A Polo Mint, An Aero Bar, But No Turkish Delight
Some thoughts on Arsenal’s midfield play in EPL Season 2019/20
What Do We Want?
The crown of creativity and skilled at unpicking the lock of the most tightly parked defensive bus; a ring of steel providing a nearly impenetrable barrier in front of our defence; the heartbeat that drives the whole team along at the tempo required by the master conductor; great contributors of extra, often unexpected, goals at critical moments; the showcase for the technical skills of a team hallmarked for a brand of football that has tens of thousands turning up week after week to be thrilled.
Your subconscious will by now have thrown right to the forefront of your minds the names and visual images of most of the players you’ve seen deliver excellence in all of these dimensions for Arsenal in midfield roles and so I won’t dwell on a single one. I know that you all know exactly whom I’m thinking about.
Did We Get It?
There have been times in the fairly recent past when several or even all of the above descriptors might have been used to characterise the contribution made by Arsenal’s midfield as a unit to the team’s collective play.
Season 2019/20 was not, by any stretch of the imagination, one of those times.
In fact, for much of the season a neutral observer might well have wondered at times whether Arsenal actually had a midfield, or any players who were acknowledged specialists in midfield positions.
Did we get it? Did we heck as like.
Mediterranean and Nordic Menus
Context is important and it goes almost without saying that quite apart from the ingredients in the mix, there are other factors that need to be considered before the perfect cake can be baked.
It’s critical that there is an overarching strategy and a consistent style of play that the players understand and buy into. While tactics may vary to cater for the style of play of opponents, they have to do so in a measured, not an apparently random way. The likelihood of success is increased significantly by regularly selecting the same players and playing them in the same positions. In this way, they master their roles, both individually and collectively. This is a case where familiarity certainly does not breed contempt.
And as for the players themselves, it really helps if they can cover ground quickly, play with both feet and their head, see opportunities going forward and have the speed of thought and skill to action against each; and likewise, see danger coming, tackle well to win the ball and use it effectively when defending. The basics.
And so to the season that almost never finished; a season that has already been described magnificently here in the blog in preceding posts, saving me the effort of doing so!
2019/2020 – The Cast of Characters
Three different chefs. Three different dishes.
After more than 20 years of stability under Arsene Wenger, this was a season in which Arsenal endured the turmoil of three different ‘Captains at the wheel’, three very different characters.
Arsenal.com lists our midfield players as:
Mesut Özil, Lucas Torreira, Ainsley Maitland Niles, Joe Willock, Matteo Guendouzi, Granit Xhaka and Bukayo Saka. There is still no mention of Dani Ceballos.
We should feel encouraged to see three academy-graduates feature in this list alongside the captain of Switzerland, our famous German World Cup winner, Guendouzi the new sparkling talent, and Torreira, a Uruguay lynchpin.
On paper, particularly when Ceballos name is added, this is a list that encourages optimism with the caveats that i) all players play to their full potential and ii) the team is set up to play to a consistent set of tactical plans that key off the players’ strengths and individual talents.
And it would be remiss of me not to mention that when we played (often) with three at the back the two wing backs Bellerin and Kolasinac became part of a five-man midfield. Alexander Lacazette too was often charged with coming back there, either to win and carry the ball forward, or to ‘mark’ an opposing player.
And finally, lest we forget, in his report on the opener at Newcastle, Goonerholic wrote “Henrikh Mkhitaryan was accompanied in midfield by Joe Willock and Rhys Nelson”.
In short, we were not short of numbers in the midfield of 2019/20. Quality was another matter.
Act 1: Basque Soup – From League Leaders to the Danger Zone
An away win at Newcastle followed by a home win against Burnley had Arsenal sitting briefly at the top of the pole. The latter of these two games was the more notable from a midfield perspective because it was on that day that Dani Ceballos announced himself with a swashbuckling display that engendered real hope. That game also signalled our first coach’s cautiousness when Lacazette and Ceballos, who had both looked capable of creating more, were substituted by Kolasinac and Torreira resulting in a nervy finish to a game that should have been won easily.
Emery set the team up unsuccessfully to defend and win on the break at Liverpool using Ceballos ahead of Xhaka, Guendouzi and Willock in midfield. The Xhaka/ Torreira double pivot with Guendouzi as creator fared better in a 2-2 draw with Spurs
At Watford, Özil, Guendouzi, Ceballos and Xhaka all started in a midfield that didn’t last more than an hour against the bottom club. Emery rung further changes by introducing Torreira and Willock in an attempt to find a more potent blend. A deflating 2-2 draw resulted.
For Villa’s visit Guendouzi and Saka were introduced to add sparkle going forward. Arsenal won, but two easy Villa goals really highlighted our defensive fragility. A double pivot of Xhaka and Torreira, with Guendouzi as creator this time, brought another positive, a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford.
