The Premier league restart is just around the corner. Before action came to a halt, we saw Arsenal win 3 back to back league games. While our league position may not be representative of our progress under Arteta, we showed real signs of structural improvement – we were well drilled and cohesive as a unit. During this period we have seen our younger talents like Martinelli and Saka take their chances with both hands, to the suprise to many Arsenal fans and Ozil starting frequently and doing well.
We now face Manchester City next and Arteta has the full squad fit for selection. Will Ozil and Saka start for us in that game, since Tierney is back? What is Saka’s best position? Which Arsenal player suprised you the most this season?
I have with me 5 Top 6 Rival accounts who will discuss the above questions and a lot more. Their Twitter handles are linked to their names where they’ve given their justifications, so feel free to shout them out directly.
Q1) What is it the one thing which a premier league rival club is doing (any team in the league), that your club isn’t and you would love to see it being implemented at your club?
Sibs(Manchester United Fan) :- It’s got to be Liverpool, hasn’t it? Their transformation over the last 4 years has been remarkable, we should be studying them to find out how they’ve done it. FSG have put football men in football positions and let them get on with their job – we’ve been crying out for a Micheal Edwards type figure at United for years. Liverpool’s analytical, stats driven scouting is in complete contrast to the short term, scattergun approach we’ve had for the past decade. They found their man in Jurgen Klopp, trusted his approach and backed him fully. It’s a perfect mix of paying for quality when needed and unearthing gems like Robertson & Gomez supplemented by their academy. Even when selling players they always seem to get the best fee possible whilst we’re stuck with unwanted players on expensive contracts.
Stephan(Liverpool Fan):- This answer will sound so conceited but I have to be honest in my answers. Nothing. As a Liverpool fan, I have never been happier about how the club is run. It is the first time in all my many years supporting the club that I have no opinion on how they could improve. I’m totally content. I don’t even think about it, I have just accepted they have competent people throughout and I am in no position to offer any input on what they could do different.
Nit-picking, I think we all wish our clubs had more money to buy more players etc. But the flip side of that is I think the days of local-boy-done-good who buys a club and pours his all in are behind us. Today, if you support a top club it will probably be owned by billionaires. Looking around the billionaires who own such clubs, I wouldn’t want any of the baggage that comes with most of them.
The feeling that a club I have loved for 30+ years being used to launder the image of a person or a repressive regime. That would honestly kill my love for my club.
Sami(Tottenham Hotspurs Fan):- Spending money in the right areas. As a spurs fan, myself and many other spurs fans have been crying out for a left back, defensive midfielder and backup striker over the last 2 years and it still hasn’t been resolved, this needs fixing. We see what City and Liverpool are doing and it has bought them success, we need to act the same way.
Rashad(Chelsea Fan):- Man City’s ruthlessness in the market. They’ve proven time and time again that investing in actual quality into your squad always pays off. I’d love to see that mentality back at Chelsea.
Ioan(Manchester City Fan):- I admire the youth coming through at Chelsea. You could argue it’s been forced upon them, but the likes of Abraham, Hudson-Odoi, Tomori, Mount, James and so on are evidence that sometimes young players just need a chance in the first team – something City haven’t done enough since the takeover.
Q2) Your club’s most talented youngster? What do you like about him?
Sibs:- Mason Greenwood. Those who’ve seen him in our youth teams have been hyping him up for years. An incredibly talented player who can play right across the front three. He’s quick, he’s two footed, he’s a natural finisher as shown by his goal tally. Barring injury I expect him to hit 15 goals this season (currently on 12) – not bad for an 18 year old kid in his first full season as a pro. Rashford’s highest was 13 before this season.
I am excited by the team we are building and fully expect us to reap the rewards of it in 2-3 years. Even the likes of Martial & Rashford who’ve been around for years now are still under 25.
Stephan:- Trent Alexander-Arnold is the obvious answer here. But I think with his experience, he is no longer a youngster really.
So I’ll go with Curtis Jones. He is like a young Aouar with a scouse afro. Ridiculously confident, extremely press resistant. Sees the game in terms of spaces rather than hyper-focus on the ball. Has a shot on him. Knows how to press to shape play.
