy and promise of what could lay ahead for us. Liverpool and the Chavs are going through a major transition, and the Spuds are always going through one! 😛

As football supporters, we are always inclined to respond to the here and now; heavily influenced by the performance and result of the last (few) game(s). But, it is also important to look at how things are for Arsenal structurally, and there are strong signs now that our team is getting better in terms of scoring goals and midfield dominance. Our one area of major concern is the defensive side of the team, and I will zoom in on this area in a future post.

Here are five Arsenal positives for the remainder of the season:

1. Scoring goals: RedNose has recently hailed his strike-force as the best ever. Well at £24m per year in salaries for van Judas and Shrek alone, he would certainly hope so. Yet, MU have only scored three more goals in all competitions than Arsenal this season: 76 compared to 73 for us. Our four highest scorers: Walcott (17), Giroud (13), Podolski (11) and Cazorla (8) have scored only one goal less than the Mancs top four goal scorers: Van Judas (22), Hernandez (14), Rooney (10) and Cleverley (4). Walcott and Giroud have scored 30 goals and are closing in fast on the ‘super-duo’ of Van Judas and Shrek, who have only scored two goals more. Our attackers are starting to gel now and are likely to become even more productive in the next few months.

2. The Theo Walcott effect: Since Theo was ‘reinstalled’ in the team again – ten games ago against Southampton away – Arsenal have scored 2.5 goals per game. By contrast, every time Van Judas led the line for us during the last two seasons, we never managed to score more than 1.95 goals per game on average, over a sustained period. There has been a positive psychological impact as a result of Walcott becoming a starter again and subsequently signing a new contract, and he has also added a much needed extra dimension to our attacking play. The partnership of Theo and Ollie is a very promising one, as together they have all the attacking attributes you could dream of.

3. Return to fitness of midfielders: the return to full fitness of Rosicky and Diaby has come at the right time. With Arteta picking up an injury, and Jack and Santi needing to be rested more regularly now that the big, crucial games come thick and fast, it is great to have quality and experienced players like Rosicky and Diaby available again. Add to that the progress being made by Coquelin, and a surprisingly good performance by Ramsey in Arteta’s anchorman role, and there is reason to be hopeful that we are finally starting to get full value out of the quality of players we have available for our midfield positions. We still need a beast of a DM, though! 😉

On top of that, JW10 has finally been played in ‘the hole’ position, and what a difference he has made in those games. We now have at least two options in this pivotal role: Jack and Santi, and we all know that Rosicky can give both of them a break as well.

4. The Gibbs-Podolski partnership: this is getting better and better. I have said before, they look like brothers on the pitch: there is a natural understanding between them, and their style of football and running look very similar. Podolski is quickly growing into this season’s king of assists and he has also scored a good number of goals already: eleven in total of which seven in the PL. Gibbs excellent runs and wing-play allow Podolski to move closer to the box, where the German can be most dangerous for us. Podolski has been demonstrating some great crossing skills recently as well, and I am hoping that Gibbs will learn from him fast; as this remains one of Kieran’s main areas of improvement. The longer these two play together the stronger they will become, and I reckon they will play a big part in the remainder of the season for us.

5. Vermaelen is coming good again: The Belgium Rottweiler has found his form again recently and is starting to lead by example once more. I still think the best thing for Wenger to do is hand the armband to either Mertesacker, Arteta, Szczesny or even Jack, and allow Thomas to be himself again and do what he does best: focus on defending and terrorise the opposition.

In Jack, TV5 has found a fellow extrovert leader on the pitch, and I reckon that since Jack’s full return to the first-team, Thomas has started to play a lot better by concentrating on his own game a lot more. We are desperate for at least one of our CB’s to play at their best, and with both Koz and BFG going through a bit of a form-crisis, we need TV5 to keep on going, and improving further.

Clearly, the defence is our biggest worry at the moment, and I am hoping that Wenger and Bould will be getting this area right for us as soon as possible now too. The purchase of a solid, disciplined and experienced DM could also really help in that department. Part of me wants us to buy another, quality CB: somebody in the mould of Sol Campbell. But another part of me remains confident that Koz, TV and BFG can between them sort things out. Let’s hope they do!

Written by: Total Arsenal.

Report: Podolski breaks free, Ramsey surprises, Jack & Santi lead, Giroud rewarded.