I was in the stadium for the next game, but still couldn’t quite believe that we beat Bournemouth 1-0. This, for me, was the day that things began to unravel for Unai. In contrast to the sparkling football displayed by our ‘B Team’ in Europe, this eleven lacked both confidence and competence. Visibly unsure of what they were being asked to do and uncomfortable with passing out from the back, their ability to pass the ball disappeared completely and Bournemouth were able to ghost through a non-existent midfield to apply pressure that should have brought a different result.
Guendouzi, Willock and Xhaka lacked robustness in a 1-0 defeat at Sheffield. And that was followed by Crystal Palace and Xhaka-Gate. Xhaka had been a constant under Emery and on this day, Unai’s wagon lost a very big wheel and began to tilt toward the cliff edge.
Absent Xhaka, Emery turned to Özil for salvation. Away defeat at Leicester (with a back three) and two draws (Wolves, Southampton) revealed player confidence in themselves and their coach to be in the bucket, with midfield defending as solid as the centre of a polo mint.
The only surprise about Emery’s dismissal was that it came so late. Many players, many combinations, many different tactics, many, many mistakes, many incomprehensible communications left us on a dangerous vector.
Act 2: Pickled Fish – Staying Afloat.
Freddie Ljungberg’s brief spell on deck returned four points from a possible twelve, one encouraging win at West Ham, a depressing hammering by Man City, an even more depressing defeat against strugglers Brighton and a scrambled draw at lowly Norwich. Freddie quickly reinstalled Xhaka in his team, looked to Özil to wave a magic wand, liked the look of Torreira as DM and gave Guendouzi and Willock two opportunities each to display their wares. Nothing worked in terms of real creativity and at best, the midfield’s defending moved from polo mint to chocolate aero in terms of resilience.
New coach. Same players. Same outcome. Predictably, this prompted the lazy conclusion from some that Wenger had ‘left the club with a pile of sh*te to play with’. The wiser amongst us weren’t swayed.
Act 3: Hot Paella – The Gleam of Silver in Mikel’s Eye.
Mikel Arteta’s impact on arrival was immediate and impressive. From the moment of his opening statement on arrival right through to his after-match summary of Arsenal’s FA Cup Win and Europa qualification, Arteta has personified lucidity in his communications and clarity of purpose on the task in hand.
“This is what we need to do. This is how we’re going to do it. And, by the way, we have a great squad but we need to add more quality.”
Immediately, increased tactical coherence became apparent. Players, now absolutely clear on purpose and skilfully coached, grew measurably in confidence and commitment to meeting their coach’s demands.
And for MA8’s midfield, Xhaka was an imperative, a constant and a talisman – results were better when he played. The new boss hoped for Turkish delight from Özil, but swallowed hard after an extended run revealed that the German’s delicious days of craft at Arsenal were in a pile behind him.
Like his predecessors, Mikel fostered youth. Guendouzi and Willock, featured often with Saka, Maitland-Niles and Tierney adding midfield guile, bite and pace from central wing-back positions.
In Dani Ceballos, Arteta found a willingness to ‘work like a dog’ to meet his demands as a midfield player. In Matteo Guendouzi he found a petulant youth incapable or unwilling to fight his way off the naughty step and hence with no future at Arsenal.
Properly schooled, marvellously motivated, constantly cajoled, this time: same players, new (and much better) coach and excellent tactics, good team selections, propelled every department of the team forward and midfield was no exception.
Finale: A Hard Road Ahead
Arsenal’s successes in 2019/20 were attributable principally to Pierre Emmerich Aubamayang’s predatory instincts, some wonderful goalkeeping and Mikel Arteta’s motivational and tactical skills.
This was a season in which Arsenal’s midfield did barely enough to get by, often looked to be missing in action and in which several players were revealed to be lacking the skills, the temperament or the commitment necessary to drive the team to the level required and demanded by our coach.
On an overall average measure of the two key missions of the unit, midfield creation and defence, it would be difficult to ascribe a score higher than 5 out of 10 for either.
There was rarely ever evidence of Arsenal “bossing the midfield” and that is a situation that absolutely must be rectified as a priority in a summer in which, to quote the boss, “some hard decisions need to be taken”.
And so to the cast:
- After an excellent start, a very poor middle, then a wonderful end, I thought that Ceballos was the standout MF player.
- Xhaka returned from the death to become an Arteta favourite and guarantee his place for next year. Doubts remain however about his pace, his speed of thought and his tackling ability.
- Torreira’s best role is DM and Emery’s early decision to play him further forward didn’t help him to shine in a season troubled by injury. We may need to look elsewhere than Fray Bentos for corned-beef supplies next year.
- Özil’s race is run. Best for everyone if he can be found an exit.
- Guendouzi, who promised much, delivered little and is the poorest header of a ball I’ve ever seen, is no longer a team sheet fixture.
- Saka (in particular), Willock and Maitland-Niles can all be proud of significant advances in their careers. All three may not survive the summer of hard decisions (my preference is that they should).
So that’s my take. You all know I want to Partey next season. Please make that happen, Arsenal.
Have a great summer, Holics.
Partey on! Hopefully, I mean.
Great job, Berkamp’s.
Firm but fair BtM.
Completely agree we need
the cavalry to appear over
the horizon asap. Especially if
we can’t continue with Dani.