Sami:- Troy Parrott, very lethal finisher at youth level and has had some appearances in the first team this season under Mourinho. Reminds me of Robbie Keane, I hope he gets more chances next year.
Rashad:- We’ve luckily got quite a few but if I had to narrow it down to one it’s gonna have to be Reece James. He’s got the whole package to be a world class RB at just 20 years of age.
Ioan:- Phil Foden. To put it simply, whenever he plays, he doesn’t look out of place in one of the best teams in the world. His ability on the ball, first touch, vision and most impressively the hunger he has on the pitch have extremely impressed me whenever he has played. However, this ties into my first answer. He doesn’t play enough. He’s currently hindered by Pep’s win-or-die nature.
Q3) Which Arsenal player do you think never reached his full potential?
Sibs:- Callum Chambers joined Arsenal 6 years ago and I don’t think he’s ever really shown what he’s capable of. Similar to the problem Phil Jones had with us in his early years – always shifting positions between full back, CB & midfield and never really got the opportunity to nail one down. Much like Holding last season, it’s such a shame for him that as soon as he did get a consistent run in the Arsenal team it was interrupted by a serious injury.
Stephan:- Wilshire seems the obvious choice. Although he seemed doomed to fail really given everything Wenger has subsequently said. Arsene Wenger talked in the past about how making a footballer is like building a house. He describes how players first need a technical foundation, then physical level, then tactical and finally is mental. Or as he puts it ‘how much do I want it’. What are you willing to sacrifice to make it. That is a player’s ‘roof’. And without a roof – the rain will come in and the house will collapse in on itself. It always felt to me like he was talking about Wilshire here.
So, to say he had the most potential is to ignore all aspects of what it is to make a great footballer and hyper focusing on technical level perhaps because it is easier for people to see that some of the others.
But your technical level doesn’t really matter if you are out clubbing, smoking, getting drunk etc.
Sami:- Hector Bellerin. At one point in 2016 he was wanted by most teams in the world. He had all the attributes you wanted in a right back at the time but his injuries over the last few years meant he doesn’t feature a lot now, hasn’t really improved a lot over time. I thought Bellerin will be amongst the top players in the league by 2020 but that isn’t the case till now. It’s a shame.
Rashad:- Mesut Ozil. Everybody had the highest of hopes for him post Madrid. I personally was frightened at the thought of him leading the Arsenal side you had at the time, to multiple trophies.
He should’ve been the signing that took the club to a whole new level, but sadly he couldn’t.
Ioan:- Two come to mind, Jack Wilshere & Abou Diaby. I’ll go with Jack. The amount of potential and promise he had as a teen was frightening. I think we all remember his performance versus Barcelona in 2011. A classic example of a career ruined by injuries and maybe some personal problems, such as smoking, partying and so on. I even wanted City to take a punt on him when we were linked to him. It’s a shame his career has played out in the manner that it has.
Q4) Honest thoughts on Ozil – do you think he’s unfairly criticized?
Sibs:- Ozil has been a convenient scapegoat for several years, both with Arsenal fans and the media. He’s been unfairly criticised pretty much since day one, although I do feel it is increasingly justified in 2020. With Arsenal having to make cutbacks financially when you’ve got a player on that salary who isn’t performing consistently to the level he is capable of, he’s inevitably going to drawn criticism.
Due to his talent so much is expected of him that when Arsenal haven’t performed he’s the one who’ll get the flak for it, whether it’s warranted or not. Arsenal have tried to build around him but he isn’t a Hazard who can lift a poor team on his own.
He’s still a very good player on his day but I do think he’s clocked out a bit mentally after getting that big contract. I don’t think there’s any possibility of him getting a new deal at Arsenal and he’ll have his eye on signing a pre contact somewhere new in January.
Stephan:- Social media opinions are very binary. Players are either over-rated or under-rated. Youngsters are either bad or generational.
It feels like that is where we are at with Ozil. There seems like there is a reluctance to look at his career in stages. Instead, it is all just rolled up together and labelled as disappointing because with recency bias – that is where he is today. Disappointing.
