Tag Archives: Mikel Arteta

No time for sentiment: Rosicky, Arteta & Flamini should not play

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132I am not one for sentiment.

Giving a player the penalty on his final game. Making a player captain after reaching a games landmark (or years landmark in Theo Walcott’s case). I hate signing birthday cards for people at work who I do not know. And do not dare ask me to donate to a leaving present to someone who has quit to go to a better paid job. Sod em all.

And today we at Arsenal we come to a game where sentiment is high.

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After this season, there will be no more Tomas Rosicky at Arsenal. There will be no more Mikel Arteta at Arsenal. There will be no more Mathiue Flamini at Arsenal. There contacts are expiring. They will not be renewed. They will not pass go. They will not collect £200.

There is lots of noise on Twitter. Wishing them all well. Video’s of their best bits, like Arsenal are suddenly a Saturday night talent show. And many, incredibly, calling some of them legends.

Lets get one thing straight first of all. Rosicky, Arteta and Flamini are no legends. They are just players who make up part of our clubs great history.CS6O3HWWUAEf2Jx (1)

And now to the anti-sentimental bit.

None of them should play today

We are currently in 3rd place. Automatic qualification for next years Champions League not yet secured. We have a chance, if results go our way (c’mon Newcastle) to finish 2nd, above Spurs. We have plenty to play for. But what we need to do is our job.

And our job is beating Aston Villa. And to do that we need to put out our best team.

Forget about Rosicky, Arteta and Flamini. They are not.

Arteta has not played since the 30th of January. Flamini the 16th of March. Rosicky has played 19 minutes of football this season.

None of them were considered good enough to play previously, so why play them now when we still have much to play for, just because they are leaving?

I want to win, to beat Aston Villa. And our best chance of that is playing Elneny Ramsey and Ozil, not Arteta Flamini & Rosicky.

Alongside this, we should not be using this game to get Jack Wilshere, Santi Cazorla & Theo Walcott fit for the Euro’s. It is about Arsenal. Not individuals.

And do you think they really care about us?

Yes, Mikel Arteta did a great job for Arsenal when we were a club in crisis in 2011. And I felt terribly for the man when he captained us to the FA Cup in 2014, only for Thomas Vermaelen to snatch the cup off him at the last minute and lift it in front of the Wembley crowd. But his time has gone. His legs have gone. Thanks for the memories, but it is time to say goodbye.

As for Tomas Rosicky. This is a man who has spent nearly as much time on the treatment table as Abou Diaby. And I see people calling him a legend. A brilliant player, yes, and one who in 2006 when we signed him was, in my opinion, on par with Kaka. But injuries have ruined his career. In 10 Premier League seasons, he has averaged just 17 games a year. This will be the 2nd occasion in his Arsenal career where he has not played a single league game – unless sentiment get’s in the way. Rewarded handsomely to sit out injured. Thanks for the memories, but it is time to say goodbye.

Finally Mathieu Flamini. He loved Arsenal so much that he refused to sign a new contract in 2008, instead joining AC Milan on a free transfer. Cheers pal (thumbs up emoji thumbs up emoji). Why should we show him sentiment, give him a good send off, when he f**ked off at the first chance? Thanks for the memories, but it is time to say goodbye.

All 3 players have done a job for Arsenal at some point or another. They have played over 650 games between them. But today is not the day for sentiment. Today is the day to win a game of football.

Let them join in the walk around the pitch. Let fans clap them then. Let fans sing their names at that point. But to put it simply, for Arsenal to have the best chance of winning today, non of them should play.

Tomas, Mikel, Mathieu, Thanks for the memories, but it is time to say goodbye.

Keenos

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Arsenal set to release £12 million worth of players

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At this end of this season, it seems like Arsenal will continue what they started last summer. Culling the ‘dead wood’ – although I hate this term.

Last year saw Abou Diaby, Ryo Miachi & Lukasz Podolski leave the club. According to the Evening Standard, Arsenal are unlikely to renew the contracts of Tomas Rosicky, Mikel Arteta and Mathieu Flamini. All of whom’s current deal’s run out at the end of the season. This will free up nearly £12 million from our yearly wage bill.

Whilst many will say they should have gone a long time ago, all 3 will leave with their heads held high knowing that they helped Arsenal through a tough time in the clubs history.

Some will claim Mikel Arteta was one of Arsene Wenger’s most important signings. Whilst this is a tad of an exaggeration, he joined the club during our darkest hours.

Clichy, Fabregas, Eboue & Nasri had just left. Arsenal had only signed two first team players – Gervinho & a young Oxlade-Chamberlain. We had just lost 8-2 to Manchester United. The club was in crisis.

On transfer deadline day, Arsenal spent nearly £30 million bringing in 5 players.

We needed calm, experienced heads. And in Mikel Arteta – and Per Meresacker – that is exactly what we got.

