Author Archives: keenosafc

Edu BBQ’ing humble pie for his critics this Halloween

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Over the summer Edu got a lot of abuse from many Arsenal fans.

They criticised him for liking a BBQ and having one too many holidays. They claimed he was out of his depth, that he did not really know what he was doing.

We had massively overpaid for Ben White, despite having William Saliba at the club – who his detractors would point out was the superior player.

We let Matteo Guendouzi go on loan to Marseille whilst spending big on Albert Sambi Lokonga.

And the worst deal of the summer was bringing in Aaron Ramsdale – he had been relegated 3 times in the last 3 seasons.

Only Arsenal, under Edu, would sell Emiliano Martinez for £17million and buy Ramsdale for £30million.

Of course, they under estimated the Martinez fee (it was £20million) and over estimated Ramsdale’s (£24million rising to £30million). but these sort of people never let the facts get in the way of their narrative.

What Edu did was bring in players of a certain profile.

All under 24 years old. All with plenty of experience despite their age. And all with the right attitude.

In the last few years, looking out to in the Arsenal squad has always looked disfunctional.

Too many cliques. Too many players with poor attitudes who down tools at the first sign of the manager putting the pressure on.

When Arteta took the job, he spoke about his ‘non-negotiables‘ at Arsenal. These were respect, commitment and passion. But he came into a squad with too many players who did not have that respect, commitment or passion.

There has been a huge overhaul of players since Arteta came in. Players sold, new contracts handed out, new signings made.

This is now his squad, built alongside Edu. And it is starting to become clear and the players that have joined Arsenal – and those who have been kept – have fallen into line with what Arteta demands.

No one typifies the “new Arsenal” more than Ramsdale.

I have never known a player to get so much abuse before he had even joined the club.

Fans were throwing their toys out of the pram left, right and centre. Some even going as far as saying they would “abandon the club” if Ramsdale joined. There people are not fans. They are hangers on.

Ramsdale has been colossus since he joined.

In the battle between Martinez and Bernd Leno for Arsenal number one, Ramsdale came up on the rails to take it by 8 lengths.

He is not only clearly the best keeper at Arsenal but also one of the best keepers in the Premier League.

His save against Leciester City was one of the best seen in a while (although he did get a tad lucky with the rebound coming off his knee). He is clearly a fantastic shop stopper.

Ramsdale also dominates in the air.

At corners he commands his area, comes out and claims the ball. Catching, not punching.

Knowing you have a keeper that can dominate at set pieces makes defending so much easier.

Ramsdale’s distribution is amongst the best in the league. Maybe not yet on the level of Ederson but he is getting there.

The passes along the ground into midfield have transformed the way we play out the back. If teams press high, he by-passes the opponents and gets the ball into midfield.

He never stops talking. Barking out demands. A voice at the back.

And he is also a character.

When Leicester City fans were giving him a bit of jib, he gave it straight back joining in their chants.

It reminded me of Kevin Pietersen in Sydney when he joined in with the Barmy Army songs about Mitchell Johnson. You have to have some self confidence to do it.

When we signed him, we spoke to Sheffield United fan Arty Bianco and he kept telling us that he is a great lad, a great character.

And great lads, great characters seems to have been the order of the summer.

You get the feeling Ben White, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Martin Odergard are also great lads, great characters.

As are Gabriel, Kieran Tierney, Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe.

The attitude of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has also seemed to have changed this season as well. And with that his form.

He seems to be more energetic. Less sulky. And I think that comes from the positive influence of those around him.

Edu was highly criticsed over the summer. I hope this Halloween he is serving up a huge portion of humble pie to those that criticsed.

Feel free to leave your apologies in the comments below.

Keenos

https://twitter.com/SheWore/status/1453318051475173387

MATCH REPORT: Leicester City 0 – 2 Arsenal

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Leicester City (0) 0 Arsenal (2) 2

Premier League

King Power Stadium, Filbert Way, Leicester LE2 7FL

Saturday, 30th October 2021. Kick-off time: 12.30pm

(4-4-1-1) Aaron Ramsdale; Takehiro Tomiyasu, Ben White, Gabriel Magalhães, Nuno Tavares; Bukayo Saka, Thomas Partey, Albert Sambi Lokonga, Emile Smith-Rowe; Alexandre Lacazette; Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Substitutes: Bernd Leno, Martin Ødegaard, Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Rob Holding, Cédric Soares, Nicolas Pépé, Mohamed Elneny, Sead Kolašinac, Gabriel Martinelli.

Scorers: Gabriel (5 mins), Emile Smith-Rowe (18 mins)

Arsenal Possession Percentage: 38%

Referee: Michael Oliver

Assistant Referees: Simon Bennett, Dan Robathan

Fourth Official: Robert Jones

VAR Team at Stockley Park: VAR Jarred Gillett; AVAR Sian Massey-Ellis

Attendance: 32,209

We all recognise that today’s match at the King Power Stadium will be a difficult one, hence the change in formation. Again, we have both of our main strikers on show right from the start, so it will be interesting to see if we can punch a hole through the Foxes’ defence, utilising this attack-minded formation, and along with a powerful four-man midfield, it should all make for an interesting Saturday lunchtime clash.