TotalArsenal

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A fantastic day to be a Gooner and we were treated to a classic Arsenal display.  Lukas Podolski was fantastic and led the way for Arsenal with a beautiful goal and three assists.  Interestingly enough, Arsenal have registered at least five goals in each of the last three Premier League games (prior to today’s match vs. West Ham) in which Lukas Podolski has scored in; and today was no different.

Throughout the entire match, Arsenal dominated possession and dictated the flow of the game.  It was necessary to come out of the gates strong and Arsenal were up to the task, immediately settling in as West Ham gave us plenty of time and space to knock the ball around.  Unfortunately, Arsenal were to concede first after an unnecessary challenge by Gibbs.  The subsequent free-kick led to a string of corners that eventually led to Collison scoring for West Ham.

However, Podolski immediately responded with a cracking finish from his left foot to bring Arsenal back into the game.  From that point on, we never looked back and came very close to scoring again with some beautiful build-up play.  Unfortunately Gibbs’ final pass was a little too far forward and Podolski missed the open net while lunging forward with his right foot.  The first half ended with two free kicks, one of which belonged to Cazorla who curled a beautiful shot around the wall, but was met with an even better diving save by Jaaskelainen.

As the second half loomed, the typical questions began to haunt the loyal Arsenal supporters.  Would we become complacent after showing good effort in the first 45 minutes?  How long would it take for us to settle into the second half?  Would this be another game where we dominated possession but had difficulty finishing our chances?

Those fears were quickly quelled as Theo started off the second half with a blazing run down the right flank.  Despite no one getting on the end of his cross, Podolski was able to gain possession off a poor clearance by a West Ham defender and sent a nice ball to Gibbs, whose shot was blocked and cleared out for a corner.  Off the ensuing Walcott corner, Giroud moved into open space at the near post and met the kick with a beautiful one-time finish into the back of the net.  Jaaskelainen stood in the net rather stunned, as he could not believe Giroud was allowed so much space.  This goal set off a flurry of action all in Arsenal’s favour; notably, when all three of Arsenal’s summer signings connected on a beautiful Santi ‘back-heel’ goal.  Instead of explaining it, here’s the video in case you missed it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jwyu6yn4Xko

Arsenal scored four goals in a brilliant start to the second half and Podolski found himself assisting three of them with beautiful balls to Walcott, Giroud and the aforementioned Santi goal.  Not to go unmentioned was Jack’s magnificent distribution to find Podolski and set him up for those eventual assists.

A big shout out to Ramsey as well, who proved me wrong and played well today as the deepest midfielder.  He looked more effective than he has been all season, with his playmaking from a deep position and his determination in defending.

The only unfortunate blemish on an otherwise amazing second half of football was an injury to Daniel Potts, which left him unconscious on the field and required him to receive immediate medical attention.  I wish Daniel all the best and hope he has a speedy recovery.  Compared to our last game vs. West Ham, it was evident that they were missing Diame’s presence in their midfield: their offense looked flat, they could not retain ball possession, and our midfield was able to boss them around all game.

Before I begin on the player ratings, I’d like to explain how I arrive at the number a player receives.  For me, a 7 represents that a player has sufficiently done what has been asked of him and not much more.  An 8 signifies that the player has contributed more than the average player, but that either his performance has room for improvement or I’ve seen better games from him lately.  A 9 or higher is reserved for outstanding performances and is usually accompanied by tangible statistics on the score sheet.  Ignore previous ratings from past articles, as I’ll look to be consistent from here on out in the new rating system.

Player Ratings:

Szczesny (7.0) – Once again, Szczesny gave us the stability we needed in goal and was never really tested.  He couldn’t have done anything more on Collison’s goal and dealt with all other potential dangers around the goal well.

Gibbs (7.5) – He played solid at both ends of the pitch, contributing with good challenges and runs down the left flank.  He conceded two unnecessary free kicks, one of which eventually led to a goal and I’d also like to see him improve his crossing.

Vermaelen (7.0) – He also played well in the first half and cleared the danger when Collison intercepted an errant Ramsey pass and tried to push West Ham forward.  Unfortunately, Ramsey clipped Vermaelen as they both went for a goal line clearance.  Hopefully he’ll be ok and he was taken off the field for precautionary reasons.  Difficult to rate him any higher, since he only played 45 minutes.

Mertesacker (7.5) – He had a couple errant passes in the first half that took away the momentum we were trying to build early in the game.  The BFG eventually settled down and cleared away all WHU approaches through the air in the 2nd half.  Solid and defensively reliable, he led the line to leave WHU in an offside position on numerous occasions.

