Tag Archives: She Wore

Do Arsenal have an ageing concern?

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In a recent discussion with a couple of people, a concern was raised about Arsenal’s ageing squad, and how we need to be in the Champions League so that we can afford to replace them.

Whilst being in the Champions League is important to generate more income, I am of the belief that we can replace the ageing players in the squad with little issue, and that replacing them is not a big problem.

Raul Sanhelli and Sven Mislintat will have a long term plan.

In their transfer war room, which only Emery, Mislintat and Emery will likely have access to, the future of Arsenal will be mapped up. What the team looks like now, what they want it to look like next season, 3 seasons time, 5 seasons and so on.

They might not have the names of new players already in the squad, but they will have the positions that need replacing.

Next to the players names will be dates of when players will be expected to be replaced. Their replacements might be bought earlier, but there will be “expected departure date”.

Pretending to be a German hipster who walks around with a man bag, I attempted to put myself in Mislintat’s boots, to think like he does and predict the departure date of many in the current Arsenal squad:

I have long been of the opinion that it will take 6 transfer windows to fix a lot of the issues in the squad. We have had one already. The above would take us through to the summer of 2021 – which would be the 7th transfer window since Arsene Wenger left.

Firstly this coming summer we are set to lose the likes of Cech and David Ospina. Both do not need replacing. We need to sign 1 reserve goal keeper.

Lichsteiner is unlikely to have his contract renewed. I would not expect Arsenal having to replace him, with Carl Jenkinson and Ainsley Maitland-Niles job sharing.

Over the next two transfer windows (January 2019 & summer 2019), I expect us to sign a centre back (long term Koscielny replacement), left back (long term Monreal replacement) and a winger (long term Mkhitaryan replacement). As above, Eddie Nketiah is the natural replacement Danny Welbeck.

Even before doing this exercise, there were the 3 key areas I am sure we could agree on that needed improving.

So that lease us in 2019 signing 4 players:

A central defender, a left back, a winger and a reserve goal keeper.

Moving into 2020, Koscielny’s contract runs out and I would expect the club to cash in on Mkhitaryan. I would expect us to sign another centre back – a long term replacement for Sokratis – who can then partner the central defender that we signed 12 months earlier.

Obviously depending on progress, either Rob Holding or Kostadinos Mavropanos could become a long term replacement for either. At which point we still need to sign back up defenders.

2021 is the big summer. It is then that I think we will let Ozil and Aubameyang go. Our two highest paid players.

With Arsenal only slated to sign a central defender in 2020, it would give us 2 summers (4 windows) from 2020 – 2021 to get in a long term Ozil & Aubameyang replacement’s – remembering that we will have a 30 year old Alexandre Lacazette in the squad still.

I have deliberately left Calum Chambers and Shkodran Mustafi off the list.

My opinion on them is we might cash in on them this summer, using the funds from them to buy a single replacement – who becomes Koscielny’s long term successor.

Also Elneny probably does not need replacing. We should not rush to let him go; but if he decides he wants first team football elsewhere the door is open.

So in summary:

2019:
Centre back
Left back
Winger
Reserve GK

2020:
Centre back
Aubameyang / Ozil Replacement

2021:
Aubameyang / Ozil Replacement

Anyone else that leaves (Iwobi, Xhaka, Kolasinac)  will simply be replaced as and when.

It would mean that in 2021, we only have Alexandre Lacazette, Granit Xhaka, Saed Kolasinac, Rob Holding and Alex Iwobi who were recruited under Arsene Wenger.

with a whole host of talented youngsters coming through (Saka, Medley, Willock); there is little to be worried about.

(edit: I did not add a Ramsey leaving date. but we all know he is gone this summer).

Keenos

The Highs and Lows of Following The Arsenal

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It’s ying and yang. Black and white. North Korea and South Korea. Leave and remain. You can’t have one without the other.

Football is very much like that.

