This past week has been a lot better as a Gooner. Arsenal are back to winning ways after taking 3 points away to Southampton in the Premier League and then Sheffield United in the Fa Cup. As a result of the latter, we are once again off to Wembley and have a semi-final to look forward to in what has otherwise been a shambolic season. Bernd Leno’s injury was confirmed as ligament damage but not an ACL and is set to miss 4-6 weeks, a huge relief after initial fears that he could be out for almost a year. He, along with Gabriel Martinelli who also happened to pick up an injury look increasingly likely to miss remainder of the season. On the other hand, Rob Holding who has also had fitness issues is slowly showing signs of returning to his pre-injury self. Yes, he needs to be consistent over a run of games, but his performances in the league last 2 games have been calm and measured, which is a good indication for things to come.
I have with me 5 Arsenal fans who share their views on Holding, what they like about Arteta, people to blame for the position we are in currently and lot more.
Their twitter accounts are linked to their names so feel free to shout them out.
Q1) Which Arsenal player made you fall in love with football?
Ivor:- Mr Arsenal himself, Tony Adams. I grew up playing football as a defender and was a captain of my team too. His passion and love for the club was so evident, and to captain such a big club at such a young age, and for so long is testament to his loyalty and qualities. God how I wish we had someone in our current squad with his mentality!
Craig:- Cesc Fabregas. My favorite type of players are midfielders. Incisive passers, who through their immense talent and football vision can change the game through one pass. He’s one of those characters that we miss in our current squad. Somebody who wants to win as much as they want to breath.
Adam:- I’m one of those weird fans that fell in love with football late and Arsenal even later. For many years I was a strict England Fan fearing the North London Politics. Arsenal-wise I can draw on 2 players neither of which are stereotypical choices. First is Jeremy Aliadiere, I distinctly remember Arsenal being on in the background at my grandparents’ house (my grandpa is a die-hard supporter) and his name standing out. The second player is Danny Welbeck. I have followed him since I saw his England debut against Ghana in 2011 and I was delighted when he joined the club.
UA:- It was more than just one player. It was the game against Slavia Prague in UCL in 2007 when we beat them 7-0. When I saw the highlights of that game I immediately fell in love with the team and the way they played football. Fabregas, Hleb, Walcott, Adebayor all played extremely good. But if it was to choose only 1, it would be Fabregas.
Stephen:- Thierry Henry is the Arsenal player that made me fall in love with football. He was a really special player; a complete striker. He was good at almost everything and I am grateful for the privilege to watch him.
Q2) Who is the 1 Arsenal player you never saw live but desperately wanted to?
Ivor:- I’ve seen all the Arsenal players live since I’ve been going regularly so I’ll go for someone slightly before my time, Liam Brady.
You see the clips of him, and he is just class. A proper wand of a left foot. That goal he scored with the outside of his left foot against Spurs was an absolute gem and my dad rates him as the best player he has seen in an Arsenal shirt which is all I need to know about how special he was.
Craig:- I got to see Thierry Henry play when he was a New York Red Bulls player, obviously that’s not even remotely the same but, I’ll say Alexis Sanchez. Immensely entertaining, no matter the match or opponent you always knew he was producing something special when he received the ball.
Adam:- I’m so sad I never got to see Dennis Bergkamp live. The man was truly a magician.
UA:- Has to be Dennis Bergkamp. I like technical players the most and he was gifted with an incredible technique.
Stephen:- Thierry Henry is the Arsenal player that made me fall in love with football. He was a really special player; a complete striker. He was good at almost everything and I am grateful for the privilege to watch him.
Q3)Make your all-time Arsenal five-a-side team.
Ivor:- Jens Lehmann, Tony Adams (capt), Patrick Vieira, David Rocastle, Ian Wright.
A mix of entertainment, thou shall not pass, ability to gobble up ground, trickery & skills, deadly finishing.
Craig:- Bernd Leno, Tony Adams, Cesc Fabregas, Alexis Sanchez, Thierry Henry.
Adam:- David Seaman, Laurent Koscielny, Aaron Ramsey, Dennis Bergkamp, Thierry Henry.
UA:- David Seaman, Tony Adams, Cesc Fabregas, Patrick Vieira, Thierry Henry.
Stephen:- Jens Lehmann, Kolo Toure, Patrick Vieira, Dennis Bergkamp, Thierry Henry.
Q4) Who do you think is more to blame for Arsenal’s current state – The Kroenke’s or those who actually run the club?
Ivor:- I actually don’t know where to start with this one as there is so much wrong with the club right now. I don’t know how much of our existing situation could, or should, be aimed at the Kroenke’s. They don’t scout the players. They don’t control the mess of our contracts. They don’t pick the teams. And they certainly don’t put the kit on and lose football matches.