Sagna (7.5) – Sagna defended wonderfully throughout most of the contest, and Ramsey fortunately covered his only lapse in defensive coverage.  Aside from that, he linked up well with Theo on the right and was involved in the offense from the right side.  He took the bulk of the defending down the right since Theo was often nowhere to be seen in his defensive assignments.

Ramsey (8.0) – While I did not find Ramsey to be outstanding, I was still very impressed with his overall performance today, compared to past appearances.  He started off with a questionable challenge on Noble and quite a few errant passes that led to quick West Ham counters.  Aside from the early blunders, he filled in admirably at the holding midfield role.  He was determined and dependable defensively (goal line clearance when the game was tied 1-1 is noteworthy), sprayed the ball all over the field and made nice simple passes in the final third.  The beginning just appeared to be him shaking off rust and he certainly built confidence as the match continued.  Hopefully he can build on this performance, and I think he more than justified another start at the holding midfield position for this weekend.

Wilshere (8.0) – Jack was great right from the start, driving our team forward, quickly challenge West Ham players when we lost possession and trying to play dangerous balls in the final third.  He made a smart pass to Podolski in the first half that brought us even, and several of his passes in the second half split West Ham’s defense and eventually led to more goals.  He also played some beautiful long passes to Theo when he was at full speed, but unfortunately the chances were not converted.  The downsides to his game included giving the ball away a few times and occasionally being indecisive on the edge of the opponent’s 18-yard box.  Despite playing further back in the midfield, he still had a big influence on the game and perhaps my rating is a bit low, but I’ve come to expect big things from our number 10.

Cazorla (8.0) – Santi gave our offense good shape today and he carried the ball forward more opposed to his typical quick, short passes.  He adds good variety to our attack since he’s not afraid to take a shot from distance, yet can also deliver some devastating through balls.  His back-heel finish was something to behold, and as stated earlier, he capped off a beautiful build up play between Giroud and Podolski.  He’s also very astute defensively and can strip the ball from the opposition because he thoroughly understands the direction they look to move the ball to.  However, Santi also fell victim to some errant passes and could have done more with a few opportunities he had at the edge of West Ham’s 18-yard box.

Podolski (9.5) – Prince Podolski started off the game working hard to deny West Ham a free kick; his incredible work rate continued until he was substituted in the 69th minute.  His overpowering finish in the 21st minute really gave Arsenal life, as we were down 1-0 after dominating most of the game until then.  Podolski got himself into all the right positions today and was the recipient of some beautiful passes from the midfield.  He rewarded the midfield’s work by producing equally nice passes to Theo and Giroud (both across the goal for relatively easy goals).  Podolski was definitely our best player on the pitch and he even did all the little things right today too – he contributed well defensively, had a surging run in the 1st half, was getting on the end of clearances by the West Ham defenders and was playing smart, yet dangerous passes in the final third.  The only minor faults in his game were trying to be too cute with passes in West Ham’s 18-yard box in the first half, and not finishing better on Gibbs’ pass (albeit it was slightly in front of him and on his right foot).

Giroud (9.0) – Every time Giroud steps out on the pitch, we can be confident that he will put in 100% effort and do anything to help his team win.  Though his finishing can be questionable and he often rushes his chances, you can never fault him since he’s contributing in some other way.  He won countless headers today and knocked the ball to his teammates, held the ball up well, linked up with Podolski on numerous occasions that led to Arsenal completely breaking down West Ham’s defense and he scored two goals.  His over the top chip pass to Podolski was fantastic and he’s starting to make those types of passes a regular part of his game.

The only shortcomings in his game today were passing in the 18-yard box a couple times when he should have shot the ball, and not clearing a corner far enough which eventually landed right in front of Collison, which he turned into a goal.  Aside from that, he was brilliant and I can certainly see why Bobby P has so much faith in him.

Walcott (7.5) – Despite scoring a goal and adding an assist off a corner kick, I felt Theo was a little wasteful with his chances today.  Jack sent Theo in twice on stretch passes where he was on near breakaways at full speed, and he failed to even get a shot on goal.  On a couple other occasions, Theo had open opportunities to put away goals in the opponent’s 18-yard box and also failed to convert.  If the contest had been tighter this would have been unacceptable, but fortunately we won by a large margin.  His defensive contributions left much to be desired and he was often waiting up field for the midfield to send him on breaks.