Over the course of your life, you will suffer more heartbreak, more disappointment, than you will see success.

Luckily for Arsenal fans we have seen a lot more success, and less heartbreak, than the likes of Tottenham, Chelsea or West Ham. But 13 league titles in 130 years. That is a lot of disappointing seasons.

For every result like last night against Tottenham, Arsenal have half a dozen memories of beating that lot.

From Rosicky on the wing, Flamini scoring twice, the FA Cup game in 2010, the 4-1 on their patch, numerous 5-2’s. In recent years we have far more W’s than L’s. And I haven’t even mentioned 2004 yet.

Take the Flamini double. What a night. The Arsenal took the piss on the High Road. But the other side of the coin is last night. In football you can’t really have one without the other.

Manchester City are riding high at the moment, a decade of success. But the prior decade was relegation after relegation.

There city rivals Manchester United are suffering after 20 years of dominating English football.

Nights like last night will hurt. Losing 5-1 to them hurt. 1991 hurt. But without that hurt, the victories will not taste as good.

North London is red” comes from nearly 60 years of dominance
Of 13 league titles & 13 FA Cups
Of 71 and 2004
The invincibles and 49 unbeaten
Winning a handful of times or finishing ahead twice in over 20 years changes nothing

The world is not perfect. You can not expect to only ever celebrate. The majority of us do not.

Last night was a bad day at the office for The Arsenal. There have been hundreds of bad days in my lifetime. And there will be hundreds more before I die. There will also be plenty of glory days. Plenty of success.

They balance themselves out. Without one you can not have the other.

Pleasure and pain.

Keenos

5 changes Unai Emery needs to make at Arsenal

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Return to 4 at the back

I have never been a fan of 3 at the back.

It puts too much onus on the full backs, less to too much space in behind them and not enough cover in front.

To play 3 at the back you need your wide centre backs to be comfortable at full back.

Tottenham can do it as in Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweild, they have two central defenders who have previously played full back.

Arsenal need to return to 4 at the back.

Play Xhaka/Torreira in the middle

The axis of Granit Xhaka and Lucas Torreira is the best central midfield pairing in the Premier League.

The pair compliment each other. Both can defend, both can pass.

Torreira has allowed Xhaka to push further up the park, allowing him to be his aggressive self on the half way line. The Uruguayan also gives us that extra bit of protection when Xhaka miss reads a tackle or pass.

Both also have tremendous ability on the ball. Playing the pair gives the defence and goal keeper 2 options when playing out from the back. It is no surprise our passing is a lot better when both play.

Ultimately, the statistics speak for themselves:

Sign genuine width

Alex Iwobi is not good enough to play week in, week out. Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang are not natural wide men. Arsenal need to invest in a pair of wide forwards.

Playing 4 at the back, with Xhaka and Torreira in the middle, Arsenal have a stable base and centre. Add two wide men either side of a number 10 and the team is starting to take shape.

In the early part of the season, we were a threat in behind the opponents fulls backs. This was due to Iwobi and Aubameyang getting in behind – or making space for Bellerin and Monreal to get in behind.

With Iwobi and Mkhitaryan playing narrow, we lose all width and cover for the full backs.

Reiss Nelson returns in the summer. We need someone one the left hand side.

Decide his best striker

A tough decision needs to be made up top.

We have two top class strikers who broke our transfer record. Unai Emery needs to decide who his first choice is; and stick to it.

Do not panic

We have just lost our first game after going 22 unbeaten. We are in the race for 4th and progressing nicely in Europe.

Against Southampton we were a defensive mess. We were without our 3 first choice centre backs and started the game with a midfielder and a right back in central defence.

At the final whistle the only two defenders on the pitch have not started a league game for a combined 12 months.

There is not need to panic. No need to be rash in the transfer market.

Emery is here for the long term. Sanllehi and Mislintat have a long term vision. There is no need to rip that up just because we lost 1 game.

Keenos