With a draw against Leicester City, Arsenal see themselves sit 8th in the Premier League table. We played extremely well in the first half and dominated proceedings. Whilst we missed chances to finish off the game, it was a fair result in the end. There’s a few good points to factor in – one is the emergence of Martinez who has been performing beyond expectations considering he’s a backup, Saka amassing his 12th assist this season going to become the third highest assist provider from the Premier league in all competitions, Ceballos was excellent once again in midfield and the defence did well to limit Leicester to just the one goal especially after 1-1. We played some really nice football, and as part of the process of developing under Arteta, it was the kind of stuff we can build on. The 3-4-3 seems to be working for us, at least for now…
Guendouzi was missing from the squad again which led to an increase in speculation from multiple outlets regarding his future.
Is it the right move to sell off Guendouzi and for what amount? Does 3 at the back balance us better and is it the system/formation we should use henceforth? Do you think Raul Sanllehi has been good and the person who can help Arteta get the players in the summer?
To answer the above questions and more I have with me 5 Arsenal accounts who will put forth their points. Their twitter accounts are linked to their respective names so feel free to shout them out.
Q1) Which system do you think suits us better ?
Yolani:- I think 3 at the back suits us best, for now. The transition from 4 defenders vs City and Brighton to 3 vs Sheffield and the rest of the games was incredible. The three CB’s offers stability at the back and you can see the players responding well to it.
Graham:- With this group of players that Arteta currently has at his disposal, I would say 3 at the back. We do not have physical, powerful, athletic players and our players are better playing in small spaces. Not only does playing 3 at the back put Luiz in his best position, but it helps other players in the team.
For example, Xhaka, who is not great in big spaces or very mobile, has protection behind him – and it suits the attacking qualities of players like Bellerin and Tierney, who are more effective as wing backs.
With Tierney high, it enables Aubameyang to drift inside either into a 2 or if Lacazette or Nketieh drop deep, more central.
I think ultimately Arteta will want to move to a 4 when he has the right personnel.
He has made it clear that he wants 2 play possession based attacking football with high pressing and counter pressing with inverted full backs, similar to how City play.
Rey:- I think we look more stable when we play 3 at the back. Luiz looks comfortable and solid, it gives more defensive security, and the front three involved more centrally instead of being isolated on the wings. 3-4-3 formation is the best formation for our current squad.
Harneet:- I’ve never been a fan of the back-three. As much as it has worked wonders for Arsenal, it has to be acknowledged that Mikel Arteta is only employing this particular system because of a serious lack of defensive strength. Once he has quality centre-backs at his disposal, reverting to a more attacking – and balanced – 4-2-3-1 would make more sense.
Emily:- At this moment in time, I feel a 3 at the back suits us better with our current players. Arteta started out with a 4-2-3-1, however since Ozil and Guendouzi fell out of favour the 3-4-3 allows us to use our players to the best of their ability. That being said, given suitable summer signings I’d prefer us to perhaps go to a 4-3-3 – it suits this era of English football well in my opinion.
Q2) What do you think of Raul Sanllehi’s work so far at Arsenal?
Yolani:- He’s a smart guy who knows what he is doing as we saw it at Barca. He has just started so want to give him some time before judging him fully, but I am skeptical of him. I rate him 6 out of 10 so far.
Graham:- If the rumours are true and Aubameyang has re-signed a 9 ; if not a 8.
The last few years under Wenger and Gazidis were a disaster off the pitch and we were drifting badly due to poor recruitment and poorly handled player contracts.
What Sanllehi did straight away was sort out the structure of the club at the top putting good people in defined roles. Once it became clear everything was broken under Emery, it was he who went out and recruited our new head coach Arteta, which with every passing day looks to have been the right call.
And finally, he said when he came in that he wouldn’t allow players to go into the last year of their contracts and tie down our best young players. The jury may be out on the first point, but last week he was true to his word as we nailed down Saka and Martinelli in new deals.
Rey:- I’ll give him a 9/10, I think signings have been decent, especially last week we tied down Saka and Martinelli to a new long-term contract, and talks with Auba’s new contract sounds very positive right now. However, I think the transfer fee we pay for Pepe are still too much. In my opinion, the maximum price should be £60-65M, not more than that. But since it’s already happened, I just hope he can do more better with transfer fees in the future.