However, he did track back wonderfully at the end of the second half, going all the way across to the left side of the pitch to cover for Podolski and defend a West Ham counter. Theo also looked more confident with the ball at his feet today and dribbled around Reid and O’Brien several times in the first half.  His surging run down the flank got Arsenal into the right frame of mind in the second half and began the onslaught that we were all treated with.

Koscielny (7.0) – Much like Vermaelen, Kos only played 45 minutes and was never really tested.  He cleared the ball well when needed and helped the defensive line play West Ham’s forwards offside quite a few times.

Santos and Oxlade-Chamberlain (Incomplete) – Both were decent in their cameo appearances and moved the ball around quite well.  Both players lacked the final end product and each could have scored if they had been more composed with their finishing.  Still, they did not have enough game time or touches to accurately assess their games.

Overall, it was a fantastic match to witness and Arsenal were by far the better team by a wide margin.  The connection between our three new recruits today is very promising, and we started to look like the Arsenal of old; penetrating and breaking down defenses with precise passing and finishing off some fantastic link-up plays in the final third.  Ramsey’s work as the holding midfielder gives us more versatility in case of injuries and is perhaps a position that he can grow into (however it remains to be seen how he’d fare at that position against a better side). 

We must not fall prey to the continual inconsistency that has plagued us this year and not waste such an outstanding team effort in our next game.  For now, we can rest easy knowing we played some beautiful football today and got a much needed three points in style.

Written By: The Gooner

Has Arsene already signed the new Pires and Ljungberg?

TotalArsenal

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For all those of you checking constantly whether we have bought somebody yet, these are not easy times. I used to be like that, but I have learned not to bother with any gossip unless it is confirmed by Arsenal.com or the BBC. The combination of a relatively low position in the league, our current inability to hit some decent form consistently, and the lack of transfer activities, is making us all restless and grumpy.

Firstly, let me state that I am hoping for 1) a beast of a DM, 2) a traditional winger and 3) a back-up, PL-experienced goalkeeper. If nobody arrived by the end of the month, I will be very disappointed. But, it is pretty useless to talk about potential targets, as Arsene is utterly unpredictable and probably does not exactly know what/who he wants himself at the moment; as per his recent comments.

However, with the return to fitness of Diaby and Rosicky, and the rest of our squad all fit and available, and Theo now being played through the middle regularly, we could potentially see a change in formation to 4-4-2, and I reckon we have the players for it.

For the sake of discussions, let me first give a few of my personal views:

  1. Ideally, we need a strong, physical DM, who can play football as well;
  2. Arteta and Jack don’t offer enough in terms of physical strength/ ball winning skills;
  3. Jack does not wear the nr.10 shirt for nothing; he should play higher up the pitch;
  4. Cazorla is a great player, but I would play him on the wing; he does not give our team enough shape and purpose when he plays in the advanced midfield position in our current 4-2-1-3;
  5. Both Jack and Rosicky are our best players in terms of conducting our play i.e. giving shape and purpose to our football: one of them should play in the advanced midfield position;
  6. Podolski is not a winger, but he has formed a good partnership with his twin-brother Gibbs, and if he could get fitter and sharper he could become fantastic in that position for us.
  7. I like the thought of Theo and Giroud play together up-front, but it will take time and it will only work in my view if Arsenal start playing in a 4-4-2 formation.

Given the above, I would absolutely love it – and I know I am not the only one who would welcome this – if we were to change to 4-4-2 from now on. In an ideal world, Arsenal could line up in midfield and attack like this:

Cazorla – Wilshere – New DM/Diaby – Podolski

———————–Theo—Giroud———————–

Giroud could be our attacking pivot, and Theo could have a free role: at times adding support to our wing-play, and other times combining with Giroud to create and score goals, or running on to through-balls from our midfielders. The longer Giroud and Walcott would play together the better their partnership would become.

With Cazorla and Wilshere we have two fantastic midfielders who can help on the defensive side as well as creating chances for others. However, it is important that we add more steel in the centre of defence. A fit Diaby could do it, but we cannot count on him for long: therefore, a new DM should be bought as soon as possible.

I would love to see Cazorla and Podolski on the wings in this 4-4-2 formation: they would both add defensive support as well as a real assist and goal threat. Cazorla could be our new Pires, although not playing on the left but the right, and Podolski could be our new Ljunberg, although also playing on the other side. With Ox, Coquelin, Gervinho, Eisfeld, and Rosicky we also have decent cover for our left midfield and right midfield positions.