ESR will be back and I still have
hopes for him. If he can buckle
down and learn from MA then
he could add creativity for us.
Big season coming up for Joe W.
I’m not expecting to see Guen,
LT or AMN, if the reports are true,
play for us again.
Excellent and detailed analysis btm. I agree with your analysis of the cast though I suspect that Partey’s wage demands may prove too onerous for us. I hope that we have a Plan B because that gap in midfield must be filled especially if we can’t do a deal with Real Madrid to get Ceballos for at least another season.
Apologies for the missing ‘g’@1. Especially so in light of: “ 5G is expected to be nearly 100 times faster than 4G.“ A five man midfield?
Yeah but 5G rots your teeth and gives you brain damage. Well known fact.
Alien technolology innit.
Btm,
Masterful stuff, a very detailed and fair analysis .
I’m known on here for fairly firm views on our midfield . I grew to be convinced by Ceballos and his end games were terrific. I’d like him back , on loan , if necessary.
I think we should part company with Guendouzi, Torreira and give Joe Willock a loan transfer to give him experience and exposure we can’t ( I’m not convinced ) . We’ve debated Ozil. If he has any self- respect he should accept the opportunity to play…somewhere .
The big conundrum is Xhaka . I accept Arteta picks him every week but Btm catalogues his many weaknesses. He is a very undynamic midfield player at odds with the rhythm we need to compete with the top sides . You cannot finish top four ( or better ) with him as part of your midfield fulcrum . We also need more creativity and one hopes Willian will help to supply this . One last personal view. I think AMN ( having heard him say with his own lips he is happy to play full-back ) should replace the overrated Bellerin who might fetch a pretty penny .
Hopefully Partey will join and we can find a combination of mobility and slick distribution with our midfield unit. I suspect we will do a lot of business this summer and in midfield better recruitment is a priority.
Nothing spared there, BtM, quite rightly.
Of the youngsters, Saka is a keeper, AMN should be kept and Willock must prove himself next season if he is to stay, too. ESR will provide him with competition for playing time as Willian’s understudies in the 10 and 8 roles. That Guendouzi can’t see that Arteta could make him a world-class player if he buckled down to the task says all one needs to know about him.
Xhaka is indeed a conundrum, TTG. As BtM indicates, his pace, speed of thought and tackling fall short of what is needed in a top Premier League midfielder. Yet, if his is fit, every manager starts him, not least for his passing range and ability to drive the team forward (especially now Arteta has got him to stop driving the team sideways).
Excellent article BtM. I’ve read though it once while very distracted and the quality shone through the distractions like a beacon. I look forward to re-reading it, when I am sure the first impression will be reinforced.
Cynic, I congratulate you on yours@51 in the previous bar. Attempts to outpun the punmeister general are fraught with danger; good luck and I raise my glass at the prospect of an entertaining punfest.
A fine end of term report, BtM.
Remarkable indeed that Mikel Arteta could transform the Sloppy Unai Fricasee into a dish with some semblance of substance and balance, all served up on a shiny silver platter – albeit one dropped to the floor by our head waiter.
I blame Emery as much as most of the players for our alarming lack of quality. As you said, the constantly changing positions, formations and tactics broke all of our midfielders and left the team dysfunctional. Guendouzi, in true Life of Brian style, is quite right to ask
“what has The Arsenal ever done for me ? – well, apart from the chance of Premier League football at 18 years of age, and the amazing salary, and the fantastic lifestyle….” Oh dear, Mr Guendouzi, just Guendo-one !
PS. Pangloss. – Cynic would not take me on in a saliva based punfest – he’s got more gumtion than that ! 😏
An excellent review BtM. Last season I was probably more frustrated with our midfield than any other section of the team. Whether I was in the ground, or watching on TV, my most frequently voiced cri de couer must have been “they (I.e. the opposition) are completely bossing midfield.”. Only at the very end, post lockdown, did Dani (drinks Estrella, eats paella) and Xhaka form a highly effective double pivot. Even then, we were lacking an effective 10. Arteta was a great 10 for Everton and a great 8 for us. He knows midfield. In Arteta I trust.
Gnabry starts for Bayern.
And Gnabry scores an absolute top bins belter.
Tony Pulis you are an absolute arse who knows fuck all about football.
This time a tap in. Two for Bayern and Serge has both. Good on him.
To think Ivan said we were going to match Bayern Munich by now. What happened to that ambition? Maybe he was thinking of matching their shirt manufacturer and the colour of their socks?
Gabriel is due to have a medical tomorrow.presumably at London Colney
Not sure I’d send Joe W out on
loan this season – depends to
some degree on who we sign I
suppose. But Joe and for that
matter ESR need to force themselves
ahead of Willian in the pecking
order. We need all three as it stands
now.
Very good summary, BtM. Indeed our midfield was very disappointing last season.
My opinion is that while Saka looks like he’s going to become a great player one day, he won’t do it playing in central midfield. Joe Willock many of the attributes needed to be a good 8 but he has mostly paid at 10. A loan will do him and us a world of good.
