Let me begin by quoting from my last post, exactly seven days ago: "There is a good vibe around the side at the moment". It didn't take long for that to change, did it? Two dire performances on the pitch and another antsy AGM later and the mood is very different.
Did we misread the positive displays in the early part of the season, when the team appeared to have learned the mysterious concept of 'organisation'? I don't think we did, it's just that whatever good habits they had picked up were lost over the international break. We have suffered injuries, Diaby's absence being felt most acutely, but that doesn't explain the sudden loss of shape and cohesion.
I can't see a reason why, given time on the training ground, they can't re-learn those good habits but what makes things harder is the atmosphere off the pitch, among supporters. The familiar frustration endured at some point every season (but usually around spring when false hopes have truly been dashed) has come to the boil in double-quick time this year. It sets everyone in the club on edge and doubtless makes it harder for players to perform on the pitch. I don't blame us for our response - it just makes it harder for squad members who are suddenly struggling with form to improve.
The lack of any kind of vision from Stan Kroenke about what he wants to achieve - either outlined at the AGM or elsewhere - fuels the concerns. What he perceives as a hands-off approach, we end up seeing as disinterest. The ethos and attitude of the club needs to flow from the top down - perhaps Kroenke has shared his ambitions within the club behind closed doors but I doubt it. Either way, if supporters aren't given even a morsel of information worth hearing, it only feeds the 'in it for the money' conspiracy theories.
Anyway, our most immediate problems are on the pitch. Everyone, including Wenger, highlighted our terrible start to last season and what a 'miracle' it was to recover from it. Well, if we take just a point against QPR today we'll be in exactly the same position after nine games, with a trip to Man U next up.
No matter how much more encouraging the start to this season has been compared to last, it will be another daunting task to recover and gain the fabled fourth spot. Europe's fifth richest club shouldn't continue to suffer the same problems and cause the same frustrations for supporters season after season.
Saturday 27 October 2012
Saturday 20 October 2012
Back in action
The return of domestic football seems a good time to dust off the keyboard and get back to blogging.
Since my last post we've seen downs and ups and performances of vary degrees of quality but overall the trajectory of the team has continued to be upward. The lowest point was the performance against Chelsea. We still had good chances to get an equaliser but there was a clear lack of belief among the Arsenal that they were good enough to beat the league leaders.
The high point was the Man City game. Not only did we outplay the champions for a good proportion of the match but I watched it in the company of the Bay Area Gooners in a San Francisco pub, my first 8am kick off. They got behind the boys from first minute to last and the atmosphere after Koscielny's goal was better than the Emirates. Fair play to them.
There is a good vibe around the side at the moment. It is amazing what a few wins will do to confidence but more than that the players seem more up for the fight this season.
Is it the Bouldy effect or just being able to call on better quality players like Podolski and Cazorla? Most likely a combination of the two, plus the clear improvement of players now in the second season like Gervinho, Jenkinson and the BFG.
But they say you should only start to judge a season after 10 games and that will feel about right for this Arsenal. As encouraging as things have been, we still sit seventh, seven points off Chelsea who admittedly have probably over-achieved in accruing 19 points.
The next three league games - Norwich away, QPR home and Man U away - are all winnable. Seven points or nine, giving us 19 or 21 after 10, would be a great foundation to build from; continue the form and we'd have 72 to 79 points come May 19. We'd probably need more to win the league which means we'd need to get better still to challenge. It looks a tall order given the size of the squad but let's give ourselves a chance - let's beat Norwich.
Monday 3 September 2012
Grown-up Arsenal suggest good times ahead
Liverpool 0 Arsenal 2
Let me add this caveat before I get carried away with: at the minute, Liverpool couldn’t score with one of Wayne Rooney’s grannies.
But that shouldn’t take away with the latest, and most impressive, stage in the early evolution of this Arsenal team.
They showed the same level of defensive control as against Stoke but this time added the clinical finishing that was missing then and against Sunderland.
In all, it was a grown-up performance. Yes, there were moments of pressure but they never lost their heads. And they never wasted their good work, when in the past ten or fifteen minutes of pressure would be let down by a sloppy error that changed the game’s momentum. This Arsenal side was too composed to get ruffled, even at Anfield. It was the sort of performance a Mourinho team would deliver; tactically sound, high-quality football in defence, midfield and attack where no measure is given or expected.
It’s nice to be unsure where to start with the praise. Let’s go back to front. Mannone looked confident and more sure-footed than ever before; Mertesacker and Vermaelen won their aerial battles and mopped up well, and the BFG did especially well after being booked so early; Jenkinson and Gibbs again made a valuable contribution to the defensive unity and Gibbs looked much more effective offensively; Arteta did exactly what Song would have done but with more panache; Diaby lived up to the reputation that Wenger and Laurent Blanc have bestowed upon him – the way he left one Liverpool midfielder (Allen? Sahin?) in his wake to set up Giroud showed his talent at its best; Cazorla performed with the class of his first two games and this time kept it up for the whole 90 minutes, including the vital second goal; Podolski’s sprint and finish for the opening goal was a demonstration to certain other wingers in our squad what you need to justify earning £80k a week. Oxlade-Chamberlain was the quieter of the attacking players but still put a good shift in; Giroud got into good positions and worked hard – his need for a goal is obvious, though.
Diaby and Arteta were the top performers for me and set the tone for a determined display that carried enough style and arrogance to satisfy Arsene.
Is the improvement simply down to having older heads on the pitch? Maybe, but it isn’t just how much more experienced this team is but more that its attitude is exactly right. They are working hard during games and seemingly on the training ground judging by the cohesion and control the team is showing. And remember – we have yet to field our first choice defence and have two French internationals to return, plus arguably our best midfielder (that’s Wilshere, not Rosicky).
Of course, I shouldn’t get too carried away and I don’t want to suggest we’re now going to conquer all. But it does at least feel like we can hope good times are ahead. In some ways, had we won our opening three games 3-0 I would be less encouraged than I am now. Straightforward wins like that would have suggested the familiar ‘when we’re good, we’re good…’ trait. Instead, this side appears to have much more substance to it than that.
Let me add this caveat before I get carried away with: at the minute, Liverpool couldn’t score with one of Wayne Rooney’s grannies.
But that shouldn’t take away with the latest, and most impressive, stage in the early evolution of this Arsenal team.
They showed the same level of defensive control as against Stoke but this time added the clinical finishing that was missing then and against Sunderland.
In all, it was a grown-up performance. Yes, there were moments of pressure but they never lost their heads. And they never wasted their good work, when in the past ten or fifteen minutes of pressure would be let down by a sloppy error that changed the game’s momentum. This Arsenal side was too composed to get ruffled, even at Anfield. It was the sort of performance a Mourinho team would deliver; tactically sound, high-quality football in defence, midfield and attack where no measure is given or expected.
It’s nice to be unsure where to start with the praise. Let’s go back to front. Mannone looked confident and more sure-footed than ever before; Mertesacker and Vermaelen won their aerial battles and mopped up well, and the BFG did especially well after being booked so early; Jenkinson and Gibbs again made a valuable contribution to the defensive unity and Gibbs looked much more effective offensively; Arteta did exactly what Song would have done but with more panache; Diaby lived up to the reputation that Wenger and Laurent Blanc have bestowed upon him – the way he left one Liverpool midfielder (Allen? Sahin?) in his wake to set up Giroud showed his talent at its best; Cazorla performed with the class of his first two games and this time kept it up for the whole 90 minutes, including the vital second goal; Podolski’s sprint and finish for the opening goal was a demonstration to certain other wingers in our squad what you need to justify earning £80k a week. Oxlade-Chamberlain was the quieter of the attacking players but still put a good shift in; Giroud got into good positions and worked hard – his need for a goal is obvious, though.