Cazorla could be cover for Theo and Podolski could replace Giroud, and I would not be surprised if we were to buy another central striker if we were to change to a 4-4-2 formation. I hear some of you say, Arsene will not go back to 4-4-2, no way! You are probably right, but don’t totally disregard it, as I can not see him putting either Theo or Giroud on the bench for long spells.

But, let’s say, Arsene sticks to his beloved 4-2-1-3 formation: how could it work better for us?

Well, as per my personal views above, I would like to see the following formation in midfield and attack:

——————Arteta/Diaby—New DM/Diaby—————-

————————-Wilshere/Rosicky—————————

Cazorla/Ox——-Giroud/Theo–Pod/Theo/New Winger

I reckon Arsenal would play far better football than we currently do with this combination of players. Jack or Rosicky would give our play purpose and structure; a proper DM would give us steel in midfield; or, if and when Diaby is fit, he could form a fine partnership with Arteta (as per the start of the season).

Arsenal could either play with Theo or Giroud in the middle, depending a bit on the opponent and/or current form. There are also good options for the wing, although it would be great if we were to buy a very good, dedicated winger to give us more variety in this area, in the next few weeks.

All in all, plenty of opportunities to further fine tune the team for Arsene, and it will be interesting to see what will happen in the next few weeks.

Written by: Total Arsenal.

Giroud, Walcott, Podolski, Ba: who’ll lead Arsenal’s attack in 2013?

TotalArsenal

Theo Walcott

Will or won’t Theo sign a new contract? And if so, does that mean Giroud will end up on the bench? And what about Podolski: he would also like to play more in the centre, and on top of that the rumours of Arsenal looking for another central striker are getting stronger at the moment.

Of all the rumours, the one regarding Demba Ba joining us from Newcastle seems the most feasible to me. But why are Arsenal still looking for a central striker? Does that mean, Arsene expects Theo to move on in January, or could it be that Arsene is thinking to move to a different system of 4-4-2  or 4-4-1?

To be honest, I have not got a clue.

I like the idea of Giroud up-front, especially in a 4-5-1 system. The Frenchman is great at holding up the ball and allowing the midfield to bounce the ball of him. I also like Giroud in a 4-4-1-1 upfront with either Theo or even Cazorla behind him. Giroud could feed the ball to either of them, but would also benefit from their potential assists.

But then I can also see a problem with Giroud. As a more classical centre forward, and in order to use him to his full potential, the whole attack has to be focussed around him, which will a) make us more predictable and b) make us more dependent on him. It does also mean that we need a good number two in the team, who can take over from Giroud in case of suspension or injury.

At the moment, we do not have an adequate replacement. Chamakh’s days are counted, and I don’t think Podolski has the same skill-set for the pivotal role up-front as Giroud does.

However, we have also played a ‘fluid-three’ up-front in the last few months: most recently with Theo in the middle, and Pod and Ox on the wings, but also with Gervinho in the middle and Pod and Ox on the wings. I really like the unpredictability of playing a non-classic CF upfront with two players on the wings who can also finish really well. Key is though that at least one of the ‘wingers’ is actually a winger who can make things happen. For me that means that in the current squad either Gervinho or the Ox has to play on one of the wings. With Gervinho going to the AOC , and the Ox picking up form recently, I reckon we will see more of Ox on the right wing.

If Arsene is to continue with a fluid-three up-front, is buying another CF the right thing to do; or is it more important to buy a traditional, quality winger who can add the necessary width and guile to our attacking play?

If Demba Ba is indeed joining us in January, it must mean we are going to play in a 4-4-2 or 4-4-1-1 formation, and I cannot say that would not excite me. I can see us play Cazorla and Ox on the mid-wings and Arteta and Wilshere in the middle, with either Giroud and Theo, Theo and Pod, Ba and Theo, Giroud and Pod, Ba and Giroud, or Ba and Podolski up-front. For Demba Ba you could also put another striker with whom we are being linked at the moment.

All the above indicates that it is hard to predict what system we are going to play and who will be our main attackers in 2013. Arsene bought Giroud only this summer, so surely his plans must involve him. But he appears also keen to keep Theo and give him his wish to be played in the middle. Both are different strikers and might, or might not, be able to play together. The only way to play them together is a 4-4-1-1/4-4-2 formation, and if that is what Arsene is aiming for, I can understand why he would want to buy another CF, as he will need cover in such a system.

But what is it going to be? You tell me!

Total Arsenal.