His influence on the club, both on and off the pitch, was there for everyone to see.

On the pitch, he was like a metronome. His ball retention ability was 2nd to none in the league. Whilst he did not have the flair of Nasri, or the creativity of Cesc, he was able to influence the team from deeper, leading many to say it is a pity we did not sign him sooner.

Sacrificing his own attacking instincts, he went back to the defensive role which he played earlier in his career, and he was excellent, if not always ideal.

As captains continued to leave around him, Robin van Persie & Thomas Vermaelen, Arteta became more important off the pitch. He grew into his current role of club captain.

He might not have been a first choice for 18 months now, but a captains job is not just for the 90 minutes on the pitch. Many players have often spoken about Arteta’s role in the dressing room.

Santi Cazorla said “He is always up for whatever the guys need. And that is what a captain has to do: transmitting conviction in order to keep the team together…. Whenever there is a problem he is the one that goes and talks to the manager. He leads this group, so this captaincy is well deserved after his hard work here at Arsenal.”

He is also often found at Hale End with the Arsenal academy taking training sessions, and is the man who makes youngsters welcome when they are invited to train with the first team.

Arteta is a true captain. After the ego captains of Henry, Gallas, Cesc, van Persie & Vermaelen, he was the right choice to get the arm band 18 months ago.

It is just a pity he is not a few years younger, as he would still have an important role to play within the club.

Personally, I would not mind seeing him getting a contract extension. He is clearly influential off the pitch, and he could fill a role that the likes of Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes did at Manchester United. Guiding other players through the early stages of their career and ensuring squad unity.

I would not be surprised to see Mikel Arteta become a very successful manager in the future.

Tomas Rosicky joined Arsenal in 2006. After a brilliant World Cup, where in my opinion he was the 2nd best player on show after Kaka, he had just been made captain of the Czech Republic. I was excited about his signing after having first seen him at Dortmund.

This was a player who had the talent to fill Robert Pires’ boots. To become a World Class player.

Sadly, injuries damaged his career.

A mysterious injury in 2008 saw him make no appearances for the club in 2008/09. However, his contribution to the club is certainly not to be sniffed at.

Memorable goals against Spurs showed his talent. He was just unable to put together a run of games.

I was very surprised (as was he) when Arsenal decided to take up the option of renewing his contract for a further year this summer. It was clear he was surplus to requirements, and wanted out to seek regular football elsewhere in the twilight of his career.

Was his contract only extended to ensure there was a friendly face at the club in our pursuit for Cech? If so, it is a years salary well spent.

He Resigned for 12 months, and has since been injured. It is the tale of his Arsenal career.

Like Rosicky, Mathieu Flamini nearly left in the summer.

Moves to turkey were mooted, and then turned down. Whether this was Flamini wanting to stay and fight for his place in the team, or the club realising that he made Mesut Ozil happy, and Mesut Ozil’s happiness was more important than saving a few million, only the club know.

What is for certain is the two goals he scored against Spurs will write him into Arsenal folk lore.

It is amazing to think that if Flamini does move on this summer, he would have been transferred 4 times during his career. All on a free transfer.

On his return to the club, he was good for the first season. Providing the legs and energy that Arteta was perhaps unable to.

Imagine a Flamini / Arteta hybrid, 10 years younger. It would be the perfect defensive midfielder.

After his first year, it was clear Flamini was no longer good enough. Arsenal needed more than someone who could just ‘run around a little bit’. The defensive midfielder saw the ball more than any other player in a red and white shirt. They needed to be able to pass. And that was Flamini’s weakness. He was not a very good technical footballer.

His demise is mirrored by Francis Coquelin’s rise. Coquelin was as close to a hybrid as we could get. He has the legs and energy of Flamini, but can also play. He showed in a few games around 12 months ago everything Arsenal was missing. Everything that both Flamini and Arteta could not do.

Flamini did a job for 12 months, and then picked up a wage for 24 months. He clearly still has the passion to play, and could still perform at a mid table side in England or France. Arsenal should thank him for his contribution and let him depart.

The money that letting these 3 leavIng free’s up essentially means that Arsenal could go out and add a World Class talent to the squad, an Ozil or Sanchez, without the wage bill increasing. Of course, this relies on us spending, but that’s another blog.

All 3 have played a key part in Arsenal’s history. Whether it is a single game or a season. We should all wish them well.

Keenos

Francis Coquelin’s new contract and how it changes the midfield conundrum

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This mornings Arsenal transfer / contract news surrounds Star of the Moment Francis Coquelin and his new contract, with reports that he has signed a new contract with the club.

If the reports are true, firstly well played to the lad. He is now 23 years old and, since the age of 19, has been shunted out on loan throughout European, with spells at Lorient in France, Frieburg in Germany, and Charlton in South-East London. Between loan deals, he has also had a false start to his Arsenal career – making 39 appearances for the club in 2011/12 – 2012/13.