Diaby and Arteta were the top performers for me and set the tone for a determined display that carried enough style and arrogance to satisfy Arsene.
Is the improvement simply down to having older heads on the pitch? Maybe, but it isn’t just how much more experienced this team is but more that its attitude is exactly right. They are working hard during games and seemingly on the training ground judging by the cohesion and control the team is showing. And remember – we have yet to field our first choice defence and have two French internationals to return, plus arguably our best midfielder (that’s Wilshere, not Rosicky).
Of course, I shouldn’t get too carried away and I don’t want to suggest we’re now going to conquer all. But it does at least feel like we can hope good times are ahead. In some ways, had we won our opening three games 3-0 I would be less encouraged than I am now. Straightforward wins like that would have suggested the familiar ‘when we’re good, we’re good…’ trait. Instead, this side appears to have much more substance to it than that.
Monday 27 August 2012
Another clean sheet, another point, no shattered limbs. Result!
Stoke 0 Arsenal 0
Some people are calling yesterday’s performance at Stoke boring but I can’t be the only person who finds it very satisfying to see Arsenal looking solid for a change. It gives hope that the addition of Steve Bould and Neil Banfield to the coaching staff may pay dividends over the course of a season. Problems up front can be solved more easily – defences take time to construct and this one looks good so far.
From memory there were no simple, high balls sailing over the heads of our centre backs as they so often did. No full backs being sucked into the centre circle only to find the man they should be marking was stood in 20 yards of space and about to bear down on goal.
There was just a new-found air of authority, of each man knowing his job, being determined to stick to it and not letting Stoke's approach get under our skin. Mertesacker revelled in the battle with Crouch, Vermaelen was strong on the cover and Diaby and Arteta provided willing protection in front of them. Meanwhile Jenkinson showed last week’s performance was not a one-off – it is telling that nobody is counting the days until Sagna returns. Even Mannone looked confident of keeping a clean sheet. That it all happened at Stoke, a ground where we have struggled so much recently, makes it even more heartening.
The biggest moment of concern was Jermaine Pennant skipping round Gibbs and falling down under the weight of the defender’s gentle shove. On another day it could have been a penalty but it was almost like the referee could see we had stepped up our game at the back and was unwilling to punish us so strongly for a minor indiscretion.
Chelsea won a Champions League because of their defence. I’m not saying we’ll do that yet but it goes to show how far you can get without producing fireworks in attack. If we can control things as we did at the Britannia it will allow us to go into games knowing one goal will be enough for a win, a facet of our game that has been missing for years.
Of course, that plan relies on actually scoring a goal and our forwards showed little sign they had struck up a bond in a week. Cazorla again looked like a sharp tack among a bunch of dolt bolts but he became peripheral after getting a nasty clout from Marc Wilson. He needs to learn such physical attention is a compliment rather than shrinking away from the challenge.
Podolski played as I expect he always will – on the periphery of the action mostly but capable of doing something game-changing when he does get involved.
Giroud simply looks like he’ll take a while to find his feet but there can be no ‘new boy’ excuses for Gervinho. He knew exactly what to expect and what is expected of him at one of the toughest league grounds to visit and yet he still did not deliver. I hoped his lack of end product last season was part of the settling in process. Two games is too early to judge whether we’ll see the ‘real Gervinho’ this season but yesterday he offered little and it feels like his indecision at the killer moment will always remain a character trait.
Still, the defensive unity is the major plus point from yesterday and if we can embed that it will serve us well throughout the season. That will rely on forming a unit over a long period of time. Getting goals is more a transient issue – a moment of individual brilliance up front can overcome deeper tactical flaws more easily than defence.
The difficulty is with Liverpool, Man City and Chelsea all coming in the next four fixtures, along with Southampton, the goals need to come pretty fast if we aren’t to end up with just a handful of points at the end of September. If we show the same kind of control in defence as we did against Stoke, we should achieve more than that.
Some people are calling yesterday’s performance at Stoke boring but I can’t be the only person who finds it very satisfying to see Arsenal looking solid for a change. It gives hope that the addition of Steve Bould and Neil Banfield to the coaching staff may pay dividends over the course of a season. Problems up front can be solved more easily – defences take time to construct and this one looks good so far.
From memory there were no simple, high balls sailing over the heads of our centre backs as they so often did. No full backs being sucked into the centre circle only to find the man they should be marking was stood in 20 yards of space and about to bear down on goal.
There was just a new-found air of authority, of each man knowing his job, being determined to stick to it and not letting Stoke's approach get under our skin. Mertesacker revelled in the battle with Crouch, Vermaelen was strong on the cover and Diaby and Arteta provided willing protection in front of them. Meanwhile Jenkinson showed last week’s performance was not a one-off – it is telling that nobody is counting the days until Sagna returns. Even Mannone looked confident of keeping a clean sheet. That it all happened at Stoke, a ground where we have struggled so much recently, makes it even more heartening.
The biggest moment of concern was Jermaine Pennant skipping round Gibbs and falling down under the weight of the defender’s gentle shove. On another day it could have been a penalty but it was almost like the referee could see we had stepped up our game at the back and was unwilling to punish us so strongly for a minor indiscretion.
Chelsea won a Champions League because of their defence. I’m not saying we’ll do that yet but it goes to show how far you can get without producing fireworks in attack. If we can control things as we did at the Britannia it will allow us to go into games knowing one goal will be enough for a win, a facet of our game that has been missing for years.
Of course, that plan relies on actually scoring a goal and our forwards showed little sign they had struck up a bond in a week. Cazorla again looked like a sharp tack among a bunch of dolt bolts but he became peripheral after getting a nasty clout from Marc Wilson. He needs to learn such physical attention is a compliment rather than shrinking away from the challenge.
Podolski played as I expect he always will – on the periphery of the action mostly but capable of doing something game-changing when he does get involved.
Giroud simply looks like he’ll take a while to find his feet but there can be no ‘new boy’ excuses for Gervinho. He knew exactly what to expect and what is expected of him at one of the toughest league grounds to visit and yet he still did not deliver. I hoped his lack of end product last season was part of the settling in process. Two games is too early to judge whether we’ll see the ‘real Gervinho’ this season but yesterday he offered little and it feels like his indecision at the killer moment will always remain a character trait.
Still, the defensive unity is the major plus point from yesterday and if we can embed that it will serve us well throughout the season. That will rely on forming a unit over a long period of time. Getting goals is more a transient issue – a moment of individual brilliance up front can overcome deeper tactical flaws more easily than defence.
The difficulty is with Liverpool, Man City and Chelsea all coming in the next four fixtures, along with Southampton, the goals need to come pretty fast if we aren’t to end up with just a handful of points at the end of September. If we show the same kind of control in defence as we did against Stoke, we should achieve more than that.