Santi dictates, Gibbs/Pod left side power, Theo gave us wings + Player Ratings

TotalArsenal

Santi Cazorla celebrates after scoring against Reading

Arsenal took a much-needed three points from last night’s match vs. Reading and hopefully it silences the criticism that has been plaguing the club as of late.  The 5-2 result was well deserved given the balance of play and it’s about time that we started performing to the high levels of expectation for a top club.  We completely dominated the first 60 minutes of play, and if it were not for some critical Federici saves, the score could have easily been 7-0.

Three of the five goals were produced from the left side of the pitch, with one other goal assisted by Gibbs on the left from a fantastic Theo cross.  Much of our early season success came from a dangerous left side that featured overlapping runs and fantastic link up play from Podolski and Gibbs.  Gibbs’ injury vs. West Ham directly coincided with the attack down the left flank breaking down.  Hopefully, the Gibbs-Podolski partnership continues to flourish consistently from here on out.

The left side was given more freedom to attack due to the speed threat of Theo down the middle; Reading’s defense was quite narrow and given our last clash with them in the Capital One Cup, they were right to be concerned.  Up front, our attack was finally given shape and we were treated to a classic, beautiful Arsenal display – fluid passing, direct runs, intelligent movement and relentless pressure from both flanks.  This was possible because Arsene finally switched his tactics and played a more mobile striker in Theo up front.  The front three were interchanging their positions with Podolski and Ox occasionally drifting centrally and Theo chasing down balls played into open space down the left and right.

Player Ratings:

Szczesny (7.5) – The Pole’s continued to give us stability in goal and has done everything you can reasonably expect from a keeper.  He did well to outstretch himself and grab what could have been an easy goal for Reading off a corner.  None of the goals were his fault and were a direct result of defensive breakdowns.  However, it would have been nice to see Szczesny save 1 of the 2 goals.

Gibbs (8.5) – Fantastic display down the left hand side and helped give our attack shape.  Two assists, some scoring opportunities that were blocked and plenty of good crosses.  Constantly pushed forward offensively and was reliable coming back for his defensive duties.  The only reason I didn’t give him a higher rating was because of his errant pass to Wilshere that led to a goal that brought Reading back into the game.

Vermaelen (8.0) – Has looked much more reliable defensively this year and saved us early on in the game on a 2 v 1 by clearing Pogrebnyak’s pass across the front of the goal.  Would have liked to have seen him more involved offensively, but it was more a luxury than a necessity today.  Great game by our captain, took a gamble to intercept Gibbs’ errant pass before the first goal.

Mertesacker (7.0) – Broke up a few of Reading’s plays and ensures that we have adequate defensive cover.  However, he was guilty of ball watching and drifted away from marking Kebe, who eventually scored the 2nd goal.

Sagna (7.0) – His crosses have been ineffective all year and perhaps it was fortunate that he was not playing in as much of an advanced role yesterday.  Reading’s few scoring chances primarily came down the left side, a testament to both our domination in possession and to his defensive reliability.  Still, had a few turnovers from poor passes and I’ve come to expect more from what I believe is the best right back in the Premier League.

Arteta (8.5) – The engine that drives our team and it was evident that we missed him last week in our loss to BradfordCity.  Won ball possession back and instantly pressured Reading when we lost possession of the ball.  Always great with ball retention, followed his defensive responsibilities well and distributed the ball to our creative outlets as we’ve seen him do all season.  Really helped to settle our team down and conserved his energy to chase down attackers.

Wilshere (8.5) – You can tell that he’s the one who wants to make things happen for the squad.  He leads the team up field with his charging runs with the ball and he is always looking to add directness to our attack from the midfield.  His aggressive style helps keep the opposition in check, but it did lead to a yellow card.  He had an opportunity to score from a nice mid-air volley but the effort was met from an even better Federici save.  It was unfortunate that he slipped on the 1st goal, but the pass shouldn’t have been played that far away from him in the first place.  Jack really should have had at least one assist today, but personal accomplishments are not important when the team wins.

Cazorla (9.5) – 3 goals and 1 assist, well deserved ‘Man of the Match’ recognition and he really showed his world-class ability.  Recently, I’ve accused him of not being influential enough to take matters into his own hands to turn around games for our team, but yesterday he truly was the difference.  He was creating plenty of through ball scoring chances for Theo, made intelligent passes in the final third, always put himself in good positions to score and took plenty of chances that he may not have taken in past games.  The only thing keeping his rating from a perfect 10 was his defensive lapse early in the game when Pogrebnyak was on the receiving end of a nice give and go that almost led to a Reading goal when the game was 0-0.  In addition, later in the 78th minute, Santi tried to do it all by himself vs. 6 Reading players and turned the ball over in Reading’s 18-yard box.  As you can see, I really had to nitpick to find any flaws in his game yesterday.