Harneet:- Most of us had our hair raised when Raul Sanllehi unctuously said, “When Arsenal knock on a player’s door, it’s a different knock than other clubs.” With William Saliba and Nicolas Pepe’s acquisitions, he has backed up every bit of that statement. Looking at the Gunners’ current situation, you’d think there’s not a cat in hell’s chance they are landing any world-class target anytime soon, but well, what do we know? He has also done well as far as the offloading and contract extensions are concerned, and while I get the frustration regarding Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and David Luiz’s extension, overall, there is not much to call him out for. I’d give him a 7.5/10.
Emily:- Arsenal fans should be grateful for Sanllehi, especially considering we had Gazidis before him, it is clear to see the difference he has made. Last summer we made some great signings, most notable Pépé, Tierney, Martinelli and Saliba. He appears to be a good negotiator, which is a nice change too.
Q3) One Arsenal player, past or present, you would like to have your photo taken with ?
Yolani:- The one player I would like to have a photo with would be Aubameyang. The guy’s personality is just so vibrant and gives off good vibes, it goes beyond football and it would be absolutely amazing to have a picture with him.
Graham:- if I had to choose one, it would have to be Thierry Henry, not just because he is our greatest ever goalscorer, but because for me he is the greatest player in our history.
I feel privileged that I watched him in his prime and he played for our club.
I read once that watching him play was like having a beautiful dream. Not only a supreme technically gifted athlete, but a supreme artist and the scorer of iconic goals.
Rey:- I’ve always wanted to take a picture with Bergkamp, as he was the man who made me fall in love with football.
Harneet:- For me, it would have to be Mesut Özil. He is one of my favourite players.
Emily:- For me, it would have to be Mesut Özil. He is one of my favourite players, one of the best playmakers and one of the best German national team players of all time, and I feel like people will only truly realise his excellence once he has retired.
Q4) Who is the most technically-gifted player in Arsenal’s history?
Yolani:- In my opinion Thierry Henry is the most technically-gifted of all time. The guy did it all, what a legend. Technique, pace, strength, shot taking. He was all over the place contributing to everything, his ability to find the back of the net was astonishing.
Graham:- Technically, the most gifted player would have to be Bergkamp. If Wenger was responsible for making Arsenal play beautiful football, Bergkamp was the one who did it on the pitch.
His technical ability was so good that he seemed to be light years ahead of every player on the pitch in his thinking, movement and skill. He always saw the complete picture; did what the game demanded and no-one played the beautiful game better than him when he was in full flow. His goal at Newcastle, the best ever goal scored in the Premier League in my opinion, summed up not only his technical ability, but also his thought process. He was a genius who always did something in a game that stayed with you long after it was over.
Rey:- Has to be Dennis Bergkamp. The intelligence, the vision, the pass and the control, he had it all.
Harneet:- Dennis Bergkamp. Any other answer is wrong. In fact, he might just be the most technically gifted player to have ever played in England. I know it’s a big make statement to make; however, looking back at the kind of things he did on the pitch in an Arsenal shirt, it’s hard to think of anyone else who betters that.
Emily:- It’s definitely between Bergkamp and Özil, both have an insane first touch and elegance on the ball which for me is unparalleled. If I had to pick one, it would be Bergkamp – his goals against Newcastle, Leicester and Argentina speak for themselves.
Q5) Thoughts on Guendouzi? Keep or sell? If sell what is the amount you would ask for.
Yolani:- We should sell Guendouzi. I think to keep players that no longer want to play for us is a wrong move. It would be ideal for us to trade him for Partey or get some money if that’s not possible(swap deal). Thomas would be someone that would be an improvement over Guendouzi.
Graham:- I hate selling young players and I love Guendouzi’s fighting spirit on the pitch, however one thing that blighted Wenger’s later years, was he wasn’t tough enough with the players.
If they let him down on or off the pitch, they still played next week . There was no accountability.
So I have longed for a manager who would change that culture at Arsenal.
Arteta said right at the get go that some things were non – negotiable, players had to buy in and pull in the same direction. And that included discipline on and off the pitch.
Guendouzi’s attitude has been a problem for a while and I see parallels in his disruptive nature with his French compatriot Rabiot when he was at PSG.