Guendozi should be sold as soon as we can find someone to pay us decent money for him. I think he has a special talent but not in the most people do. He is a player that thrives on chaos. When he plays well, the rest of the team suffers. He is more suited to mid table/relegation teams than a top four team.
I think Ozil played well enough from when Arteta took over up until football was suspended. Anyway, he’s at an age where even if he was still at his best, we would be stupid not have signed his replacement already.
I don’t think Toreira suits Arteta’s style of play. I expect he will be sold.
If Liverpool can win every thing with Jordan Henderson, a player far less talented and useful, in their midfield, then Xhaka still has a big role to play for us. Any trophy we fail to win going forward, it most likely won’t be because we have Xhaka in midfield, it would mean we have bigger issues elsewhere. All our coaches he’s played under seem to think too. Even Unai, before he took the cowardly route after the incident against Palace.
I like Ceballos but I hope we are not signing him on loan again to be first choice in midfield with Xhaka. Partey would be a better fit. I think we will see 2 more additions to our midfield. Perhaps it will be Partey and AN Other.
A deeply satisfying offering of analysis, insight and humor. Thank you BtM.
With Europa to be very serious about I think we shouldn’t plan on loaning any of the hale end band of brothers, Willock included. Unless of course we sign 2 or more new attacking midfielder.
It seems we will lose Torreira and I can understand why. That also makes the midfield lighter in numbers even if we sign Partey. More than defense I think midfield is in need of the most reconstruction.
I remember watching Gnabry
at WBA – he was woeful to be
honest. Looked short of fitness
and practice.
Of course Pulis is a turd.
Reports that Gabriel is flying in
for a medical. Wouldn’t he have
to quarantine if he does that?
And Barca will be shipping out
many players in a super bargain
Autumn sale – I wonder if there
is anyone we fancy?
The scales are finely balanced on whether Willock would benefit from a loan versus remaining at Arsenal to be steeped in all that is Arteta. Either way, next season is a very important one for him. I have a preference for the latter. I’d like to see him play in every Europa and League Cup game and also enjoy a fair sprinkling of starts/subs in the league. He can defend well and cover the ground quickly while carrying the ball. As such he’s more of an 8 than a 10 in my mind.
I do hope we’ll see two more additions in midfield Cent.
Just Guendo-one, Trev. Liked that 🙂
First half of next season’s fixture list looks tougher than the second – but neither looks like a cakewalk.
Tricky first seven games with
away trips to Liverpool, Shitty,
and Manure. A good test of our
new found resilience.
Fulham away on the opening
day.
Cheers BTM. Top review and I agree with your assessment.
We have 3 weeks until the league kicks off. There has never been a transfer window where getting deals done quickly is so important. Yet, so far, all we have changed in central midfield is that Ceballos’ loan is over. We need to establish whether he is coming back. We need to sell Guen, and Torreira. The latter I like but he will command a fee we can reinvest. Partey would be a good signing, yet i have no idea what may or may not be going on there? Ozil has to go in any way we can get him out of the club, however much we have to pay. Keep AMN and see how this all shakes out. He is a good player who will be very useful. I don’t mind if Willock stays or goes on loan, as long as he gets playing time. We need another creative player at 10 or 8. Willian will help but we need another player who can unlock defensive, and progress the ball forwards.
I am less convinced than Ned about Xhaka driving the team forwards. If he is above fourth place choice in central midfield we will struggle. Right now he is first choice. We need at least two quality signings and we need them ASAP.
I’m not exactly a devotee of Willock, so he should go on loan. But then I’m not exactly enthralled by ESN, AMN or Nelson either. Loan the lot?
Those players may develop.
We’re better off loaning out
older players on more money. We
should’ve taken the offer on
Mkhi last January too.
If Arsenal don’t launch a raspberry ripple ice cream linked to the new kit, and call it something like Highbury Ripple, the entire commercial dept wants sacking.
What an appalling set of kits we have this season, after the delirium of the cool home shirt last year.
Re: “Pulis is a turd”
The clue is in the first syllable of his name.
Re: the fixtures list: Liverpool away on 26 September until Manchester United away on 31 October is a very tough set of fixtures but if we get through that stretch without too much damage we should be in decent shape. We must beware Brighton away on 28 December, two days after Chelsea at home, and of course Spuds away on 5 December and at home on 13 March. COYG!!
If you missed it, yesterday’s Arseblog was an interesting analysis of the potential signing of Gabriel, and of our other central defenders. https://arseblog.com/2020/08/gabriel-magalhaes-signing-close-centre-half-decisions-to-be-made/
Today’s Arseblog, with Tim Stillman on Arsenal’s team dynamics with Granit Xhaka is also well worth reading.
Bt8
The teams ‘dynamics’ and Xhaka rarely appear in the same sentence . There is a lot of revisionism around Xhaka . We’ve had him four years and evaded qualification for the Champions League every time
GSD
I share your frustration about signings but it’s a hell of a job this year and you only have to look at how the other teams are doing to see we are not alone in struggling to pull off deals . Transfers are so tough to do now – competition for the best players , greedy agents, players on holiday , lack of funds, deals out to sync with deals in.
