Arsenal in crisis

[Nate SWA]

Wenger is stubborn. If he thinks the current squad can win the league and challenge in the champions league and this happens again, his ass is getting sacked.

So he will get the sack if he wins the fa cup again ?

 

[smat]

Finished 3rd last season as well. So there.

 

[thespus]

That cycle is accurate for literally one of the near twenty seasons Wenger has been in charge. I agree he's stubborn - but I have a fondness for stubborn people that take the club I support and leave it significantly better than what it was before.

 

[SALTIRE]

leave it significantly better than what it was before.

You were winning leagues and European trophies before he came in. No chance of either now.

 

[thespus]

You were winning leagues and European trophies before he came in. No chance of either now.

This reads like the inaccurate win-up from a Liverpool supporter that, since Wenger's arrival, has seen Liverpool fall from English behemoth to a club with supporters that don't hold their manager to the same standard as the Arsenal manager - and it isn't because Arsenal have spent more (net or total) on players

.

 

[JoshBCFC]

Arsenal need to get rid of Wenger. They are going nowhere with him. He is too loyal with his players and doesn't want to face leaving them out. He needs to strengthen the squad to a title-winning team, and for some reason he thinks that Arsenal's team are BPL winning quality right now. Either that or he just wants to finish 3rd or 4th every season. Giroud up front isn't title-winning quality, never mind Walcott. They also need a CAM and a LB, Ramsey and Monreal don't cut it for me. Other than that they need depth. Let's be honest here, Arsenal don't have quality depth in their team like Chelsea and Manchester City do. It may seem harsh, but it's true.

 

[thespus]

Arsenal need to get rid of Wenger. They are going nowhere with him. He is too loyal with his players and doesn't want to face leaving them out. He needs to strengthen the squad to a title-winning team, and for some reason he thinks that Arsenal's team are BPL winning quality right now. Either that or he just wants to finish 3rd or 4th every season. Giroud up front isn't title-winning quality, never mind Walcott. They also need a CAM and a LB, Ramsey and Monreal don't cut it for me. Other than that they need depth. Let's be honest here, Arsenal don't have quality depth in their team like Chelsea and Manchester City do. It may seem harsh, but it's true.

The loyal thing is a bit of a myth - he's stubborn, but he wasn't sentimental in demoting Ospina and loaning Szczesny when Cech became available.

Arsenal need a CAM? I think we need to stop playing so many CAM's.

 

[JoshBCFC]

The loyal thing is a bit of a myth - he's stubborn, but he wasn't sentimental in demoting Ospina and loaning Szczesny when Cech became available.

Arsenal need a CAM? I think we need to stop playing so many CAM's.

To make this clear i'm talking about the center of the attacking midfield, which was occupied by Ramsey vs Newcastle. That first part is true, but i'm not sure Arsene wanted a guy who had been caught smoking in the showers in his dressing room. He could've been a bad egg, IDK. I think loaning Szczesny might've been down to seeing if he could get his form back somewhere else, and if you look at the players Roma have made play really well, then it's a no brainer. Ospina had been a back-up anyway, so it would've been normal for him.

 

[SALTIRE]

This reads like the inaccurate win-up from a Liverpool supporter that, since Wenger's arrival, has seen Liverpool fall from English behemoth to a club with supporters that don't hold their manager to the same standard as the Arsenal manager - and it isn't because Arsenal have spent more (net or total) on players

.

Every man and his dog knows what Arsenal needs to compete for the big trophies again apart from Wenger. That makes him look increasingly foolish and outdated.

 

[Footballer]

Do rate Arsene Wenger very highly as a manager and Arsenal are a long way from crisis, but if i was an arsenal fan i would be concerned in the lack of action in the transfer market this season. Wenger has since come out and said that the Martial deal proves the transfer market was dead with no one really available but surely some of the vast number of players brought by their competitors some of these would have improved the Arsenal squad.

Chelsea
Senegalese defender Papy Djilobodji from Nantes for a fee of 3.7m; Spanish forward Pedro from Barcelona for a fee of 27m; Ghanaian defender Abdul Rahman Baba from Augsburg for a fee of 20m; Brazilian forward Kenedy from Fluminense Rio de Janeiro for a fee of 8.6m; Bosnia-Herzegovnian goalkeeper Asmir Begovic from Stoke City for a fee of 11m; Colombian forward Falcao on loan from Monaco.

70 million Euros

Liverpool
Brazilian midfielder Allan from Internacional Porto Alegre for a fee of 0.8m; Belgian forward Christian Benteke from Aston Villa for a fee of 46.5m; Defender Nathaniel Clyne from Southampton for a fee of 17.7m; Brazilian midfielder Roberto Firmino from Hoffenheim for a fee of 41m; Defender Joe Gomez from Charlton Athletic for a fee of 4.9m; Hungarian goalkeeper Adam Bogdan on a free transfer from Bolton Wanderers; Forward Danny Ings on a free transfer from Burnley; Midfielder James Milner on a free transfer from Manchester City.