Over the last few months he has tested Arteta on a few occasions; the warm whether Training camp as well as the Brighton game and I understand his focus in training has been found wanting, which has upset Arteta.
You have to have all players pulling in the same direction, otherwise it causes disharmony in the dressing room. He is a bright young player with immense promise, so reluctantly I would sell.
Rey:- He have a high potential to be a top player in the future, but I think we all know he needs to improve his attitude. Ceballos had the similar problem before Dubai trip, but then he changed his attitude (I remember Arteta said he completely changed his behaviors and trained like an animal), then he got game time. Same thing happened with Maitland-Niles, everyone thought his Arsenal career is over and I’ve seen some fans made polls to ‘decide’ his future here (Keep / Loan / Sell), and most of them voted for ’Sell’. I remember some fans were discussing about the ideal transfer fee for him as well. But he apologized and changed his attitude, then he got game time and changed the fans’ perspective towards him. Guendouzi is currently in a similar situation with AMN back then, and his future at Arsenal is in his own hands. I will keep him if he’s willing to change his attitude and if he’s still in Arteta’s plans, but if he doesn’t then he can leave. He’s worth around £36M according to transfermarkt, I would sell him if an offer came for him for similar amount.
Harneet:- I do rate Matteo Guendouzi and have always been in awe of the way he gives everything on the pitch but lately, reports have surfaced of his intent to leave. If he is not “willing to get on the boat”, it does not matter if he has Xavi’s potential in him. He has to be sold. Anything over £40 million would represent an excellent bit of business.
Emily:- I am a massive fan of Guendouzi and I believe he will have a very successful career, but I don’t see a way back for him under Arteta, so I am happy to sell. Money is tricky because of the pandemic situation, however I feel we can definitely get at least £50 million for him, which would be an impressive profit.
Q6) How will Alexis Sanchez be remembered at Arsenal?
Yolani:- Alexis Sanchez was such a talent at Arsenal, he was at the club for part of his prime and as soon as he left Arsenal he just went down completely. I personally did not want him to leave. Man United already had players, playing in the position of his liking, so I knew he was not get much time. It’s so sad.
Graham:- I loved Alexis as a player. His passion, hunger and desire. He played with his heart on his sleeve and his body language good or bad, he never hid.
I hated the way it played out in the end with his contract and he lost the players at the end.
However I choose 2 remember him at Arsenal for all the pleasure he gave me; his fighting spirit and never say die work-rate and attitude on the pitch. He was the best player in the team. He stood out. He shone.
He did score 60 goals in 122 games ,including that screamer in the 2015 FA Cup Final, one of the two trophies he helped us win.
In hindsight I feel in 2015 we missed a wonderful opportunity to build a team around him and Ozil. Had we done so, we would have won the league in a year or so.
Rey:- I’m still gutted how it ended, but he will be remembered as a very good player. Prime Alexis Sanchez was deadly and he carried Arsenal. His linkup with Ozil was incredible as well, the best duo in Emirates era for me. I think that’s what people will remember him for in a good way.
Harneet:- An also-ran in the race to be a legend. When he was at Arsenal, he was by far the best player and very rightly, the embodiment of “The Arsenal”. The way he left, though – and it makes me sad to admit it – it overshadowed everything he did as a player.
Emily:- Ultimately, I think he will be remembered as one of, if not the best player of the Emirates era (so far). Although he left on bad terms, he single handedly won us game after game and he was undisputedly the best player in the league at times. It needs to be remembered he was in very bad form when he left us, it was probably a good idea in the end for him to move on.
Q7) Make your all-time Arsenal five-a-side team.
Yolani:- Seaman, Adams, Cole, Vieira and Henry.
Graham:- Seaman, Adams, Bergkamp, Henry, Wright.
Rey:- Seaman, Adams, Vieira, Bergkamp and Henry.
Harneet:- Lehmann, Adams, Vieira, Bergkamp, Henry.
Emily:- Seaman, Adams, Vieira, Bergkamp, Henry.
Q8) What can we do as fans to create right atmosphere for youth development?