If we are really looking at Auouar and Partey that is laudably ambitious. The Gabriel deal is done, almost done, about to be hijacked by Napoli sorry United, the medical is being done, arranged, can’t be done because of the quarantine , is arranged for tomorrow in UK sorry France. This season will start with most teams’ business half done and lots of last minute deals will be on the agenda. Jim White will be having an orgasm
TTG, Stillman was making a similar point, that the players surrounding him have to plan for, and then correct his mistakes.
and his inadequacies.
It took me a while to figure out that Aouair is someone’s name. Could use a few more consonants to give the player a bit more backbone one might think.
Bt8
Thanks for pointing the Xhaka article out, it was extremely balanced ( better balanced than the player 😀) and didn’t do what so many articles on Xhaka do suggesting he has had some sort of renaissance and is now a man transformed . He hasn’t and he isn’t. For the first season with us I was keen to defend him ( remember he kept getting sent off) and I liked his ability to ping a long pass. He was excellent in the 2017 Final @gains5 Chelsea but as you point out in relation to Stillman’s article in a central midfield pivot his chronic lack of mobility puts huge pressure on his partner . That’s why I think Ceballos was exceptional towards the end of the season as he camouflaged Xhaka’scweaknesses, so well described by Tim , really well.
Modern, especially Premier League football is about pace , mobility and drive and Xhaka possesses none of these . He is a quarterback and is best played in the pocket . In other words he needs to be protected before he can perform.
Can you imagine that being the case with Vieira, Petit, Gilberto or Cazorla? Even Arteta was a much better player in my view .
Papa is a papa. Just announced the birth of a daughter. Congrats to him and Mrs Papa.
https://twitter.com/SokratisPapa5/status/1296554709982085121/photo/1
He is a quarterback and is best played in the pocket is an excellent description of Xhaka, TTG. It is why he is ill-suited to the Premiership.
That should have been:
He is a quarterback and is best played in the pocket is an excellent description of Xhaka, TTG. It is why he is ill-suited to the Premiership.
Morning all. No Gabriel yet?
I hope he’s more decisive on
the pitch.
A rumour that the new papa
Papa will go to Roma to replace
Smalling. That’s a fair swap.
That’s a very fair article by Tim Stillman on Granit Xhaka. There’s no doubt that Xhaka will feature prominently next season. However, depending on the success of recruitment in the coming months, he may find that he is available for sale a year from now, with the alternative option of becoming a back-up to a better player – a situation better suited to his profile and capabilities.
Me reading Stillman. From approx 7.22 to 9.00
Superb link Cynic. I enjoyed that TH monologue very much indeed. Sadly we don’t have such sophisticated comedians on British television any more.
I enjoyed Tim’s analysis too though. He’s entirely correct. Xhaka hasn’t changed, it’s the set-up with the folks around him working hard to minimise the effects of his defects. The only thing that has changed personally is his proclivity for reckless challenges which are somewhat less frequent these days.
I see Harry Maguire has been a bad lad. Got into a row outside a crowded bar on Mykonos, then thumped a policeman. Obviously practicing those penalty area moves.
Harry Maguire languishing in a Greek jail. I never much liked the fella, but also can’t say it’s going to do much good for Yannited’s karma going into the new season. Maybe he can meet up with his teammates if they make to a European away tie in the Greek isles.
Not sure how the math adds up but this article suggests four defenders (Chambers, Holding, Mustafi, and Sokratis) will leave, with apparently only two (Saliba, already on the books but new as an Arsenal player) and apparently Gabriel (if he comes) coming in.
https://www.dailystar.co.uk/sport/football/mikel-arteta-arsenal-transfer-revamp-22559189
If we don’t get Partey we had better have an alternative plan lined up, and I don’t mean sitting at home on a Friday night.
Nods home from close range. Partey on!
Bt8
I wouldn’t regard the Daily Star as decent source material for anything . I can’t think it’s useful for anything .
The Europa League Final is superb entertainment so far
I get very frustrated at this time of year following the transfer window . There is huge misinformation and for a lot of young, gullible Arsenal fans refreshing NewsNow every five minutes .
A lot of tabloid journalists make up stuff they don’t know and we’ve seen this with Gabriel. While we have had a bid accepted for Gabriel he is clearly weighing up other options as is his wont. Agents always like to spice things up with all sorts of late contenders and this is happening again.
The Times is not exempt from criticism because they claim this morning that Gabriel ( who was originally said to be ‘ flying in for a medical’ -oh yes with a 14 day quarantine ?) has passed a medical which I’m certain he has not yet had.
If he does have it , it will have to be carried out in France and this will add complications to the decision . The problem is that if a paper like the Times claims something it is true and they have no knowledge of this . Other sites pick it up , embroider the story and the weight of mentions adds to the hysteria .