110 million Euros

Manchester City
Belgian midfielder Kevin De Bruyne from Wolfsburg for a fee of 74m; Argentinian defender Nicolas Otamendi from Valencia for a fee of 44.6m; Midfielder Patrick Roberts from Fulham for a fee of 7.2m; Midfielder Fabian Delph from Aston Villa for a fee of 11.5m; Midfielder Raheem Sterling from Liverpool for a fee of 68m.

205 million Euros

Manchester United
French forward Anthony Martial from Monaco for a fee of 49m; Welsh defender Regan Poole from Newport County for a fee of 0.2m; Argentinian goalkeeper Sergio Romero on a free transfer from Sampdoria; German midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger from Bayern Munich for a fee of 9m; Italian defender Matteo Darmian from Torino for a fee of 18m; French midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin from Southampton for a fee of 35m; Dutch midfielder Memphis Depay from PSV Eindhoven for a fee of 27.5m.
138 million Euros

 

[JimJams]

Looking at that list I'm not sure they would for the most part. I think if you look at players available in the window that Arsenal could have got but didn't (players that did make a move somewhere else - not just players who they could bid for) then I don't think there's much for them to be envious about when it comes to players that moved to those premier league clubs.
Chelsea - Pedro would be a good squad player and could be a first 11 player, but there's no guarantee in that regard. He'd be an excellent player to bring on but there's no reasoning for him to displace any current Arsenal player. That would be a bit of a luxury purchase.
Falcao - Arsenal apparently can't win the league without a world class striker and Falcao in his Porto/Atletico days was just that. It remains to be seen whether he's lost it or LVG just couldn't get him playing well. Unfortunately I'm not sure he's going to be given the chance to find out under Mourinho as giving him a consistent run of games and finding out he can't get back to his former level would spell disaster in their title bid and is therefore not a risk worth taking. And so it goes for Wenger as well.
Liverpool - I'd take Clyne over Bellerin, but I wouldn't buy Clyne to replace the Spaniard. That would be an expensive short term upgrade and Wenger is obviously going to give Bellerin his chance at developing and becoming a top fullback. A replacement for Debuchy would be fine but again it'd limit Bellerins playing time which is pointless.
Having said that Gomez at the price he cost is definitely a Wenger type purchase and I think most clubs would be looking at him and thinking they should have had a dabble for him. However although Gomez would be a great addition to the squad (certainly the way he looks at present anyway) he's not the difference between Arsenal coming 3rd and becoming the champions.
Man City - Raheem Sterling would have been a great addition, though I'm sure there are plenty of Arsenal fans that would argue he's not needed, but given how stale the gunners attack has been this season so far they might rethink that idea. A trio of Sterling, Sanchez and Ox behind a striker in front of a holding/defensive pair would tear the shit out of most defences I'd imagine. The fact they are all equally comfortable taking players on with the ball as well as utilising the passing game combined with the pace they all have would be devastating. Whether they would have gotten him I'm not sure. I would imagine if terms were equal from both clubs he'd probably rather join the London side but who knows? I think he can be considered one that got away.
Otamendi - A defensive improvement for the squad and a replacement for Mertesacker, I'd argue that replacement is already in the squad in Gabriel. The Argentinian could definitely improve them but not by a huge margin. His price tag is also excessive. He is a good centre back, I don't think he's a great one. He had a great year in Spain but prior to that he was not considered one of Europes top centre backs but his price looks like he should be one. He'll turn 28 this season too, so there's little long term value in him.
KDB - The fee would be ridiculous for any side to pay that can't guarantee him a place in the starting 11. He has different attributes to Sterling and ones that are probably adequately enough covered by the rest of the side. For me KDBs strengths are his passing and vision, but I don't think that's something really lacking at Arsenal.
Man Utd - Morgan Schneiderlin. A player they had been linked with previously and a player they should have gone for. This is one of those signings where I think Wenger can be criticised for either being stubborn or naïve. He's better than Coquelin, and while some Arsenal fans will want to argue that Coquelin is still learning and will improve given time, Francis is 24 and Morgan is 25. And the latter has been doing the job for Southampton to a high level for years. Additionally Arsenal compete in four competitions, if Coq gets injured, suspended or just goes through a period where he's fatigued, who compares as an option to Schneiderlin? They can be rotated, they can also be played together. They're both generally comfortable on the ball, ok neither of them are Xavi but they're not John Obi Mikel either. The need for Cazorla or that type of player playing off of one of them is not always going to be the best option dependant on the gameplan and opposition. He'd give them flexibility, options and a better starting 11 and certainly a better squad. One that got away.

So really other than Raheem Sterling and Morgan Schneiderlin for a fee of £75mill+ I don't think Wenger has much to be disappointed about when it comes to the purchases those other clubs have made.