Saturday 25 August 2012
Never been to Stoke, Santi? Oh, you’ll love it…
I always wonder who breaks the news to new signings from far off, picturesque lands that at least once a year they have to play a football match in Stoke. And how do they go about it? Does an earlier survivor of the trip recount all the gory details of 9ft centre backs who eat youth players as a half-time snack. Does Wenger gather them in a group and attempt to inspire them to rise to the challenge of whatever is – literally in the case of Delap’s torpedoes - thrown at them? Or perhaps everyone pretends there is nothing to worry about in the Potteries and then just deal with the shellshock afterwards.
Whichever way it happens, I can't imagine Cazorla or Giroud (something tells me Podolski can give as good as he gets) can be truly prepared for their first game at the Britannia. It is the closest they will ever get to days of yore when men were moustachioed, pitches were bogs and football was rugby.
This isn’t meant as a criticism of Stoke, as such - if I supported them I don’t doubt I’d love anything which unnerves majestic clubs like Arsenal so good luck to them. But if you’re not a supporter it is just a game that must be overcome rather than enjoyed. It’s grim enough watching from the stands but actually playing must be even worse. A bit like landing on the beaches of Dunkirk – head down, hope for the best and see you on the other side. Maybe.
What a boost it could provide if we did manage to take three points, though. It’s too early to say it will be a deciding factor in our fortunes but a team that is still forming its identity after losing two of its biggest names could take a huge amount of encouragement from pulling off a win.
Do I expect that to happen. If I’m honest, no. An Arsenal team needs to be firing on all cylinders and have total belief in itself to take on the likes of Stoke away from home. As last week proved, these players are still getting to know each other but even a draw and at least small signs of, say, attacking cohesion and defensive solidity would be enough to give confidence for the opening stages of the campaign.
Sahin saga - did we really need him?
The ongoing uncertainty over trying to sign Nuri Sahin on loan was frustrating, but mainly because it might have held us up in pursuing alternatives. If we did not complete because, as reported, Real refused to include a permanent transfer clause then that’s fine by me. Why should we act as the rehabilitation unit for a player who needs games and then let Real reap all the benefits if he returns to top form?
In any case, I’m not even sure we needed him. From what I’ve seen Jack Wilshere has everything he can offer and maybe more. People have written about his ability to pick a long pass but Cazorla has already shown he’s not afraid to do that. Missing out on him might prove a blessing in disguise if it allows us to add something new to the team before the transfer window closes. We need a destroyer to prowl in front of the defence, not another playmaker. Someone who would actually enjoy playing at Stoke!
Whichever way it happens, I can't imagine Cazorla or Giroud (something tells me Podolski can give as good as he gets) can be truly prepared for their first game at the Britannia. It is the closest they will ever get to days of yore when men were moustachioed, pitches were bogs and football was rugby.
This isn’t meant as a criticism of Stoke, as such - if I supported them I don’t doubt I’d love anything which unnerves majestic clubs like Arsenal so good luck to them. But if you’re not a supporter it is just a game that must be overcome rather than enjoyed. It’s grim enough watching from the stands but actually playing must be even worse. A bit like landing on the beaches of Dunkirk – head down, hope for the best and see you on the other side. Maybe.
What a boost it could provide if we did manage to take three points, though. It’s too early to say it will be a deciding factor in our fortunes but a team that is still forming its identity after losing two of its biggest names could take a huge amount of encouragement from pulling off a win.
Do I expect that to happen. If I’m honest, no. An Arsenal team needs to be firing on all cylinders and have total belief in itself to take on the likes of Stoke away from home. As last week proved, these players are still getting to know each other but even a draw and at least small signs of, say, attacking cohesion and defensive solidity would be enough to give confidence for the opening stages of the campaign.
Sahin saga - did we really need him?
The ongoing uncertainty over trying to sign Nuri Sahin on loan was frustrating, but mainly because it might have held us up in pursuing alternatives. If we did not complete because, as reported, Real refused to include a permanent transfer clause then that’s fine by me. Why should we act as the rehabilitation unit for a player who needs games and then let Real reap all the benefits if he returns to top form?
In any case, I’m not even sure we needed him. From what I’ve seen Jack Wilshere has everything he can offer and maybe more. People have written about his ability to pick a long pass but Cazorla has already shown he’s not afraid to do that. Missing out on him might prove a blessing in disguise if it allows us to add something new to the team before the transfer window closes. We need a destroyer to prowl in front of the defence, not another playmaker. Someone who would actually enjoy playing at Stoke!
Sunday 19 August 2012
The archetypal rusty start / Song
Arsenal 0 Sunderland 0
You won’t find many better examples of players struggling to switch from pre-season football to the real thing than Arsenal’s performance yesterday.
Full of good intent, they were let down by crossed wires at the decisive moment and just didn’t have the energy to sustain a decent first half.
I’m sure some will argue they should be at their fittest on the first day of the season but like players returning from injury, they need real football in their legs before they reach their peak.
If I was feeling critical, I’d say the botched trip to play a friendly in Nigeria hasn’t helped our preparation but I’m more inclined to argue that the timing of the international friendlies during midweek caused more disruption.
Rather than fitness, the most obvious feature, especially upfront, was a lack of familiarity between colleagues. Podolski spent most of the game pointing to where he wanted the ball after it went in the opposite direction and Gervinho and Walcott got into dangerous positions only to waste their delivery.
Cazorla (a player who I got so excited about on Friday that I spelled his name wrong – updated now but sorry, Santa…) looked every inch a top quality playmaker. I still don’t know whether he is left or right footed and I hope I never find out. His ball for Giroud was a great example of his vision but unfortunately his fellow newbie was suffering the worst of the rustiness.
When will Theo’s time come / Jenkinson
It would be interesting to know Cazorla’s thoughts after the game having seen how his team-mates fared in battle for the first time. I can’t help but wonder if he, like me I’m afraid, thinks the reason Theo hasn’t been offered a new contract is because we don’t want to give him one, never mind his required wages.
At 23 and having been at the club for six years, Theo should be entering his best ever seasons, this should be his prime. And yet he is still struggling to control the ball and his dribbling often defines ‘cul de sac’. Yes, he too may be adapting to proper matches but there is always a feeling that he has much more to offer. I’ve always said he is a striker by nature and we would see the same faults if, for example, Jermain Defoe was asked to play on the wing. But regardless of that, you would expect him to have ironed out basic problems in his game after six years.
You only have to look at this partner on the right yesterday, Carl Jenkinson, to see the improvements that can be made in a short space of time. I’ve never thought he had the talent to play for Arsenal, even if he is ‘one of us’ and would happily be watching from the stands. But I’d say yesterday was his best game for us and he has obviously spent the summer working hard. Of course, there will be far more onerous games to come but I can’t remember him putting a foot wrong.
It takes quite a bit of the fabled ‘mental strength’ to get better, to believe in yourself so much that you don’t just accept things have gone to seed. It is a quality Andrei Arshavin is lacking going by his cameo yesterday. He must have only touched the ball five times and four of those led to Sunderland gaining possession. Chamakh, who didn’t even make the bench, appears to have suffered the same crisis in confidence and both will be best served by moving away, should anyone want them.
Why does it happen and is it a problem that is unique to Arsenal? One to mull over on another day, but it is something I keep in the back of my mind as I hail Cazorla as the saviour of the human race.
System failure
The biggest concern from yesterday was the lack of movement between the front three and the supporting midfielders. We never saw enough of players breaking position to cause confusion in the massed Sunderland defence.