Podolski (9.0) – A goal and 2 assists and it appears like Podolski has finally come back into form and reignited his partnership with Gibbs down the left flank.  He’s often accused of either disappearing or being non-existent in games, but today he put in a great performance for the full 90 minutes.  A couple erroneous passes at the edge of and within Reading’s 18-yard box brought down his rating slightly.

Walcott (8.5) – His pace is a nightmare for defenders and Reading gave him plenty of space to make intelligent runs into empty space.  His goal at the 80th minute destroyed any hope of a Reading comeback and despite starting as a striker, he was willing to move out wide and distributed some nice crosses into the middle of the pitch (he spotted Gibbs with a cross that eventually led to the third goal).  However, Theo missed a breakaway opportunity in the first half and he could have passed to a wide-open Podolski in the second half instead of taking a shot that was wide of the mark.

Oxlade-Chamberlain (7.5) – He really set the tempo of the game for us after his blazing run and attempt on goal that was deflected wide by Federici in the opening minutes.  Reading had difficulty coping with his pace all night and his ability to cut inside added another element of directness and unpredictability to our attack.  In fact, it was his decision to take the ball inside and pass it to Wilshere that eventually led to Cazorla’s hat trick, which involved classy, vintage Arsenal build-up play.  He did disappear for about half the match and was rightfully substituted in the second half.  He had a great opportunity to score his first PL goal this season but a spectacular sprawling Federici save met his header.

Ramsey, Giroud and Coquelin (Incomplete) – All were relatively late substitutes and did not have sufficient time to make an impact on the game.  I hate to pick on Ramsey after such a great team effort but our attack down the right side became non-existent once he stepped onto the pitch and we ended up passing backwards into our own end more.  Giroud missed a great opportunity to get onto the score sheet after sending a volley into Federici’s outstretched arms on a breakaway.  Coquelin made a nice run forward and held the play up well that eventually led to a Podolski give away, but that’s about all I noticed from him in his cameo appearance.

Despite Arsenal playing a game full of so many positives, there were still negatives to take away.  In typical Arsenal fashion, an inspiring first 60 minutes eventually led to 2 goals that gave life to a late Reading comeback.   It looked like a realistic possibility before Theo iced the game with a great finish at the 80th minute to make it 5-2.

We have lacked focus defensively for much of this season and have been punished late in games for conceding crucial goals (2nd leg vs. Schalke, Swansea, Fulham, Olympiacos); fortunately, today we amassed a significant lead to relieve some of the pressure if such a scenario were to occur again.  As noted earlier, Gibbs’ misplaced pass exposed us for the first goal and ball watching by Mertesacker led to the second goal.  Finally, zonal marking on corners looks like it’ll eventually do us in, and we were fortunate to only concede 3 today.

Going forward, questions still remain unanswered.  Can we replicate the same success at home?  Was today’s result a testament to our improved team play or us facing a very poor, lackluster Reading side?  Will this win be met with any level of consistency or will we once again be victims of an underwhelming performance next time out?  Not to sound too pessimistic after today’s glorious performance, but there’s been a disturbing trend of inconsistency that casts a shadow of doubt over the coming Wigan clash on Saturday.

Four times this season, we’ve managed to follow up encouraging wins with losses or ties: beat West Ham, then lost to Norwich/beat QPR, then lost to Utd/beat Tottenham, then tied Villa and Everton before losing to Swansea/beat WBA, then lost to Bradford on pens.

All in all, a great game where we dictated the pace of the game and the result should go a long way in building confidence for our squad.

Written by: The Gooner.

Tricky Gervais: why we need Gervinho to fire Arsenal up

TotalArsenal

Gervais Lombe Yao Kouassi, better known as Gervinho is a player who divides opinion amongst the Arsenal faithful. In a way, he has taken over from Theo; who until recently also divided opinion between the fans. I have no doubt that if a poll was held now; the vast majority would want Theo to stay. But the same poll would have had a very different outcome twelve months ago.

Gervinho is a very important player for us.

He possesses a set of skills that are unique at Arsenal – at least at senior level. He can play as a classical winger, an inside-out winger (which makes him suitable to play on either the left or right wing), and also in the central striker position.