This is a transfer of a very sought after 22 year-old centre back and in this day and age it won’t be straightforward especially as we aren’t in the Champions League . I’m encouraged that in the last couple of seasons we are chasing and closing a lot of deals with very impressive players . In the Law/ Wenger year’s we missed a lot of deals through indecision . I think there is a good chance we might sign Gabriel. Getting Aouar or Partey ( or both?) would be a very serious indication of where Edu and Arteta want to take the club l
Top stuff TTG.
I don’t actually know much about Partey beyond what I I have read from people whose opinions I value, ie. that he is the type and quality of player we need.
I had never heard of Gabriel a month ago. But now I hope we sign him asap!
Don’t know anything about Aouar. But if he is good then make it happen.
I guess I’m saying that we know we need quality additions, I dont care who they are, but I’m tired of watching us fail to improve areas and then spend another season suffering.
Chers Btm!
Love Granit meself like
And love TTG and GSD as well!
Cynic@43: Thanks for the Hancock link. Such a pleasure to see that again. He was a great comedian with such a tragic life in the end.
I don’t know much about
Aouar either but watched him
a couple of times now – tidy
player, good passer. Would fit
well if he can adapt to the PL.
Paul Merton redid some of Hancock’s old shows. I thought it looked fun when I saw an advert and said as much to my old man. He looked at me with a typical expression of his, part exasperation, part faux disgust, and part twinkle in his eye. He went and got the black and white vhs of Hancock’s original and we sat together roaring in laughter. Merton, who is no chump himself, never came close. The Radio Ham is still one of the funniest things I have ever watched and I think it is only my childhood enjoyment of it which makes me rank it any higher than any of his other half hour offerings. The Bedsitter is unknown to modern audiences. No one has the presence, wit or writing ability to put one bloke on screen for 30 minutes without any other character being visible or audible. And still have them rolling in the aisles. That art is almost lost.
I’ll bet you that Hancock is not sitting in heaven watching Michael Fucking Macintyre with any relish. Then again, neither am I.
Ahhh, Esso. @55.
In true cba style, you’re a right cunt yourself. 😋
The only band that matters…
bt8@42:
A = (Mari + Luiz) = 2
B= (Papa + Rob + Chambers + Mustafi) = is 4
C = (Gabriel + Saliba) = 2
D = (What we can’t sell of B) = ≤4
(A+ B) = 6
((A+B) + C) = 8
(((A+B)+C) – C) = 4
((((A+B)+C) – C) + D) =≥4,≤8, remainder Mavropanos.
Confuses the hell out of me, Ned. Guess I never really was one for equations.
I don’t believe a word of the reporting on Gabriel.
It’s all based on the fiction he had a medical which is lazy reporting from the Times and not corroborated anywhere . This has some way to go in my view. I hope Im not being too suspicious
The Radio Ham is still one of the funniest things I have ever watched
It’s opened up completely new horizons for me. Look at this, friends from all over the world!
None in this country, but all over the world…
Congrats to Papa Papa and Mama Papa. Did I forget Baby Papa?
Man United lawyers do the minimally expected, and get Maguire released from jail. The next challenge is to schedule his court date so as not to coincide with critical fixtures. It could take a lot of gyros in bribes. 😉
The most accurate statement of the week on Gabriel can be found @63.
Maguire’s next court date is
Tuesday. He looks in trouble
to me.
BBC story quotes the police report saying that after arriving at Mykonos police station, the three arrested individuals then “strongly resisted, pushing and hitting three police officers” and that “one of the detainees tried to offer money so that the trial against them would not be completed”
Will the second round of bribes be more or less effective than the first?
As some of us had earlier surmised, Freddie leaves for newer opportunities. Probably management role in Sweden? I think in a few years time he will be back as a manager in PL. 🙂
It will be interesting to see where Freddie lands this time around, Dr F and I wish him well. I assume he speaks German based on his prior coaching appointment. Sweden/Germany probably favourites. I think he has had a very positive influence on the young academy graduates featuring now in the first team squad.
BtM: I think he already had an offer from a Swedish club when Mikel convinced him to stay for the rest of the season. You are right and all the youngsters in the first team squad have reported one time or another how much positive influence Freddie has had on their career. Saka especially.
I thought he did a decent enough job as the interim manager with only Per to assist him before Mikel was appointed. In the Arsenal web-site Mikel says he looks forward to meeting him on the touch line in the near future and I think that may happen in the next few years. 🙂
Football withdrawal syndrome (FWS) is striking hard today, perhaps exacerbated by the teasingly short summer and because I never willfully attempted to withdraw from it. Nice day though, and Covid seems to be ebbing temporarily. Maybe I ought to go get an ice cream and give thanks there are no wildfires around here. Thoughts with scruz and any other members of our California contingent.
Very best wishes and thanks to Freddie who did as well as could be expected with the shit sandwich handed to him by Emery.
It has been confirmed that Gabriel has NOT had a medical but it appears Arsenal are favourites to sign him.
I also see we signed Salah this morning. Let’s hope his career has a similar trajectory to Mo.