It has been a regular fault of Arsenal with this three-man attack and you have to question why Wenger wasn’t able to change the pattern, or willing to alter the system and bring another striker on (not that that would have helped if he’d been static too). The manager acknowledged all the problems in his press conference but failed to say what he did about them, ie nothing.
It summed up what was a sluggish day all round.
Going for a Song
In the eyes of many, I expect, things went from mediocre to worse with the 5pm-on-the-dot joint announcement that Barcelona had agreed a fee for Alex Song.
He probably had his best season last year when he played a series of very neat through-balls, or more often over-balls. We may well miss them but we shouldn’t really miss – and what he was in the team to deliver – is his defensive ability because I don’t think it was that much better than our other midfielders.
Yes, he got quite a few tackles and blocks in but so should anyone occupying that part of the pitch. Where he struggled was covering ground quickly to press the attack or fill a gap. How many times did he look like an oak tree anchored by mile-long roots when faced by an onrushing forward? He could be a star for Barca but probably because he’ll play centre back. We could never field him there regularly in England given the style of play here but if Javier Mascherano can manage it in Spain, so can Song.
What his departure provides is a gap and money to bring something new to the team. I still think we lack power and action in midfield and that’s where the focus should be. The noises Wenger is making suggest he is fairly happy with his lot in that part of the team but even with a returning Wilshere I wouldn’t bet on Diaby staying fit for any length of time.
Whoever he decides on, it would make a world of difference if they were in the same bracket as Cazorla, established quality, as opposed to a young prospect. He’s got a chance to add someone significant to a team that needs improving if it is to deliver its potential.
You won’t find many better examples of players struggling to switch from pre-season football to the real thing than Arsenal’s performance yesterday.
Full of good intent, they were let down by crossed wires at the decisive moment and just didn’t have the energy to sustain a decent first half.
I’m sure some will argue they should be at their fittest on the first day of the season but like players returning from injury, they need real football in their legs before they reach their peak.
If I was feeling critical, I’d say the botched trip to play a friendly in Nigeria hasn’t helped our preparation but I’m more inclined to argue that the timing of the international friendlies during midweek caused more disruption.
Rather than fitness, the most obvious feature, especially upfront, was a lack of familiarity between colleagues. Podolski spent most of the game pointing to where he wanted the ball after it went in the opposite direction and Gervinho and Walcott got into dangerous positions only to waste their delivery.
Cazorla (a player who I got so excited about on Friday that I spelled his name wrong – updated now but sorry, Santa…) looked every inch a top quality playmaker. I still don’t know whether he is left or right footed and I hope I never find out. His ball for Giroud was a great example of his vision but unfortunately his fellow newbie was suffering the worst of the rustiness.
When will Theo’s time come / Jenkinson
It would be interesting to know Cazorla’s thoughts after the game having seen how his team-mates fared in battle for the first time. I can’t help but wonder if he, like me I’m afraid, thinks the reason Theo hasn’t been offered a new contract is because we don’t want to give him one, never mind his required wages.
At 23 and having been at the club for six years, Theo should be entering his best ever seasons, this should be his prime. And yet he is still struggling to control the ball and his dribbling often defines ‘cul de sac’. Yes, he too may be adapting to proper matches but there is always a feeling that he has much more to offer. I’ve always said he is a striker by nature and we would see the same faults if, for example, Jermain Defoe was asked to play on the wing. But regardless of that, you would expect him to have ironed out basic problems in his game after six years.
You only have to look at this partner on the right yesterday, Carl Jenkinson, to see the improvements that can be made in a short space of time. I’ve never thought he had the talent to play for Arsenal, even if he is ‘one of us’ and would happily be watching from the stands. But I’d say yesterday was his best game for us and he has obviously spent the summer working hard. Of course, there will be far more onerous games to come but I can’t remember him putting a foot wrong.
It takes quite a bit of the fabled ‘mental strength’ to get better, to believe in yourself so much that you don’t just accept things have gone to seed. It is a quality Andrei Arshavin is lacking going by his cameo yesterday. He must have only touched the ball five times and four of those led to Sunderland gaining possession. Chamakh, who didn’t even make the bench, appears to have suffered the same crisis in confidence and both will be best served by moving away, should anyone want them.
Why does it happen and is it a problem that is unique to Arsenal? One to mull over on another day, but it is something I keep in the back of my mind as I hail Cazorla as the saviour of the human race.
System failure
The biggest concern from yesterday was the lack of movement between the front three and the supporting midfielders. We never saw enough of players breaking position to cause confusion in the massed Sunderland defence.
It has been a regular fault of Arsenal with this three-man attack and you have to question why Wenger wasn’t able to change the pattern, or willing to alter the system and bring another striker on (not that that would have helped if he’d been static too). The manager acknowledged all the problems in his press conference but failed to say what he did about them, ie nothing.
It summed up what was a sluggish day all round.
Going for a Song
In the eyes of many, I expect, things went from mediocre to worse with the 5pm-on-the-dot joint announcement that Barcelona had agreed a fee for Alex Song.
He probably had his best season last year when he played a series of very neat through-balls, or more often over-balls. We may well miss them but we shouldn’t really miss – and what he was in the team to deliver – is his defensive ability because I don’t think it was that much better than our other midfielders.
Yes, he got quite a few tackles and blocks in but so should anyone occupying that part of the pitch. Where he struggled was covering ground quickly to press the attack or fill a gap. How many times did he look like an oak tree anchored by mile-long roots when faced by an onrushing forward? He could be a star for Barca but probably because he’ll play centre back. We could never field him there regularly in England given the style of play here but if Javier Mascherano can manage it in Spain, so can Song.
What his departure provides is a gap and money to bring something new to the team. I still think we lack power and action in midfield and that’s where the focus should be. The noises Wenger is making suggest he is fairly happy with his lot in that part of the team but even with a returning Wilshere I wouldn’t bet on Diaby staying fit for any length of time.
Whoever he decides on, it would make a world of difference if they were in the same bracket as Cazorla, established quality, as opposed to a young prospect. He’s got a chance to add someone significant to a team that needs improving if it is to deliver its potential.
Friday 17 August 2012
RVP departs but, oddly, optimism returns
Our captain, top scorer and stand out performer of last season is sold days before the start of the season, triggering the familiar tabloid explosions about Arsenal facing meltdown. But this time round I feel rather more optimistic about the future.
There is no logical reason to be quite so sanguine about our prospects but the signing of Santi Cazorla has had an odd, uplifting effect. He has flawless technique, has won major competitions and will make the team more bold. It’s dangerous to set him up for a fall like this - I may well have said exactly the same stuff when we signed Arshavin. But Cazorla has an air of professionalism, of solidity, that the impulsive Russian lacked.
His arrival this summer, along with Podolski and Giroud, reflects Arsenal’s ‘be prepared’ approach to the inevitable departure of Robin Van Persie. Compare that to the way Arsene and Ivan appeared to be the only people in the world unaware that Fabregas and Nasri were going to leave last season.
Looking back at the timeline of events, I forget that Fabregas actually left after our first match at Newcastle, things were left that late. The rush of signings at the close of the transfer window screamed of panic but this time round there is a sense of calm and a confidence that things will not be undermined by the awful four-points-from-fifteen start of last year.