We’ve been going backwards for some time now. In my opinion we need a mass clear out of our existing squad and let Arteta build again. It may take a couple of years before we see the fruits of this but carrying on with largely the same group that have been disappointing us for a couple of seasons now will likely see similar outcomes.
Craig:- Undoubtedly it has to be the Kroenke’s for me. Josh’s new close involvement in the club is great and he’s been making direct decisions to return us onto an upward trajectory. But their lack of involvement previously it what’s lead us to the point now. There’s an argument that “Arsene didn’t want this or that”, but at the end of the day the ownership should always ensure the that the long-term future of the club is to maintain our status as one of Europe’s best. Providing the best resources available, managing the staff and being ambitious in looking for every advantage the club can take.
Adam:- There are a lot of parties to blame but I feel a lot of it stems from our acquisition of StatDNA in 2014. At that point our entire scouting system changed to primarily relying on stats over traditional in person scouting as had worked so well in the past. Until recently we were still using that system and we all know that the players it’s found have ranged from good to below average (I’m being generous). Notice that Edu came in and suddenly there’s a shakeup in the scouting department. I think we could well see a massive improvement in the near future. So to circle back I believe there’s blame to go around but that the StatDNA acquisition was the real turning point.
UA:- The Kroenkes. If the Kroenke’s would be really ambitious and would care like us fans, the board would definitely be better and we would have benefitted from it.
Stephen:- There is no straight forward answer here. I think there is enough blame to go around, that some persons who have left the club have to share some part of it. But in all, I think it started from a series of poor decisions or a lack of it and underrating how far behind the club could fall.The blame goes around. The owners have their share, and the people who run the club, have their share. It goes around. In hindsight, you also see how dependent on Arsene Wenger the club was, when it came to making football decisions. His impact is still felt till date – and there are no surprises. He had been at the helm for over two decades.
Q5) Rob Holding, keep or sell?
Ivor:- I’d like to see him play every game between now and the end of the season. I would then say keep or loan.
Saliba will have such a task on his hands to change our defensive frailties around and right now I do not see Holding being his partner at the back. But what we saw with Holding pre-injury is certainly worth sticking with. I think he has a big future in the game still.
Craig:- With Calum Chambers having some decent performances and even Shkodran Mustafi looking decent in recent games it might be a tough case to say keep. Rob Holding has put together some good runs of form himself. When he gets in a run of game his confidence builds and his skillset blossoms, being more courageous in possession and decisive out of.
My final decision comes down to the fact that he’s never played more than 12 league matches in his time here. In the end, he’s never going to be a solidified starter for the club. The opportunities been here for years and he hasn’t taken it, despite but some good performances. If we sell him to fund a move for what could be considered a world class center back then we’ve only gained in the situation.
Adam:- Keep every day of the week. A couple of seasons ago everyone was saying Chambers should be sold, look at him now. A season long loan to a good Championship side or a promoted side and Holding will be like a new player.
UA:- Definitely keep. I really don’t understand fans who would want to sell. Where’s your patience? You saw him in only what? Less than 10 games after his big injury? He was too good before, he deserves a big chance now.
Stephen:- Rob Holding deserves to be given another season, hopefully injury-free to prove himself. When he has had a run of games, he has impressed. He has just never enjoyed a long spell. Deserves a chance in my opinion.
Q6) If you could choose one Arsenal player to never get injured, who would it be?
Ivor:- I would say Pepe. He might not be perfect right now but he is getting some real treatment and it won’t be long before he becomes the next Eduardo/Diaby/Ramsey and have his promising career destroyed.
He could be a very special player if he’s protected.
Craig:- Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
When Alexis Sanchez played for Arsenal, even if Kieran Gibbs and Mohammed Elneny were being played around him you always knew we had a chance. Maybe Aubameyang hasn’t produced such a game altering performance level in his time at the Emirates, but a lineup without Aubameyang in it certainly would already have lost before it reached the pitch. Scoring seven out of eight of our away goals, and 41% of our total goals this season highlighting his influence.
Looking back it will be disappointing for him individually that all he will have to show for his time here will be a Premier League Golden Boot. A truly world class caliber of player was indeed wasted in his prime years as the rest of the squad didn’t meet the required standard to achieve things as a collective.
Adam:- Easy, Leno. Granted that is a little late to be wishing that (speedy recovery Bernd) but he is going to be vital to our rebuild project.
UA:- Wilshere. And then Cazorla. My two favorite players in the last years. I love and miss them every day.
Stephen:- In the current squad, Xhaka. Without him, we are clueless in midfield and our overall gameplay is impacted. He is our orchestrator and a leader. An underappreciated player.