There is no doubt he was a world class player for a period of time. How long you feel that lasted is open for discussion. I also think the hyper-focus on end product hurt him, much as it does with kids who look back at the Zidane era and don’t get the hype as he didn’t score enough or whatever.
In reality, the first obstacle for an attacking side is creating space. That doesn’t really show up statistically anywhere on public data which is all ball-oriented. If you know what you are looking for though, you can see it. The positions players take up, how they move their ability to dismark from an opponent using double movements, blindside runs, runs from deep or late, involvement in combination play – all things Ozil was excellent at. In terms of exploiting space – or the penetration as it is known – everyone knows he was also one of the best around in this sense.
So even when he wasn’t wracking up goals and assists, what he did was still EXTREMELY valuable.
The question is – to what extent his game has diminished, which I think is fair to say it has. And then whether he still has it in him to be a player of the requisite quality to play for a team with Champions League qualification ambitions.
Sami:- I feel as if Ozil still has the talent but he lacks motivation. I do believe he is fairly criticized as he was one of Arsenal’s biggest signings of the last decade, but he has only produced one or two world class season at Arsenal. I feel as if it would be a good decision for both parties if Arsenal and Ozil part ways this summer.
Rashad:- I personally don’t think he is. When it comes to opinion dividing players like himself, I tend to look at one thing – how he carries himself on the pitch and whether he gives it his all.
The answer to the latter is no.
Ioan:- I think Mesut is an incredibly talented footballer. On his day, he’s a player that anyone can enjoy watching. However, I think he’s fairly criticized as his day rarely comes (especially in the last two seasons). Ozil hasn’t shown enough consistency at Arsenal, along with the often criticized and well-documented lack of a sufficient work-rate, as well as the recent kicking his gloves after being substituted, it’s easy to see why he’s so often the target of criticism.
Q5) Bukayo Saka – a future left back or winger?
Sibs:- Saka is clearly a very versatile player but for me he is a winger who has been asked to cover left back due to injuries, from what I’ve seen of him he’s effectively been playing as a winger anyway. Arsenal have a lot of options for the Left Wing but now Tierney is fit, I’ll be surprised if Arteta isn’t looking at the possibility of Tierney with Saka ahead of him on the left hand side.
Stephan:- Almost sure a left back. I think the current evolution in the game that we are seeing is left backs who can carry the ball at pace, attack opposing players with the ball, offer ball progression into the final third and increased involvement in the penetration and even finishing phases.
His numbers as a full back are very impressive. Better than Trent’s around the same age and far ahead of other teen left backs that were in huge demand in the Premier League such as Chilwell and Sessegnon.
He doesn’t look like someone he is going to put up elite numbers in the final third as a winger. A Jadon Sancho or Ansu Fati type. But as a left back, he might already be the next best teen left-back in the world behind Davies.
Sami:- Winger, he can do a job at left back but he brings more to the table when played in a forward role.
Rashad:- The way football’s evolved over the past few years, I see him more of an attacking left back. He’ll make an ordinary winger but an exceptional fullback.
Ioan:- I think Saka has enough talent to play either position for a prolonged amount of time. But, I think his ability going forward is undeniable. Given Tierney’s constant injury issues, Saka has filled the role adequately. Ultimately, I think as Saka continues his development, he will be deployed mainly as a winger. Although, having that degree of versatility adds to his stock, which of course is beneficial for him, enabling him to have more and more game time through playing two positions – as shown this season
Q6) A player from Arsenal’s team who has taken you by surprise?
Sibs:- Granit Xhaka. After that game when he was booed off the pitch and reacted to the fans I thought that was that for his Arsenal career. I didn’t expect him to survive the January window never mind becoming a key player under Arteta. Thought he was excellent when Arsenal beat us a few months back. He’s clearly benefitting from Arteta’s coaching and man management, he seems more confident now he has someone providing clear instructions on his role and a more structured team masking his deficiencies. I’d expect Arsenal to try and find a partner for him over the summer.
Stephan:- Easy one this – Martinelli.