The more I think about it, the more I think Arsene has pulled a fast one on Fergie in the RVP deal. The quoted £24m will look massively inflated if Van Persie suffers a repeat of his injury record of any of his past eight campaigns except the last one. Yes, he is great player and is getting better as he gets older, but it is a massive gamble to bank on a man just a likely to strain a ligament as he is to score.
Part of my renewed optimism comes from the uncertainty surrounding our potential rivals. Chelsea have spent heavily but you can’t guarantee any of their purchases will pay off. Spurs have lost their biggest asset, Harry Redknapp, and are in the process of selling one of their best players, Luka Modric. You would expect Liverpool to improve under Brendan Rogers but even he has suggested it will be a long-term job.
So even with the sale of yet another captain, we are in a much stronger position than this time last year and I have far fewer doubts about us staying in the top four. It makes a change from the recent sense that the coming season would just bring the same problems as before. Like millions of other supporters across the country, I enter the season with hope in my heart. While I’d rather be confident we will challenge for the title, that’s a start.
There is no logical reason to be quite so sanguine about our prospects but the signing of Santi Cazorla has had an odd, uplifting effect. He has flawless technique, has won major competitions and will make the team more bold. It’s dangerous to set him up for a fall like this - I may well have said exactly the same stuff when we signed Arshavin. But Cazorla has an air of professionalism, of solidity, that the impulsive Russian lacked.
His arrival this summer, along with Podolski and Giroud, reflects Arsenal’s ‘be prepared’ approach to the inevitable departure of Robin Van Persie. Compare that to the way Arsene and Ivan appeared to be the only people in the world unaware that Fabregas and Nasri were going to leave last season.
Looking back at the timeline of events, I forget that Fabregas actually left after our first match at Newcastle, things were left that late. The rush of signings at the close of the transfer window screamed of panic but this time round there is a sense of calm and a confidence that things will not be undermined by the awful four-points-from-fifteen start of last year.
The more I think about it, the more I think Arsene has pulled a fast one on Fergie in the RVP deal. The quoted £24m will look massively inflated if Van Persie suffers a repeat of his injury record of any of his past eight campaigns except the last one. Yes, he is great player and is getting better as he gets older, but it is a massive gamble to bank on a man just a likely to strain a ligament as he is to score.
Part of my renewed optimism comes from the uncertainty surrounding our potential rivals. Chelsea have spent heavily but you can’t guarantee any of their purchases will pay off. Spurs have lost their biggest asset, Harry Redknapp, and are in the process of selling one of their best players, Luka Modric. You would expect Liverpool to improve under Brendan Rogers but even he has suggested it will be a long-term job.
So even with the sale of yet another captain, we are in a much stronger position than this time last year and I have far fewer doubts about us staying in the top four. It makes a change from the recent sense that the coming season would just bring the same problems as before. Like millions of other supporters across the country, I enter the season with hope in my heart. While I’d rather be confident we will challenge for the title, that’s a start.
Thursday 5 July 2012
Why the hate for RVP?
The news yesterday that Robin Van Persie wants to leave didn’t really come as a shock but the reaction of supporters did. Just like many of the other high-profile departures we’ve suffered in recent years, I don’t think this is about money, it’s about ambitious and talented players wanting to win things.
Let’s deal with everyone’s problems one by one…
“He’s a money-grabbing miscreant.”
He doesn’t appear to be any more money-obsessed than any other footballer on the planet, including the ones we sign. Have Oliver Giroud and Lukas Podolski joined us because they bleed the red and white of Arsenal? No, it’s because they’ll be paid oodles of money and have the chance to play with better players in a better league. In fact, Podolski has left his boyhood club so if anyone should be moaning right now its Koln supporters.
“He was injured loads in the past and should show us more commitment.”
There’s no clever response to this – it’s total tripe. If he injured himself while breaking a club curfew and falling down some stairs because he was blind drunk the argument might stand up slightly. But he is a footballer and he got injured a lot while playing football. Yes, he was being paid a lot of money while he was injured but that’s the risk you take with every player. He’s never had a great injury record so if we were that concerned why didn’t we try to sell him before? At least by going this summer we have a chance of making money by selling an injury-prone player rather than letting him slip away on a free.
“He should have told the club he was making the statement.”
RVP says in the statement that he met with Wenger and Gazidis at the end of the season. The chief exec made it pretty obvious during the supporters Q&A that they’d come to a gentleman’s agreement to not say anything during the Euros, so anyone could read between the lines to see he wasn’t renewing his contract. The club is never going to announce something not happening (ie, that he isn’t signing a new contract) so it couldn’t go on the club website. How else would we want to find out? By selling it as an exclusive to the Sun? Now that would have left a sour taste in the mouth.
“He shouldn’t concern himself with the club’s ‘future strategy and their policy’.”
Why shouldn’t he? I’m bothered about how the future of the organisation I work for and why should Van Persie be any different? He’s entitled to his opinion and has acted on it, causing as little disruption as you could hope for.
So here’s my take.
He’s seen enough over the past eight years to realise the way Wenger sets his team out nowadays, and the players he brings in, aren’t going to lead to silverware. Simple as that.
As I’ve said before, this will be the fifth club captain in eight years we’ve sold or got rid of. They previous four weren’t money-grabbing bandits and neither is Van Persie. They saw less-talented colleagues at other clubs being much more successful than them and wanted to try their hand elsewhere.
The one thing I do criticise him for is not making it clear he was happy to continue playing for the club if we didn’t want to sell him.
The most important thing is that this has come relatively early in the summer, we have his replacements in place (I will eat my Arsenal bobble hat if Wenger pays money for another striker) and we could actually get the better end of a deal for a 28-year-old with glass ankles, knees, hips and hamstrings.
But I’d much rather he signed a new contract. We continue to develop international class players who decide to leave either before they peak or when they have many years left at the top level.
If it is about money, we need to address it by changing the wage structure because Arsenal should be more than a feeder club. But if it isn’t about money and is about players doubting they can win things at Arsenal then the powers that be need to be asking deeper questions about their approach.
It looks like Van Persie put those questions to Wenger and Gazidis and didn’t like the answers. I don’t think I would either.
Let’s deal with everyone’s problems one by one…
“He’s a money-grabbing miscreant.”
He doesn’t appear to be any more money-obsessed than any other footballer on the planet, including the ones we sign. Have Oliver Giroud and Lukas Podolski joined us because they bleed the red and white of Arsenal? No, it’s because they’ll be paid oodles of money and have the chance to play with better players in a better league. In fact, Podolski has left his boyhood club so if anyone should be moaning right now its Koln supporters.
“He was injured loads in the past and should show us more commitment.”
There’s no clever response to this – it’s total tripe. If he injured himself while breaking a club curfew and falling down some stairs because he was blind drunk the argument might stand up slightly. But he is a footballer and he got injured a lot while playing football. Yes, he was being paid a lot of money while he was injured but that’s the risk you take with every player. He’s never had a great injury record so if we were that concerned why didn’t we try to sell him before? At least by going this summer we have a chance of making money by selling an injury-prone player rather than letting him slip away on a free.
“He should have told the club he was making the statement.”
RVP says in the statement that he met with Wenger and Gazidis at the end of the season. The chief exec made it pretty obvious during the supporters Q&A that they’d come to a gentleman’s agreement to not say anything during the Euros, so anyone could read between the lines to see he wasn’t renewing his contract. The club is never going to announce something not happening (ie, that he isn’t signing a new contract) so it couldn’t go on the club website. How else would we want to find out? By selling it as an exclusive to the Sun? Now that would have left a sour taste in the mouth.