Saw a compilation of PL goal of the season from 93-20 and I think in terms of total for a club Arsenal tops the list: 2 for DB10, 1 for Henry, 1 for Adebayor and 2 for Jack. 🙂
We love you Freddie
Although you’ve got no hair
Still love you Freddie
Now that you’ve gone elsewhere …..
Tempus fugit ………
Who will defrock the Paris Show Girls?
What Trev said so eloquently @76.
I tuned in to what was supposed to be the Women’s Champions League on BT Sport this evening, only to be confronted by what appeared to be a Northampton Town match. So I went back to the snooker.
it’s okay Cynic, from what I hear the psg weren’t even defrocked, unfortunately.
Bon voyage and thanks for everything Freddie until we meet again.
TTG, Just wondering what you would say to an article whose title says “Gabriel in London” but whose subtitle says “Gabriel might even be in London” but based on your previous remarks I think I can approximate your opinion. 🤣
Typical of our new style. We are all awaiting developments in the transfer market and instead we announce that Freddie is leaving.
Thanks for everything Freddie. You’ll always have a place at Arsenal. Good luck with the future.
Bt8
I think he may be in London now but presumably he will have to quarantine o4 return immediately . My ire was directed at papers suggesting the deal was further along than it was. It seems likely he will be our player now ….but I wouldn’t be surprised if he signed in France . I guess they need the publicity pictures done
Bt8
Gabriel is apparently coming to London on Monday so he’s not here and the medical hasn’t been done. But it looks positive . But transfer hyperbole does tend to accelerate developments and Tgat has happened here.
Don’t believe the Star, Express, Mail or sadly the Times .
Gabriel probably not in the Chunnel then, I would think.
Best of luck to Freddie.
Cracking player certainly and
seems a good bloke too.
My guess is that Gabriel is
at this very moment most
likely brushing his teeth
I go to Lille a lot. Mrs TTG likes to shop there .
I’d come to London on the Eurostar rather than fly in. And you’re close to the Arsenal when you arrive .
Lille is a nice town and easily accessible on Eurostar. You’d be mad to fly via Paris.
I agree Bath.
It’s a tiny point but it does make you wonder if these journos/ ITK commentators et al really know what’s going on .
Lille has a lovely Art Deco area and some other beautiful architecture as well as some excellent restaurants. I did look at the feasibility of watching a game there whilst based down here in Kent ( it takes just over an hour by train from Ebbsfleet) but the Lille ground is some way away from the station . There are a lot of saddoes from UK who go all over the continent watching matches .
Arsenal are kindly purchasing their team to save me the bother!
Important to have players with good dental hygiene, OM. It’s good PR and good marketing, not just for those like Chris who can see the players’ teeth up close on their giant screen TVs, but also for our season ticket holders who are dentists, periodontists, and orthodontists. 😀😃😄😁😁😁😁😁😷😷😷😬😬😮😬😮
let’s just hope he flossed bt8 or
the deal may be off.
However, I’ve a good filling about
Gabriel, and though I am braced for
bad news I’ll cross that bridge if
we come to it
Thanks to OM and Bt8 for filling us in on the extraction of Gabriel from Lille . We will no doubt drill down on the signing when it is confirmed .I think he will be the Crowning glory in our defence . I hope he will add bite in attack as well
Ummm… I keep hearing stuff about various players leaving and they all appear to be ‘homegrown’, so could someone please update me on who is and who isn’t a homegrown over 21?
I mean, if we get shot of Chambers, Holding, AMN and Martinez we are basically screwed? Which suggests talk of sales for these players is balls.
Cynic, as I understand the home grown rule, it doesn’t mean we must have 8 homegrown players in our squad. It means if we want to have a 25 man squad of senior players, at least 8 of them must be homegrown. We could chose to have 17 foreign players and no homegrown player.
Even if it meant we must have 8 homegrown players(it doesn’t) we could full that quota by registering 8 random academy kids who hold British passports.
Here’s to a Serge Gnabry hat trick tonight to deliver the ECL trophy to Bayern München and save it from the clutches of the Qatar Royal Treasury aka QSG.
Seeing as it is 0-0 at halftime I may as well turn on the game. Can’t feel particularly good if Munich win though. Paris at least would be avoiding the same old same old.
I’d much rather Bayern win than PSG.
Mind you, the big trophy up for grabs tonight is the century…
Which I will lay across on a plate for…
In again!
Just call be the Ian Wright ofgoal snaffling! Great assist GSD.
I think Cynic has a point . We have to look at the homegrown issue very carefully . Bellerin counts as homegrown but Tierney doesn’t I believe .
I think our homegrown players are
Macey
Bellerin
Holding
Chambers
Willock
Nelson
Nketiah
Saka
Interestingly some of the lads we signed last week likevtge S**s lad might swell the numbers of homegrown
Also it’s fascinating to see we have nabbed the Brentford set piece coach . Boy do we need work on defending set pieces
Múnich clearly the better side in that half.
These two teams pretty much neutralised each other for most of the game but Bayern deserved to win and scored a lovely goal to do so. It’s scary to think that Thiago might be joining the Bindippers. He was colossal.