I have lived in Brasil now for over a decade and when I saw Arsenal were spending £5m on a kid from the lower leagues here I was genuinely baffled. To put it into perspective, Liverpool were trying to agree a deal with Rodrygo for less than that before he chose the sign professional terms at Santos.
So, I honestly wasn’t sure on Martinelli. I doubt I had seen him play as he wasn’t involved for Brazil at youth levels and lower league football isn’t on TV here- but it just felt like Arsenal were probably paying a hefty English tax.
Not a criticism of Martinelli, but it would be like Barca signing a player you never heard of before from Dover Athletic for £5m. You are just immediately sceptical before you even see them kick a ball.
Sami:- Guendouzi. To come from the French second division and cut it in the Premier League right away is exceptional, especially at such a young age.
Rashad:- Martinelli. He seems very mature for his age. I’m excited to see where his career goes from here.
Ioan:– Gabriel Martinelli. I remember when he was announced by Arsenal and thinking he was just another typical youth signing, likely to go out on loan. He’s really impressed me whenever I’ve seen him play. He has that special something, a sense of maturity about his game at such a young age, which was evident in his goal against Chelsea. Most young players have a degree of rashness about them, snatching at chances or making unnecessary mistakes,he Martinelli plays like an experienced footballer.
Q7) A player from the Invincibles team you would love to have in the current team? Who does he replace in the current team?
Sibs:- Thierry Henry is the obvious answer and with good reason. One of those players I feel blessed to have seen live, even if it did give me heart palpitations watching him run at our defence. Single handedly won Arsenal so many games with a moment of brilliance, and we don’t have many players with his competitive nature and winning mentality. He’d have Pogba and Bruno behind him and imagine what our young forwards could learn from a 26 year old Henry at the peak of his powers. I have nothing against Martial, but he’s no Henry.
Stephan:- Henry seems the obvious answer but I genuinely think Bergkamp makes a bigger difference in attack. We see it with Liverpool how players like Mané and Salah now have their output on another level with Firmino making space for them and connecting the midfield & attack. I think the fact players like Ljungberg, Pires and Henry always had so much space to attack is in large part down to the genius of Bergkamp.
But I want to look at the other end of the pitch. I think Campbell makes a massive difference to the defence as a leader. Having him in the defence will make it stronger and impenetrable.
Sami:- Emmanuel Petit, would fit very well and would replace Winks. He would work well with Tanguy Ndombele.
Rashad:- Vieira. A leader on and off the pitch. Not to mention his presence in midfield and how he gels the whole team together. He starts in any midfield in the world, in his prime.
Ioan:- My heart tells me Thierry Henry. I don’t need to explain why, it goes without saying. But, my mind tells me Ashely Cole. It’s not secret we have a left back crisis, and have done pretty much since Clichy declined and Kolarov left. Whether it’s been makeshift cover through the likes of Fabian Delph, Oleksandr Zinchenko or (believe it or not) Leroy Sané or the pricey Benjamin Mendy, who’s been so unfortunate with injuries, the left back position has just been such a hindrance on us. Although he wouldn’t win any popularity contents, Ashley Cole’s ability was undeniable. He would be a massive upgrade and a crucial asset to us. He would replace Mendy in our team.
Q8) Honest opinions on Arteta.
Sibs:- Arteta’s been highly spoken of for a while but I did not expect a club the size of Arsenal, who are clearly struggling financially without Champions League revenue, to entrust a manager with no experience to get them back there. It’s a breath of fresh air seeing him, Ole & Lampard in charge of 3 of the old “big 4”.
His man management skills are already evident with the likes of Xhaka & Mustafi. He has the contacts and someone highly rated by the likes of Guardiola & Wenger will appeal to potential signings. I think he is the perfect man to look after Arsenal’s crop of young players and get the most out of the resources he has available, in a similar vein to Pochettino at Spurs.
Arsenal have clearly been looking at how we have struggled post Ferguson (which I think is one of the main reasons Wenger lasted as long as he did), they will not want to become a revolving door of managers like us. Arteta will be given time but on a limited budget.