“He shouldn’t concern himself with the club’s ‘future strategy and their policy’.”
Why shouldn’t he? I’m bothered about how the future of the organisation I work for and why should Van Persie be any different? He’s entitled to his opinion and has acted on it, causing as little disruption as you could hope for.
So here’s my take.
He’s seen enough over the past eight years to realise the way Wenger sets his team out nowadays, and the players he brings in, aren’t going to lead to silverware. Simple as that.
As I’ve said before, this will be the fifth club captain in eight years we’ve sold or got rid of. They previous four weren’t money-grabbing bandits and neither is Van Persie. They saw less-talented colleagues at other clubs being much more successful than them and wanted to try their hand elsewhere.
The one thing I do criticise him for is not making it clear he was happy to continue playing for the club if we didn’t want to sell him.
The most important thing is that this has come relatively early in the summer, we have his replacements in place (I will eat my Arsenal bobble hat if Wenger pays money for another striker) and we could actually get the better end of a deal for a 28-year-old with glass ankles, knees, hips and hamstrings.
But I’d much rather he signed a new contract. We continue to develop international class players who decide to leave either before they peak or when they have many years left at the top level.
If it is about money, we need to address it by changing the wage structure because Arsenal should be more than a feeder club. But if it isn’t about money and is about players doubting they can win things at Arsenal then the powers that be need to be asking deeper questions about their approach.
It looks like Van Persie put those questions to Wenger and Gazidis and didn’t like the answers. I don’t think I would either.
Friday 8 June 2012
Will Podolski be another 7/10 Wenger signing?
Ivan Gazidis has again suggested Arsenal are on the right footing to improve and make a stab at major trophies, particularly once the financial fair play league kicks in. I’m not convinced, due in large part to our transfer wheelings and dealings in recent years.
Whenever I question Arsene Wenger’s transfer record, I inevitably get comments telling me I’m a moron and people pointing out he bought Patrick Vieira and Thierry Henry so he must be a genius.
My gut feeling has always been since the move to Ashburton Grove his eye for talent has been more miss than hit.
But in fairness to the boss man and everyone who reckons he’s still a miracle worker, I thought I’d assess the impact of the signings since our austerity period began – the close season between 2003/04 and 2004/05.
In a massively subjective exercise, I ranked the signings out of 10, took transfer fee into account and players’ contribution overall (so someone like Diarra who I think was good but played seven games only gets a five). I've ignored the issue of wages because, while important, it's impossible to know who earned what, even more impossible than truly knowing the transfer figure.
Ten is someone who is a complete success, arguably the best player in his position in the league. An eight is someone making a positive difference. Seven is good, not great. A six is someone who is more good than bad but never makes game-changing contributions. A five is someone more likely to be bad than good… you get the idea. As I say, completely subjective and one that will doubtless prompt many complaints but life's all about opinions so bring it on.
Since Arsenal are as transparent as a piece of titanium wrapped in lead, encased in a wooden box and then placed in the stomach of a whale, it’s impossible to know for sure how much everyone cost. But for consistency I’ve used the details from a single source, www.transferleague.co.uk, which look about right to my eye. I’ve also only included players who we saw enough of to give a score, hence Amaury Bischoff isn’t included. Anyway, here’s how I rated them…
ARSENAL
Having done that I realised it meant nothing without a context so I rated our rivals too (I include Spurs for context, I’m not elevating them to our standard). There needs to be a bit of a disclaimer here because obviously I don’t see anywhere near as much of this lot compared to the Arse so I’m working on reputation far more (as I said before, this is highly subjective). Plus, I have included players (mostly from Chelsea) who didn’t play very much but cost a lot of money or had a reputation, such as Steven Sidwell at Chelsea or Bebe at Man U. I’ve left off others who never played and didn’t break the bank, like Scott Sinclair at Chelsea or Radek Cerny at Spurs.
MAN UTD
CHELSEA
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
Let’s start on a trivial note: Andy Reid, £4m! David Bentley, £15m!! Spurs have bought roughly double the number of players compared to everyone else and most of them were utter donkeys who I (and I would expect even most Spurs fans) struggle to remember.
Back to the issue at hand. In comparison to purchases made at other clubs, Wenger’s transfer record is not as bad as my instinct told me. He’s certainly not suffered any enormous disasters like Torres or Shevchenko and generally most of his purchases have been sound.
But in a sense his strength is also his weakness. Where he has not excelled is making signings who have made a real difference to the team or gone on to become among the very best. While Van Persie is clearly a 10/10, we have only a handful of 8/10s and quite a few 7/10s – players who are good but not great and who keep us at a steady level.
And so to our latest purchase, Lukas Podolski. I’ve said for a while that I don’t see what he will add to our team: he is a fine player and will fit in to the team comfortably but I doubt he will improve us. He’s another 7/10. What we need are individuals who provide the ‘x factor’, the missing ingredient that pushes us from good to great and secures us some silverware.
Finance is the biggest factor in all of this, of course. What is clear from even this basic assessment is Wenger has generally achieved excellent value-for-money. Ferguson isn’t far behind but just look at some of the huge amounts paid out by Chelsea for the likes of Shevchenko, Torres, Boswinga or Wright-Phillips – all of whom, remember, would be record signings at Arsenal – for almost zero return. And while it is funny to reflect on Spurs’ performance in the transfer market, it also goes to show just what a difference getting it right can make. Not only did they pay big amounts for flops like Bentley and Alan Hutton, they also paid lots of smaller amounts for total garbage. Spending less but on the right people would have made a world of difference to them.
The transfer market is the riskiest part of running a football club and because Arsenal never gamble we are less likely to suffer major busts. But of course it also means we are less likely to secure world class talents (and deny our rivals that same talent), meaning we end up with a surfeit of ‘good but not great’ players… which leads to a ‘good but not great’ team.
So is it inevitable we’ll stay like that? I would be tempted to say yes if the big scores were all for £20m-plus transfers like Rooney or Drogba, but they’re not. Evra, Vidic, Cech and Bale were all well within our transfer budget – yes they were the pick of a huge bunch but our rivals managed to buy them so why couldn’t we?
It isn’t all about money.
If Wenger looked for different qualities in players – people who were perhaps spiky characters, more driven by winning than playing beautiful football – it would help.
The flip side to that is Arshavin. He was a player I think Wenger hoped wouild be ‘game changer’ but the manager’s fingers were burned by a player who ultimately failed to live up to his reputation despite being our record signing. You can apportion some of the fault for that at Wenger’s doorstep but Arshavin himself looked to have given up caring.
I think the more pertinent issue is the personality of the people purchased and the system they work within, meaning the tactics, training and preparation – the mental side of the game. Would Arshavin have been allowed to drift in the way he did if he was playing at Man U? Would Nemanja Vidic have become the rock he is under Wenger? The answer is undoubtedly no to both questions.
The introduction of Steve Bould (who in his announcement interviews looked far more determined to bring his ideas to the table than I expected) and Neil Banfield to the coaching staff could change that.
It feels like that is our best hope, particularly after Gazidis made it clear little will change in the way things are run off the pitch. The club is happy with achieving 7/10 – it keeps the books healthy and gives us a good chance of remaining among, but never at the head of, Europe’s elite. There is a lot at stake and we shouldn’t put the club’s future on the line, but life and football needs to be more exciting than that and some risks are worth taking.