This season he started as our central striker against Southampton, Chelsea, Olympiacos and Schalke (away), and his goal scoring record is very impressive: four goals in four games as a CF. Admittedly, his performance in Gelsenkirchen was disappointing, but the bigger picture this season tells us that Gervinho can be very effective if we play him centrally in attack – in a ‘fluent-three’: Pod-Gerv-Ox/Theo.

But I reckon his best position is on the left wing, although he only started there in our first official game of the season against Sunderland. Wenger keeps persevering with Podolski on the left wing and this only seems to work for us if Gibbs is being played in tandem with him. Podolski is the ideal back-up striker for Giroud in my opinion, but he appears to be deemed too good to be left on the bench by Wenger; as a result, he is mostly played next to Giroud on the left.

Gervinho has started in three different positions this season: LW (1), CF (4) and RW (3). Every time he is played on the right it smells of a Wenger compromise in order to be able to play both Podolski and Giroud. Arsene is working hard to get the best out of his new signings Podolski, Giroud and Cazorla, so it is understandable that he has been experimenting with different attacking formations.

As Gervinho has not been as effective on the right wing – his only decent game on the right was against Montpellier away – it looks like Theo, or even The Ox, will be first choice on the right. Giroud is rightly claiming the central spot, and the left wing is Podolski’s currently. As a result, Gervinho might find himself not getting many starts in the near future, and I think that would be a real shame.

Gervinho is one of our best runners with the ball. He is one of the few who has the tricks and speed to take a man on and get into dangerous positions, from which he can pass the ball to a fellow attacker or shoot on goal himself. He also makes himself constantly available for other players and is able to both hold on to the ball and move forward with attacking intent. Podolski does not offer these very important skills and neither does Theo; unless he gets the ball played to him in space.

I really hope, Wenger will start playing him now more regularly on the left wing, with Giroud or Podolski in the middle and Theo on the right. For me, Gervinho has the all important drive, and he makes things happen: he adds another dimension to our 4-3-3 formation, and is fully capable of firing our team up again.

Total Arsenal.

Unselfish Giroud too much for his old teammates: Arsenal 2 – 0 Montpellier

TotalArsenal

We almost take qualification into the next round of the CL for granted nowadays, but we only have to look at the Southern and Northern Oilers to realise how special it is to be once again in the last sixteen of the most prestigious club tournament in the world.

Montpellier made it hard for us in the first half by pressing constantly and not allowing us to keep the ball for long. I thought they did that really well; but as predicted they were not able to do much harm to us where it mattered most. They now only scored eight goals in their last seven games, and they must feel gutted seeing Giroud doing so well for us at the moment. I do feel for them a bit.

In the second half, Arsenal were better at keeping the ball and getting into areas where we could hurt them. Giroud proved to be the ideal attacking pivot in this game, as he unselfishly provided both Wilshere and Podolski with fine assists.

The first one started with a decent cross by Vermaelen towards Giroud; the Frenchman out-jumped his former teammates and presented Wilshere with the perfect assist. Jack did not believe his luck and calmly stroked the ball past and behind Jourdren. It was great to see the joy on Jack’s face: it had been two years – 10% of his entire life – since he scored last for Arsenal, so no wonder he was so pleased.

But the highlight of the night was the second goal. A strong and determined run by Ox, from the right-hand side towards Montpellier’s box, instigated the goal. Once he moved into the danger area, he passed the ball to Podolski just outside the box. The German quickly passed to Giroud, who also did not hesitate for a second and bounced the ball back to Podolski at the perfect height for his left howitzer. Podolski put all his venom into his volley, and Jourdren had no chance: a beautiful team goal, involving all three attackers.

After that, Montpellier tried to regain control but were never dangerous, and Arsenal could see out the game with relative ease.

A clean sheet and two fine goals; and Arsenal are now qualified for the next round: job truly and well done! With a bit of luck, there are no further injuries and we can start preparing for what will be, without any doubt, another tough, physical battle against Aston Villa in three days time.

I know many fellow Gooners reckon Arsenal have no chance to win the CL this year and they could well be right; but it is tournament in which luck plays a big part.

The clear favourites: Barcelona (Celtic), Real Madrid (Dortmund), and Bayern (Bate Borisov), have all been beaten in Europe already, and there is no reason to believe we cannot beat them too.

Clearly, Arsenal are outsiders, but you never know; maybe Arsene will be holding up the cup with the big ears at Wembley on the 25 May 2013. Stranger things have happened! 🙂

Total Arsenal.