Stephan:- Don’t really know tbh. Coaching and managing are very different things. You look at Ferguson at United and ask what made him great – decision making. Taking in all the information fed in by top tier staff that he recruited and being able to make the right decisions ruthlessly, efficiently and consistently. I see that same process at Liverpool now.
We know that Arteta is a good coach from his CV. But will that translate to management? Even if it does, will it translate to success? Is he an idealist? Will a lack of pragmatism at times then hurt him? Will he burn out from pushing himself too far?
Rest looks a vital part of the process too. Everyone needs down time. To be able to switch their work-mind off and have something else in their life take them away for a bit.
I’m not making assumptions here but asking questions, because I honestly don’t know the answers. There simply hasn’t been enough time on the job to really assess anything yet. If you asked me right now to predict how well it would go, my gut would be it might not work out at Arsenal but might work out for him somewhere else later in his career. He has a lot of mistakes to make and learn, the differences between coaching and managing, which is why most managers first appointments don’t go too well.That isn’t an assessment of Arteta, more how I view people dealing with the change in role in general.
Sami:- Good manager, I believe he can slowly get Arsenal back into the top 4 but it will take some time. You can see elements of Pep’s football whenever you play.
Rashad:- He’s got great potential but we’ve not seen much of him yet. He’s going to need a lot of backing from the board to be able to make a name for himself in a tough league and go from there.
Ioan:- I can best describe my views on Mikel Arteta as a complicated oxymoron. I look at him as an ‘Experienced Inexperienced manager’. It’s evident Mikel has a natural mind for football, a high footballing IQ. Along with that, being the understudy of Pep surely has managed to provide a platform for Mikel to develop a long career as a manager, and in my personal view, a successful one at that. I wanted him to replace Pep when he unfortunately leaves. Ultimately, I think he needs time, from Arsenal fans and the board. If the latter can even provide him some money to spend on transfers, I think he’ll do incredibly well at the club.
Q9) Do you think Arsenal will be able to get back into the Champions League next season? If not where do you think they will finish next season?
Sibs:- It’s a very difficult one to call given all the issues caused by COVID, Arsenal’s own finances and the uncertainty over City’s ban from European competition. If we exclude the top 2, who are miles ahead, United and Chelsea should make 2-3 key first team signings this summer. Leicester are a dark horse – their transfer business has been exceptional in recent years, what can they do with CL on offer? Whereas Arsenal are likely to have a limited budget.
The biggest issue for Arsenal is whether they can retain Aubameyang. I think the pandemic actually helps Arsenal here, as good as Aubameyang is, I can’t see a huge queue of clubs offering £50-70m for a 31 year old. I’d expect Arsenal to have a similar season to what we’ve had this year – very inconsistent, some wins in big games and some shameful defeats, but you start to see what the manager is building towards.
Stephan:- No. My certainty in this answer depends largely on the Man City ban remaining. Not impossible though.
Sami:- No, with doubts over Aubameyang’s future and the squad depth not being very good, I see Arsenal missing out once again. However they will be close. I see them finishing 5th or 6th.
Rashad:- To be totally honest, I can’t see it. Man City and Liverpool are 2 givens and I can’t see Arsenal beating Chelsea/Leicester/Man Utd/Spurs to the remaining 2 spots.
Not at the current condition the clubs are in at least. 5th/6th would be my guess.
Ioan:- I think you have the foundations to do it. But, there definitely needs to be investment. Like I said, the board has to back Mikel. The youth coming through at Arsenal right now are undeniably exciting, along with players like Saliba already coming in, a few major signings could really put Arsenal back in the Top 4. However, the league is so competitive right now. Not only do you have the ‘Traditional Six’, but teams like Leicester really look on a good path right now. However, I think Arsenal’s reluctance to spend money for long periods of time cannot be overlooked, especially when you consider the economic impact of the current pandemic. Therefore, I personally think by the time the summer transfer window closes, however active the club has been relating to incomings will paint a picture of how the upcoming season may play out for the Gunners.
I would like to thank all the panelists for giving me their time and answering the questions. Thank you all for spending your valuable time on reading this. You can find me on Twitter. Take care, stay safe.