Whenever I question Arsene Wenger’s transfer record, I inevitably get comments telling me I’m a moron and people pointing out he bought Patrick Vieira and Thierry Henry so he must be a genius.
My gut feeling has always been since the move to Ashburton Grove his eye for talent has been more miss than hit.
But in fairness to the boss man and everyone who reckons he’s still a miracle worker, I thought I’d assess the impact of the signings since our austerity period began – the close season between 2003/04 and 2004/05.
In a massively subjective exercise, I ranked the signings out of 10, took transfer fee into account and players’ contribution overall (so someone like Diarra who I think was good but played seven games only gets a five). I've ignored the issue of wages because, while important, it's impossible to know who earned what, even more impossible than truly knowing the transfer figure.
Ten is someone who is a complete success, arguably the best player in his position in the league. An eight is someone making a positive difference. Seven is good, not great. A six is someone who is more good than bad but never makes game-changing contributions. A five is someone more likely to be bad than good… you get the idea. As I say, completely subjective and one that will doubtless prompt many complaints but life's all about opinions so bring it on.
Since Arsenal are as transparent as a piece of titanium wrapped in lead, encased in a wooden box and then placed in the stomach of a whale, it’s impossible to know for sure how much everyone cost. But for consistency I’ve used the details from a single source, www.transferleague.co.uk, which look about right to my eye. I’ve also only included players who we saw enough of to give a score, hence Amaury Bischoff isn’t included. Anyway, here’s how I rated them…
ARSENAL
Player
|
Cost
|
Score
|
Robin Van Persie
|
£2,750,000
|
10
|
Thomas Vermaelen
|
£10,000,000
|
9
|
Laurent Koscielny
|
£10,000,000
|
8
|
Bacary Sagna
|
£6,000,000
|
8
|
Alexandre Song
|
£1,000,000
|
8
|
Theo Walcott
|
£9,100,000
|
7
|
Samir Nasri
|
£15,800,000
|
7
|
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
|
£12,000,000
|
7
|
Mikel Arteta
|
£10,000,000
|
7
|
Eduardo
|
£7,500,000
|
7
|
Emmanuel Adebayor
|
£7,000,000
|
7
|
Tomas Rosicky
|
£6,800,000
|
7
|
Mathieu Flamini
|
£1,000,000
|
7
|
Nicklas Bendtner
|
£200,000
|
7
|
William Gallas
|
Swap
|
6
|
Andrei Arshavin
|
£15,000,000
|
6
|
Aleksandr Hleb
|
£11,200,000
|
6
|
Gervinho
|
£10,600,000
|
6
|
Per Mertesacker
|
£10,000,000
|
6
|
André Santos
|
£6,200,000
|
6
|
Aaron Ramsey
|
£5,000,000
|
6
|
Lukasz Fabianski
|
£2,000,000
|
6
|
Vassiriki Diaby
|
£2,000,000
|
6
|
Mikel Sylvester
|
£750,000
|
6
|
Carl Jenkinson
|
£0
|
6
|
Sol Campbell (10/11 signing)
|
£0
|
6
|
Sebastien Squillaci
|
£4,000,000
|
5
|
Lassana Diarra
|
£4,000,000
|
5
|
Denilson
|
£3,400,000
|
5
|
Park Chu-Young
|
£3,000,000
|
5
|
Emmanuel Eboue
|
£1,000,000
|
5
|
Vito Mannone
|
£350,000
|
5
|
Armand Traore
|
£250,000
|
5
|
Marouane Chamakh
|
£0
|
5
|
Fran Merida Perez
|
£0
|
5
|
Manuel Almunia
|
£2,500,000
|
4
|
Having done that I realised it meant nothing without a context so I rated our rivals too (I include Spurs for context, I’m not elevating them to our standard). There needs to be a bit of a disclaimer here because obviously I don’t see anywhere near as much of this lot compared to the Arse so I’m working on reputation far more (as I said before, this is highly subjective). Plus, I have included players (mostly from Chelsea) who didn’t play very much but cost a lot of money or had a reputation, such as Steven Sidwell at Chelsea or Bebe at Man U. I’ve left off others who never played and didn’t break the bank, like Scott Sinclair at Chelsea or Radek Cerny at Spurs.
MAN UTD
Player
|
Cost
|
Score
|
Wayne Rooney
|
£27m
|
10
|
Nemanja Vidic
|
£7m
|
10
|
Edwin Van Der Sar
|
£2m
|
10
|
Patrice Evra
|
£5.5m
|
10
|
Nani
|
£13.5m
|
8
|
Carlos Tevez
|
£9m
|
8
|
Javier Hernandez
|
£6m
|
8
|
Ji-Sung Park
|
£4m
|
8
|
Paul Scholes
|
£0
|
7
|
Demitar Berbatov
|
£30.75m
|
7
|
Michael Carrick
|
£18.6m
|
7
|
Ashley Young
|
£17m
|
7
|
Antonio Valencia
|
£16m
|
7
|
Rafael Da Silva
|
£2.5m
|
7
|
Phil Jones
|
£17m
|
6
|
Michael Owen
|
£0
|
6
|
David De Gea
|
£18.9m
|
6
|
Chris Smalling
|
£10m
|
6
|
Anders Lindegaard
|
£3.5m
|
6
|
Owen Hargreaves
|
£17m
|
5
|
Anderson
|
£15m
|
5
|
Fabio Da Silva
|
£2.6m
|
5
|
Tomasz Kuszczak
|
£2.15m
|
5
|
Mame Biram Diouf
|
£2m
|
5
|
Ben Foster
|
£1m
|
5
|
Gabriel Obertan
|
£3m
|
4
|
Giuseppe Rossi
|
£200,000
|
4
|
Zoran Tosic
|
£5m
|
3
|
Bebe
|
£7.4m
|
1
|
CHELSEA
Player
|
Cost
|
Score
|
Didier Drogba
|
£24m
|
10
|
Petr Cech
|
£7m
|
10
|
Ashley Cole
|
£5m
|
9
|
Michael Essien
|
£24.4m
|
8
|
Ricardo Carvalho
|
£19.85m
|
8
|
Ramires
|
£18.3m
|
8
|
Branislav Ivanovic
|
£9m
|
8
|
Arjen Robben
|
£12m
|
7
|
Nicolas Anelka
|
£15m
|
7
|
Florent Malouda
|
£13.5m
|
7
|
Gary Cahill
|
£7m
|
7
|
Michael Ballack
|
£0
|
7
|
Paulo Ferreira
|
£13.2m
|
6
|
Daniel Sturridge
|
£4m
|
6
|
David Luiz
|
£26m
|
6
|
Juan Mata
|
£23m
|
6
|
John Obi Mikel
|
£16m
|
6
|
Raul Meireles
|
£12m
|
6
|
Salomon Kalou
|
£8m
|
6
|
Lassana Diarra
|
£1m
|
6
|
Juliano Belletti
|
0
|
6
|
Jose Bosingwa
|
£16.2m
|
5
|
Deco
|
£8m
|
5
|
Tiago
|
£8m
|
5
|
Khalid Boulahrouz
|
£7m
|
5
|
Yossi Benayoun
|
£5m
|
5
|
Oriol Romeu
|
£4.35m
|
5
|
Claudio Pizarro
|
0
|
5
|
Shaun Wright-Phillips
|
£21m
|
4
|
Yuri Zhirkov
|
£18m
|
4
|
Mateja Kezman
|
£5m
|
4
|
Ben Sahar
|
£3.2m
|
4
|
Franco Di Santo
|
£3m
|
4
|
Jiri Jarosik
|
£3m
|
4
|
Nemanja Matic
|
£1.5m
|
4
|
Steven Sidwell
|
£0
|
4
|
Asier Del Horno
|
£8m
|
2
|
Fernando Torres
|
£50m
|
1
|
Andrei Shevchenko
|
£30m
|
1
|
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
Player
|
Cost
|
Score
|
Gareth Bale
|
£6m
|
10
|
Aaron Lennon
|
£1m
|
9
|
Dimitar Berbatov
|
£10.9m
|
8
|
Michael Dawson
|
£4m
|
8
|
Michael Carrick
|
£2.75m