Throughout his time at Arsenal, he has kept his head down, never complained, been played out of position, and shown a good professional attitude.

He was part of the all conquering 2008/09 Youth Cup winning team, which contained the likes of Craig Eastmond, Henri Lasnbury, Emmanuel Frimpong, Jay Emmanuel- Thomas and, of course, Jack Wilshere.

Coquelin did not stand out in this team. He was often playing full back, rarely in the middle of the park. It perhaps highlights the problem with English football, and young English footballers mentality, that Coquelin got his head down and is starting to forge a career at Arsenal, whilst the young English lads fell away, despite having more talent.

It looked like when he was loaned to Charlton, his Arsenal career was over. But luck and a good professional attitude got him an opportunity, which he has since taken.

With new  contracts for Coquelin and Mikel Arteta, and young Krystian Bielik joining the first team, what does this mean for Arsenal’s central midfield?

Previously, we have discussed how the emergence of Coquelin has partially solves the problems Arsenal have in the middle of the park, and my view has on him has not changed.

Coquelin’s future at Arsenal is still, in my opinion, as 2nd choice. He will provide good back up, and has the ability to come in when we need extra cover in the middle when playing the better teams. His contract does not mean we should stop looking for a top midfielder, with reports that a £15million deal for Morgan Schneiderlin was agreed with Southampton last summer but delayed for a year.

So if we buy, and Coquelin becomes 2nd choice, what does this mean for the rest?

Mathieu Flamini’s contract has another season to run after this year. He has shown he is no longer Arsenal class, a bit of a liability. I would be surprised if he see’s much more game team this season, or much more throughout his Arsenal career.

In a Football Manager world, you would ‘Offer to Clubs’ for nothing and get him off the wage bill for 2015/16. In the real world, this is unlikely. He will be 31 in March, so I doubt there will be too many clubs on the continent willing to take on his £75,000 a week. We are unlikely to be able to move him on, unless he we let him go on a free transfer, and supplement his wages for a year. What is more likely is he sits and ‘rots’ for a year, before leaving in 2016.

Mikel Arteta is an interesting one. Just 2 days ago, he signed a 12 month extension seeing him through to 2016. He will be 34 by the time this extension comes to an end, and he has shown in recent times that Father Time is catching up with him.

This season he has played just 11 games, and there is a strong possibility that he might not play again this season.

Offering a new contract and keeping him on for another year would usually be a crazy idea. However, there are things in his favour.

The fact he is club captain is important. We have instability around the captaincy of the club over the last few years. Without a stand out captain to replace Arteta, we would be better off keeping the stability for another year, rather than handing it to, say, Mertesacker, who might find himself out of the team in a seasons time.

Many players have previously spoken about Arteta being a ‘father figure’ around the club. He is more an important captain off the pitch than on. Helping new players to the club settle, taking time to pass on advise to the reserves/youths, and ensuring that when young players are invited to train with the first team, someone puts an arm round them. This is an important role at the club.

I am sure that Arteta has assisted the likes of Alexis Sanchez and Santi Cazorla settle so quickly, being fluent in Spanish and English. He will also be key in the development of Gabriel.

On top of this, he is still good enough, when fit, to play against 60% of Premier League sides at home. He still has a place in the squad as a player.

We would be crazy to let his experience and calming influence leave the club. We saw in the late 00’s when we let a lot of experienced players (Lehman, Campbell, Henry, Pires, Ljungberg) leave in a short period that at times, the young players looked lost. Keeping the likes of Arteta and Rosicky around will only be good for the entire squad.

Arteta has a role to play at Arsenal, as club captain and 3rd choice midfielder.

As for Krystian Bielik, he is still just 17. He has arrived with a lot of hype, with many people labelling he is ‘the New Vieira’ based on a single article in a paper. It is important to no hype him up before he has even played a game. Afterall, he had only played 5 senior games in Poland.

I think it is still important to see Bielik as a youth player with potential, rather than someone ready to go now, until we see him play.

Having not seen him play, I think 6 months training with our 1st team this year, then going out on loan to a Premier League side next year to play 38 games, ala Alex Song at Charlton will do him the world of good. We would then see him return in 2016/17 as a 19 year old with Premier League experience under his belt. By that point, Arteta would likely be gone, and he would have a genuine opportunity to compete with our first choice central midfielder.

Despite the 3 dealings in central midfield – new contracts for Arteta and Coquelin, signing Bielik – a new central midfielder, for the 7th summer in a row (since Gilberto Silva left) should be top our our shopping list.

Congratulations Francis Coquelin, you deserve your new contract and it is testament to your hard work and professionalism. Hopefully you can be a good example to those younger who will now realise not to give up on their dream, and that hard work and good attitude is as important as talent.

Keenos