Yolani:- Just unconditional support. Even through social media, players read the posts under their social media account but don’t reply to everything because it is literally impossible. The youngsters see how the older players get treated by the fans and by treating the players in a “wrong manner”, it only drives a youngster away from the club, fearing abuse for every foot he puts wrong. I think we should support all our players and back them.
Graham:- We can only do this by encouraging them not to be frightened of making mistakes and trusting them to fulfill their potential and supporting them every time they play for us.
The future is bright at Arsenal and the young players like Saka, Martinelli, Willock, Nketieh, Smith Rowe are developing alongside the likes of Tierney and Pepe, who were signed last year.
Fans need to be patient and trust the process.
Rey:- Support them in every situation, through the ups and downs. We should give them supportive messages when we get bad results or when some players don’t perform well instead of giving rude comments or toxic criticism. And when we get good results we can send them messages like how good their performances were, and keep motivating them that they can do more in the upcoming matches. I think these actions applies to everyone in the team, not just for the youngsters.
Harneet:- Learning the art of patience would be a good start. The Emirates can go from 100-0 in the space of a goal, which is something I utterly abhor. There’s a section of the fanbase that is extremely classy but then there are those who pay for “Wenger Out” banners. Things like that are not only unacceptable but also detrimental to a young players’ growth. You want your fans willing you on, not shooing you away.
Emily:- We need patience as youth development takes time, and also positivity. Negative comments and abuse does nothing but ruin a young player’s confidence, which can in turn hinder their career. By being positive and supportive, we are providing them with the best atmosphere needed to play to the best of their abilities. This should especially be remembered when Saliba arrives; he won’t instantly transform our defence, so our fans need to lower their immediate expectations and allow him the time he needs to adapt and develop.
Q9) Thoughts on Arteta so far ? Where does he need to improve if any?
Yolani:- I love Arteta, I loved the idea of him being our head coach since Wenger’s departure was announced. He was already getting good experience from being an assistant to Guardiola and I knew he was going to bring something fresh to the team. The players seem to love him and that’s so important for the team. I trust him fully and I know he will do great things at the club. We just have to patient with him.
Graham:- My thoughts on Arteta so far is that he has come in and immediately won the players over, by the way he wants us to play and has us more organised, harder to beat.
He has recognised the strengths and weamnesses of his players and found a system that utilizes their strengths.
He wants to play a possession based attacking game, but recognises both sides of the game on and off the ball and one of his non-negotiables seems to be that the players have to work harder out of possession with high pressing and counter pressing.The results are encouraging so far.
He is still fixing problems with this present group, but given the right tools and the players that he wants, I believe he could take us to the new level.
If I had to pick out one thing he needs to improve it is he needs to eradicate the costly individual errors that have cost the team.
But he has implemented his own style, playing out asking defenders to draw a man on to take him out of the game and put players in areas of the pitch they feel comfortable with clear plans like exit strategies, triangles up the pitch and width with players hugging the touchline.
He is in his first managerial post at a big club with high expectations to deliver results, but he is a man full of conviction and self belief. I really think he has done a great job.
Rey:- I think he’s the right man for the job and he has done a great job. He came when we were in our worst condition, with such limited squad as well. He completely changed the team into a ‘real’ team. We looked unorganized before he came, but now we look united and more organized. I can feel everyone believes in his philosophy and what he wants to build. For weaknesses, I think substitutions and in game management have been his main weakness, but after the Brighton game I think he keeps improving in the next games. Obviously he needs time, transfer windows and backed financially to lead us to glory, but he’s done way better than most people expected and all we can do as fans is believe in him and trust the process.
Harneet:- Mikel Arteta has laid down the law in terms of both the on and off-field doings, making it crystal clear that he wants his players to play and behave a certain way. Anyone who does not agree is free to leave. That is elite management. Most top managers build a culture and I’m glad he’s doing that, too. The results have already improved and I expect that to continue. So far, he has been perfect.
Emily:- The job Arteta has done with our squad is very impressive, I am a massive fan of his and I definitely think he’s the right man to take this club forward. He understands our values and how we play football and he has taken all of this into consideration, we are now beginning to play attractive football whilst grinding out impressive results like the 0-2 win at Wolves. Given sufficient backing, I believe he will be a big success story at the club for some years to come.
I would like to thank all the panelists for the time they have taken to answer the questions.