|
8
|
Rafael Van Der Vaart
|
£8m
|
8
|
Brad Friedel
|
£0
|
7
|
Kyle Walker
|
£3m
|
7
|
Luka Modric
|
£16.6m
|
7
|
Scott Parker
|
£6m
|
7
|
Younes Kaboul
|
£5m
|
7
|
Jermain Defoe
|
£15m
|
7
|
Benoit Assou-Ekotto
|
£3.5m
|
7
|
Tom Huddlestone
|
£2.5m
|
7
|
William Gallas
|
£0
|
6
|
Niko Kranjcar
|
£2m
|
6
|
Robbie Keane
|
£12m
|
7
|
Carlo Cudicini
|
£0
|
6
|
Jermaine Jenas
|
£7m
|
6
|
Wilson Palacios
|
£12m
|
5
|
Sandro Raniere
|
£6m
|
5
|
Steven Pienaar
|
£3m
|
5
|
Kyle Naughton
|
£5m
|
5
|
Peter Crouch
|
£9m
|
5
|
Sebastien Bassong
|
£8m
|
5
|
Vedran Corluka
|
£8.5m
|
5
|
Heurelho Gomes
|
£10m
|
5
|
Pascal Chimbonda
|
Signed
|
5
|
Roman Pavlyuchenko
|
£14m
|
5
|
John Bostock
|
£700,000
|
5
|
Jonathan Woodgate
|
£8m
|
5
|
Chris Gunter
|
£2m
|
5
|
Danny Rose
|
£1m
|
5
|
Darren Bent
|
£16.5m
|
5
|
Steed Malbranque
|
£2m
|
5
|
Didier Zokora
|
£8.2m
|
5
|
Danny Murphy
|
£2m
|
5
|
Edgar Davids
|
£0
|
5
|
Wayne Routledge
|
£2.5m
|
5
|
Pedro Mendes
|
£2m
|
5
|
Paul Stalteri
|
£0
|
5
|
Bongani Khumalo
|
£1.5m
|
4
|
Giovani
|
£4.7m
|
4
|
Gilberto
|
£2m
|
4
|
Kevin Boateng
|
£5.4m
|
4
|
Adel Taarabt
|
£3m
|
4
|
Ben Alnwick
|
£900,000
|
4
|
Pascal Chimbonda
|
£4.5m
|
4
|
Ahmed Mido
|
£4.5m
|
4
|
Hossam Ghaly
|
£3m
|
4
|
Grzegorz Rasiak
|
£2m
|
4
|
Teemu Tainio
|
0
|
4
|
Calum Davenport
|
£1.3m
|
4
|
Noe Pamarot
|
£1.75m
|
4
|
Thimothee Atouba
|
£0
|
4
|
Erik Edman
|
£0
|
4
|
Alan Hutton
|
£9m
|
3
|
Ricardo Rocha
|
£3.3m
|
3
|
Andy Reid
|
£4m
|
3
|
Noureddine Naybet
|
£700,000
|
3
|
David Bentley
|
£15m
|
2
|
Let’s start on a trivial note: Andy Reid, £4m! David Bentley, £15m!! Spurs have bought roughly double the number of players compared to everyone else and most of them were utter donkeys who I (and I would expect even most Spurs fans) struggle to remember.
Back to the issue at hand. In comparison to purchases made at other clubs, Wenger’s transfer record is not as bad as my instinct told me. He’s certainly not suffered any enormous disasters like Torres or Shevchenko and generally most of his purchases have been sound.
But in a sense his strength is also his weakness. Where he has not excelled is making signings who have made a real difference to the team or gone on to become among the very best. While Van Persie is clearly a 10/10, we have only a handful of 8/10s and quite a few 7/10s – players who are good but not great and who keep us at a steady level.
And so to our latest purchase, Lukas Podolski. I’ve said for a while that I don’t see what he will add to our team: he is a fine player and will fit in to the team comfortably but I doubt he will improve us. He’s another 7/10. What we need are individuals who provide the ‘x factor’, the missing ingredient that pushes us from good to great and secures us some silverware.
Finance is the biggest factor in all of this, of course. What is clear from even this basic assessment is Wenger has generally achieved excellent value-for-money. Ferguson isn’t far behind but just look at some of the huge amounts paid out by Chelsea for the likes of Shevchenko, Torres, Boswinga or Wright-Phillips – all of whom, remember, would be record signings at Arsenal – for almost zero return. And while it is funny to reflect on Spurs’ performance in the transfer market, it also goes to show just what a difference getting it right can make. Not only did they pay big amounts for flops like Bentley and Alan Hutton, they also paid lots of smaller amounts for total garbage. Spending less but on the right people would have made a world of difference to them.
The transfer market is the riskiest part of running a football club and because Arsenal never gamble we are less likely to suffer major busts. But of course it also means we are less likely to secure world class talents (and deny our rivals that same talent), meaning we end up with a surfeit of ‘good but not great’ players… which leads to a ‘good but not great’ team.
So is it inevitable we’ll stay like that? I would be tempted to say yes if the big scores were all for £20m-plus transfers like Rooney or Drogba, but they’re not. Evra, Vidic, Cech and Bale were all well within our transfer budget – yes they were the pick of a huge bunch but our rivals managed to buy them so why couldn’t we?
It isn’t all about money.
If Wenger looked for different qualities in players – people who were perhaps spiky characters, more driven by winning than playing beautiful football – it would help.
The flip side to that is Arshavin. He was a player I think Wenger hoped wouild be ‘game changer’ but the manager’s fingers were burned by a player who ultimately failed to live up to his reputation despite being our record signing. You can apportion some of the fault for that at Wenger’s doorstep but Arshavin himself looked to have given up caring.
I think the more pertinent issue is the personality of the people purchased and the system they work within, meaning the tactics, training and preparation – the mental side of the game. Would Arshavin have been allowed to drift in the way he did if he was playing at Man U? Would Nemanja Vidic have become the rock he is under Wenger? The answer is undoubtedly no to both questions.
The introduction of Steve Bould (who in his announcement interviews looked far more determined to bring his ideas to the table than I expected) and Neil Banfield to the coaching staff could change that.
It feels like that is our best hope, particularly after Gazidis made it clear little will change in the way things are run off the pitch. The club is happy with achieving 7/10 – it keeps the books healthy and gives us a good chance of remaining among, but never at the head of, Europe’s elite. There is a lot at stake and we shouldn’t put the club’s future on the line, but life and football needs to be more exciting than that and some risks are worth taking.
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