After a moving Remembrance Day ceremony involving both managers laying wreaths in the centre circle on behalf of the fallen of both world wars, we kicked the match off in earnest, showing intent by taking the game to the home side in the early stages. After just five minutes, we scored the opening goal, courtesy of Gabriel. Shortly after a first Arsenal corner was kicked out for a second, Gabriel rose to meet the high delivery to flick his header past Kasper Schmeichel and into the net. This early goal fired our boys up, and both Thomas Partey and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang were desperately unlucky in not scoring a second goal for us shortly afterwards. The home side looked a little all at sea, almost nonplussed after our early strike, and they seemed to be having issues in getting themselves together against a very confident Arsenal side. Our confidence paid dividends, when after eighteen minutes, we grabbed a second goal when Alexandre Lacazette looked like he wass going to shoot in the penalty area but the ball ran away from him. Jonny Evans’ clerance was poor and Emile Smith-Rowe was on hand on the edge of the eighteen-yard box to neatly slot the ball into the back of the Foxes’ net. We were completely dominating the match at this point of the game, with every man playing their part and confidently knowing their role within the system. Aaron Ramsdale was called into action after twenty-six minutes, when he dived at the feet of Youri Tielemens to deny the home side a scoring opportunity; and again a minute or so later, he pushed a dificult shot from Kelechi Iheanacho past the right-hand post to show everyone what a fine goalkeeper this young man truly is. Leicester City’s game plan appears to be one-dimensional, in as much that they are attacking us straight down the middle of the pitch, a move which our defenders are finding it a comfortable process in dealing with this particular simple tactic. The match started to level out, and although both sides had their chances, it mostly came to nothing in the midfield areas. Incredibly, three minutes from the break, a James Maddison free-kick was superbly saved by Aaron Ramsdale, and although Jonny Evans followed in, Thomas Partey managed to kick the ball away to save the day. Incredible drama. The two minutes injury time brought no more action, and so we went into half-time deservedly two goals ahead.

The home side kicked off the second half, and suddenly the match became more intense and quick with both teams challenging with gusto and vigour. Ben White and Nuno Tavares at the back were excellent in their positioning and tackling, and it was their quick thinking on several occasions that prevented the Foxes from scoring, as the home side started to assert themselves in the first quarter of an hour of the second half. Alexandre Lacazette was replaced by Martin Ødegaard after fifty-seven minutes, but the substitution was not enough to stop the home side from increasing the pressure on our goal; Aaron Ramsdale was abolutely immense today, throwing his body in front of each and every shot from the Leicester City forwards. A sterling performance by the young man between the sticks. Time after time our defence was placed under intense pressure at the mid-way point of the match, and every time they stood up to be counted in order to deny the home side the oxygen of a goal. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang nearly scored a valuable third goal when Kasper Schmeichel saved from him from close range, and shortly afterwards Bukayo Saka was also very unlucky not to score when his mid-range shot went skywards. The match started to get rather scrappy now, with one or two unsavoury incidents here and there, which saw free-kicks being given liberally by referee Michael Oliver, followed by entries in his book with the yellow card being shown on a couple of occasions. After Martin Ødegaard went to ground following a bad tackle, Bukayo Saka was replaced by Nicolas Pépé with just six minutes of the match remaining. The match started to lose some of its previous fire and fury now, and with two minutes of the game remaining, Emile Smith-Rowe was replaced by Sead Kolašinac in order to shore up the defence in the dying embers of this battle. In the five minutes’ injury time, our game management was the difference between the two sides, and we kept our heads to take three points back to North London, and now fifth in the Premiership table.

All things being equal, a fabulous performance by all concerned. Aaron Ramsdale was truly magnificent today, a world-class performance from a goalkeeper that will surely grow in stature from now on. Arsenal looked good, played with confidence and are now nine matches undefeated across all competitions; we left the King Power with no injuries and no bookings, add to that the players adapting very well to the 4-4-1-1formation (which oscillated between that and 4-4-2 at different times during the match) then you have a recipe for sucess. Keep going lads, you’re looking good.

Remember everyone, keep the faith, get behind the team and the manager, as this season is going to be crucial for our future success in all competitions. Stick with the winners. Our next match: Watford at Vicarage Road on Sunday, 7th November at 2.00pm (Premier League). Be there, if you can. Victoria Concordia Crescit.

Steve

Too Dearly Loved To Be Forgotten: Arsenal v Racing Club de Paris 1930-1962 by Steve Ingless (Rangemore Publications, ISBN 978-1-5272-0135-4) is now available on Amazon.

https://twitter.com/shewore/status/1453318051475173387?s=21

William Saliba performances should get Arsenal fans excited for next season

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William Saliba was not ready to play for Arsenal.