Neymar was awful and finished up behaving as a spoilt infant. I saw Mbappe described as just a chuny Theo! 🤣
The Qatari prince will be on the phone to Pep tonight and will be writing some big cheques shortly. I’m sure Guendouzi could add something to that team.
@93
Great post, I think you really got to
the root of the matter there TTG.
Well in for the ton C100.
Re: That photo, I hadn’t actually realized just how much smaller and slighter than Xhaka Torreira actually is.
Interesting article by 7am if you have a few minutes.
Lots of suggestions that Dennis is to return as first team coach !
I wish he was returning as number 10, TTG!
Thanks BtM. Our defensive stats
are depressing reading though
we can see that watching.
As 7AM said it’s not a quick fix
solution in isolation to buy
Gabriel as we need to sort out
CM as well.
We have been waiting for confirmation of a signing…
Welcome Jonathan Dinzeyi!
Err, anyone else we can confirm yet Arsenal?
Well in for the ton Countryman.
Cheers for the link to 7amkickoff btm.
If we were to play Saliba and Gabriel (should he sign) with Mari and Luiz as backup then that would be a totally new look defence. Obviously Saliba is very young, neither are premier league road tested, Mari is a lot slower (but, like Big Per, reads the game very well) and David Luiz is a mixed bag… So it would be something of a gamble.
But our defence has been poor for ages, so why not roll the dice? Arteta will know what he wants to do and I trust his judgement. If we get the Brazillian signed up then presumably that will trigger the selling side of our transfer dealings. We still need to offload some bodies and it seems like we’ll get rid off whoever we get offers on.
There is still a lot to do.
Misread that as Dizney.
Another Mickey Mouse player.
The first-team-squad composition rules for the Premier League (UEFA’s are slightly different) are that clubs can register up to 25 players of whom no more than 17 may be non-home grown. That leaves eight slots for home-grown players if a club wants to have a full 25-man squad. The rule specifies the cap on non-home grown players, not the home-grown ones. To qualify as home grown, a player needs to have spent 36 months in an English or Welsh club’s system before the end of the season in which they turn 21. However, clubs can field any of their players who are under 21 years old when the transfer window shuts, so they don’t need to be in the registered squad, home grown or not.
Out non-home grown players are:
Leno
Tierney
Mari
Sokratis
Mustafi
Luiz
Kolasinac
Cedric
Ozil
Torreira
Elnenny
Guendouzi
Xhaka
Lacazette
Aubameyang
Pepe
Willian
Mkhitaryan
Mavropanos
(We can assume that Elnenny, Guedouzi, Mkhitaryan and certainly Mavropanos will not be in contention for Premier League squad spots, which leaves room for two non-home grown players to come in, even in the unlikely event of no departures.)
Our home-grown players are:
Martinez
Macey
Bellerin
Holding
Chambers
Maitland-Niles
Willock
Nketiah
Under 21s:
Saliba
ESR
Saka
Nelson (I think he becomes home-grown when the squads are re-registered with the league after the winter transfer window.)
Martinelli
Of the U-23 squad, Dinzeyi could play in League games as a U-21 (he sneaks in by eight days), but Sheaf, Osei-Tutu, Bola and Ballard would have to be registered, as would Iliev (who is now too old to be in the U-23 squad as well, although likely to be out on loan again next season). The rest of the U-23s could play as U-21s if needed.
In short, with five U-21s who can reasonably be considered to be in the first-team squad, we probably have room to sell at least two or three of the home growns, even if that brings the registered squad under the 25-player cap.
mari and soares on permanent deals.
great smorgasbord, btm! lots of deliciousness to choose from. a whisky on the bar for you!
Ned and Btm
Thanks to both of you for this information.
Ned,
I had some of the Home- grown stuff right but you’ve clarified a lot
Btm
That’s an excellent article . It seems to me that a huge amount of thought has gone into the remodelling if Arsenal. While I have massive respect for Wenger there is no doubt he didn’t reinvent himself or his coaching approach…ever and football changed so much in the past few years . We are changing almost everything. A bombshell is released each day but it’s leavened with stuff like we are letting Rice and Houston go as scouts. I’m amazed they were still in place. What did they do ? Sounds like a bit of superannuation to me.
Arsenal is being restyled in a way that Emery failed to do .We are seeing a new approach to scouting young talent , much more focused coaching and if you want an icon they don’t come more iconic than Dennis . I’ve always felt he would be a massive addition to the staff but Arsene didn’t move for him just as he kept the very mundane Gerry Peyton as goalkeeping coach. Look at the impact Cana has made on our keeper coaching since his arrival .
We will lose good young players like AMN, Greenwood , Guendouzi and Balogun but we have to trust Edu and Arteta .
Gabriel is having his medical ( the one the Times said was done in France last week ) tomorrow. Some sad side tracked his plane journey to Luton and Car journey . We wasted money there . Eurostar is cheaper .
Good Guardian Gabriel gab:
https://www.theguardian.com/football/2020/aug/23/gabriel-magalhaes-five-year-deal-arsenal-27m-lille-transfer-window
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