Q7) Which player from the rival team would you take and why ?
Ivor:- I’ll go with Van Dijk. It’s laughable that fans can’t see the impact this player has had on them and he is EXACTLY what we need. Great player with leadership qualities that we simply don’t have right now.
Craig:- This will always be an interesting question, personally I would look toward Joe Gomez of Liverpool. At 23 years-old he has one of the best profiles of any center back in football. 6’3 with all-world athletic qualities, great decision making, and always aware never caught off in-behind. Additionally, I believe there’s a lot of untapped potential in him and his ball-playing capabilities. Klopp does not particularly challenge this part of is game to break down defensive blocks but he’s shown hints of his abillity to identify space between the lines and execute vertical passes even through pressure.
Adam:- Rueben Neves from Wolves, he would fill a lot of gaps for us in midfield long term and has the right attitude to succeed at the club.
UA:- There are a few players from every team I would take. One out of, Son from Spurs, Greenwood from United, Mane from Liverpool, CHO from Chelsea, Foden from City. All of them start for us or possibly an upgrade to the players we have.
Stephen:- Kevin De Bruyne. He is everything I want in a midfielder. A truly class player.
Q8) If there’s one player that would cost less than €20m you want – who is that?
Ivor:- These bargains are out there and in the right positions. Soyuncu a good example of a player in the position we needed that was available at the right price, but they will be few and far between and will be a relative ‘punt’. I’m not sure of the availability of players in the right positions for under £20m so instead will support a mass clear out of players and letting Arteta bring in the players we need rather than going in cheap for a more risky option.
Craig:- According to TransferMarkt, Dominik Szoboszlai (19) is valued at €12m. Playing for RB Salzburg in Austria as an attacking midfielder he loves to make runs in the interior channels and make incisive passes between defenders in the attacking third. Advanced metrics in xG and xA rank him among the best and most dynamic midfielders in the Austrian league. I believe he could be a perfect replacement for Mesut Ozil and at a cheap price.
Adam:- I would probably go for Mykola Matviyenko from Shakhtar, Mikel knows him and he would be a good option at Centre back who can also play left back if needed.
UA:- I don’t know if Thiago Almada would cost less than that but him if yes. Everyone said Szoboszlai but I’d like to choose someone different. If possible then definitely Coutinho on loan and Aouchiche for free as a back up until he learns his trade as he’s got great potential.
Stephen:- Emi Buendia is an interesting player. I think he could do a job – especially if we fail to make Europe.
Q9) Honest opinions on Arteta.
Ivor:- He’s clearly a smart guy, a quality coach, and someone who loves the football club which is hugely important to me. He now needs to find players who are also right for us.
Right now, he’s learning so much about the qualities (or rather lack of) of our current crop and he doesn’t mix his words after defeats which is admirable. He will be seeing day in and day out who has not just the quality, but the mentality too to allow us to kick on again.
The time has come to support a manager to rid our club of troublemakers and under-achievers. Arteta could be a very long-term appointment, and I hope he is.
Craig:- Best possible option we could have got. The timing of his appointment I would argue was tough, as this season was a lost cause. You could however look at it from the point that he’s getting experience individually as a manager, getting to test out some of his tactical ideologies and also better get to evaluate the squad for this summer’s window.
His possession based game model implements a lot of proactive and modern tactics into the team that I believe will lead to long-term success.
Adam:- I am still really impressed by Mikel despite the results. He seems to have the Arsene ability to micro-manage while also delegating as well as his magical powers of communication, the Pep ability to explain detailed concepts in terms players can understand, and the Pochettino ability to criticise his players while also shielding them. He has a really bright future in the game, we have to be patient however hard that may be for some fans. Remember the motto of the club: Victoria Concordia Crescit, Victory comes through harmony.
UA:- Usually when I form an opinion about someone it’s difficult to change my mind. I was convinced that Arteta will become a good manager since we were supposed to get him instead of Emery. You can see the players are way more ambitious now and I’m so excited about the team.
Stephen:- Very difficult for him and unlock, especially with the Corona-virus break and recent mounting injuries. I thought there was some momentum before the break, but that’s all out the window now. However, he needs to be backed financially and by the fans. He is a young coach with very little experience. He is going to make costly and painful mistakes, but with the right environments and support, he will come good. He needs at least, two transfer windows and a full season, before anyone should throw a tantrum…….. In my opinion of course.
I would like to thanks all the panelist for their time, you can follow me here. See you all next week.
The issue in the boardroom is what got us to this point Danny FIzman and David Dein beef. Dein then selling his shares to Kroneke start the trickle effect.