It is that reason why Edu bought in Ben White – with his Premier League and English football experience – to partner Gabriel.

Gabriel had been a stand out performer in France and gave Arsenal good balance on the left hand side of the back 2.

The Brazilian had a tough first season at Arsenal – picking up a red card and contracting Covid19 – but the talent was clear and obvious for all to see.

The question this summer would have been who partners him.

With David Luiz leaving following the expieration of his contract and Pablo Mari clearly Gabriel’s back-up, Mikel Arteta and Edu had a few options.

Rob Holding was “first reserve” last season, coming in for Luiz when he was out injured. But Holding is a limited player.

Holding is very good when a team is defending deep, backs against the wall. But his pace is exposed when holding a high line and his distrubtion is weak.

He is very much an old school English centreback – focusing on defending rather than playing football. It is a style not suited to Arsenal and Arteta moving forward.

It was therefore not a surprise that Arteta was not sold on him, and that Edu made a new defender a priority.

The other option would have been Calum Chambers.

Chambers is perhaps more sorted to Arteta’s game play than Holding.

He is quicker and much better on the ball – yet he is not as good defensively and certainly not a power house in the air.

Chambers is one of these whose career has been affected by never really establishing a position for himself.

He started as a right back at Southampton; but upon his move to Arsenal his lack of pace was exposed in that position.

When he moved centrally, he proved a good reader of the game and ball player, but could be dominated physically.

A period playing central midfield for Fulham created more problems than it solved.

That left William Saliba – but the feeling was the young Frenchman was still not ready for Premier League football.

No one has ever questioned Saliba’s natural physical talents. It was those that saw Arsenal pay so much for him at such a young age. But he needed to learn how to defend and deal with different situations.

He would only develop this side of his game through playing – and with the state of Arsenal and the defence it was a risk that the club could not take.

Still just 20-years-old, he opted to go to Marseille on loan this seaosn rather than Arsenal’s preferred choice of Newcastle United.

Arsenal wanted him exposed to Premier League football. Some could argue that Saliba opted for the comfort zone of French football. But in hindsight with everything going on at Newcastle, Saliba made the right decision.

Saliba has been fantastic this season for the French club and it would not be a surprise if he gets a France call up sooner rather than later.

Some would argue that Saliba should have been given the opportunity he is getting now for Marseille at Arsenal – but it has to be remembered the coaches saw him week in week out. And that he barely got a sniff in pre-season friendlies.

It was clear that Arsenal did not feel he was ready for 38 Premier League games a season.

So the club went out to the market and signed Ben White for £50million from Brighton.

https://twitter.com/SheWore/status/1453318051475173387

A few gawped at that price-tag and Arsenal probably did overpay for him. but it showed an intent – that we had the oney to get the players we want.

After a tough first game against Brentford, White has been fantastic.

His reading of the game, his defensive ability and his ball playing has transformed the Arsenal defence; and he has built a really god partnership with Gabriel.

Against Leeds United we really saw the gulf in class between Holding and White. The new signing is levels above.

That shows Arsenal got the decision right in buying White to come in ahead of Holding.

The other option would have been to have Holding as first choice for one more year and hope Saliba develops in France. It would have been a risk.

So moving forward to next summer; what are Arsenal’s options?

White and Gabriel will be going nowhere. That is our first choice defence.

If Saliba continues his form in France, I expect him to return to Arsenal and compete with the pair to start for Arsenal.

It only seems to be at Arsenal where having quality players as back-up and competing for first team places is a proble,. There is easily enough room for White, Saliba and Gabriel.

Injury, suspension, rest and rotation will mean there is plenty of game time for all 3.

What is clear about the data over the previous 5 years is that when we are in Europe, we need 3 first choice centre backs.

The 3rd defenmder has averaged 24 starts over the last 5 years and 28 appearances. That is more than enough games to justify keeping Smith, Gabriel and Saliba in the squad. It will also be more than enough games to keep all 3 satisfied with their laying time.

Manchester City have John Stone, Ruben Diaz, Nathan Ake and Aymeric Laporte. Liverpool Virgil van Dijk, Ibrahima Konaté, Joe Gomez and Joël Matip.

Antonio Rüdiger, Andreas Christensen, Thiago Silva and Malang Sarr are all competing to start at Chelsea – and the club failed to buy Jules Kounde i nthe summer.

It is clear that to compete at the bottom, you need 3 top class central defenders and then another one or two backing them up.

At Arsenal, we would have White, Gabriel and Saliba competing for two spots, with Pablo Mari as the 4th option.

Saliba, again still just 20, is in finishing school at Marseille. He wil lcome back a beeter player next summer than he would have been had he stayed at Arsenal this season and been in and out of the squad.

Instead of pointing at Saliba’s performances in France and saying “why is he on loan?” embrace his development and get excited over the depth in defence we will have next season.

Keenos