Seeing how players like Bacca and Jackson Martinez fare will show if he has reason to be disappointed with his business as they were players that were available to Arsenal and he chose to go for bigger more proven names. That's all well and good but when has Wenger ever bought a striker in the bracket of those he was trying to get this this time round? Ok it's showing ambition, but is it being realistic given the clubs and the players he was supposedly after?

 

[Pagnell]

This reads like the inaccurate win-up from a Liverpool supporter that, since Wenger's arrival, has seen Liverpool fall from English behemoth to a club with supporters that don't hold their manager to the same standard as the Arsenal manager - and it isn't because Arsenal have spent more (net or total) on players

.

A point which might have been worth making had Arsenal and Wenger been responsible for said fall.

 

[thespus]

A point which might have been worth making had Arsenal and Wenger been responsible for said fall.

The point was "don't throw stones from glass houses".

 

[Mustard]

To make this clear i'm talking about the center of the attacking midfield, which was occupied by Ramsey vs Newcastle. That first part is true, but i'm not sure Arsene wanted a guy who had been caught smoking in the showers in his dressing room. He could've been a bad egg, IDK. I think loaning Szczesny might've been down to seeing if he could get his form back somewhere else, and if you look at the players Roma have made play really well, then it's a no brainer. Ospina had been a back-up anyway, so it would've been normal for him.

Özil was injured, I've heard he's a pretty good CAM...
Also Monreal has been excellent for the past year or so, one of our most consistent players. We do have weaknesses but I disagree he is one of them.

Ramsey/Cazorla/Wilshere/Rosicky isn't bad depth for AM either.

 

[Mustard]

So Welbeck has undergone surgery and will be out for a few months. Good thing we signed another striker then.

This is literally the most Arsenal thing to happen ever.

 

[Whitechapel]

So Welbeck has undergone surgery and will be out for a few months. Good thing we signed another striker then.

This is literally the most Arsenal thing to happen ever.

Just wait until Giroud gets injured with France.

 

[Pagnell]

Wait, Welbeck is a striker?

 

[Mustard]

As much as Walcott or any of our other 'strikers' bar Giroud.

 

[Whitechapel]

Make sense now that Joel Campbell wasn't sold seeing as Chuba is out on loan with Hull.

 

[Humongous Fungus]

Well at least now he'll only miss matches and not chances.

 

[Avatar]

Honestly, plonk Sanchez up front and play 4-4-2 with him and whoever isnt injured.

 

[JoshBCFC]

Özil was injured, I've heard he's a pretty good CAM...
Also Monreal has been excellent for the past year or so, one of our most consistent players. We do have weaknesses but I disagree he is one of them.

Ramsey/Cazorla/Wilshere/Rosicky isn't bad depth for AM either.

Would you really say Ozil's latest form is BPL winning quality? There are definitely better CAM's in this league IMO.

 

[TheArtfulDodger]

Welbeck is hardly a loss, abysmal player.

 

[smat]

They knew he was injured before the window closed. That's why they were trying to get Kokorin in on loan (according to some sources) and didn't let Campbell (who is rubbish) leave. They just wanted bodies to stand in if it came to it. I'm not really arsed, Giroud's fitness record is good (broken leg notwithstanding) and Walcott and Sanchez can play there. Welbz is just first backup up front.

 

[thespus]

Would you really say Ozil's latest form is BPL winning quality? There are definitely better CAM's in this league IMO.

He's missed one match yet has created the 2nd (to Cazorla) most chances in the league. He averages more key passes and chances created than any player in the league. He and Silva have nearly identical passing statistics (accuracy and average length) but Özil leads in key passes 18 to 8. Silva is the only attacking midfielder in the league I'd consider swapping him for - and Arsenal don't have the best striker in the league. I wish he'd shoot a little more often, but apart from that I'm ecstatic he's an Arsenal player.

Arsenal lead the league in shots per game, chances created, possession, passing accuracy, and concede the second fewest shots per game. The goals will come - Giroud, Walcott, Ramsey, and Alexis will progress to their respective mean (career conversion %). Alexis has now hit the post three times and Giroud and Walcott won't continue to miss every sitter that comes about - we know this from a much larger sample size. Coquelin continues to quiet his detractors. Massive match at Stamford Bridge this weekend.

 

[Stevencc]

It's Wenger's best chance in a hell of a long time to get one over on Jose and, even with Chelsea's abysmal current form and rock-bottom confidence, I'd still back Mourinho to get the better of him once again.

 

[JimJams]

Thespus can you change your name to Statto please.

 

[thespus]

Thespus can you change your name to Statto please.

Give it a few years and analytics/statistics will be significantly more prevalent in English football culture.

 

[G.B]

i've said it before and i'll say it again. it's about time we did away with all the running and kicking and just played the game on paper.

 

[JimJams]

Trouble is then is if someone spills the tip-ex the game is fucked.