Arsenal 2014-2015: Ugh. Your banter stinks.

[Conigliaro's Potential]

Just six points back of Chelsea... #dreamtheimpossibledream
 
I didn't see much of the match (maybe the last 20 minutes of the first half and the start of the second half), so I can't fairly comment on how good, bad or indifferent Arsenal's overall performance was, but:
 
a) That Giroud goal was special...he's gotta play on Tuesday night, right? You can't hold his first leg stinker against him, surely...
 
b) I did see the moment when Ozil - about 10 yards from goal on his left foot, I think, with nobody in front of him but the keeper - chose to pass laterally and aerially over a bunch of bodies in the area. The commentators on the NBC feed were like, "What is Ozil doing? That's the sign of a player lacking confidence," or words to that effect; I'm not sure Ozil *is* lacking confidence, because overall I think he has been playing well and doing the little things that matter to keep the team whirring, but that's pretty much the impression I figured others were getting from those incidents I cited on Monday night vs. Man Utd.
 
<diving back into my hole>

 

[blueguitar322]

Just six points back of Chelsea... #dreamtheimpossibledream

 
That would be a dream come true, but it's 6 points + 2 games in hand...so that's 4 Chelsea losses + 2 Arsenal wins away from being 2nd on goal difference.

 

[ifmanis5]

One point out of second all of the sudden and three great goals today.

 

[BostonJack42]

b) I did see the moment when Ozil - about 10 yards from goal on his left foot, I think, with nobody in front of him but the keeper - chose to pass laterally and aerially over a bunch of bodies in the area. The commentators on the NBC feed were like, "What is Ozil doing? That's the sign of a player lacking confidence," or words to that effect;

 
It was a weird choice but my guess is that he figured the goalie had the angles covered.

 

[blueguitar322]

How important has Giroud been these last 4 months?  He's tied for second in non-penalty goals per 90 for players with >1000 minutes:
 
1. Cisse - 0.88
2. Costa - 0.86
2. Giroud 0.86
4. Kane - 0.8
5. Aguero - 0.67
6. Sanchez - 0.54
 
I was completely on board the anti-Giroud train a year ago.  He's certainly proven me wrong.  This is probably a peak, so the real question is will he regress to last year's form or settle somewhere in between.

 

[Conigliaro's Potential]

 
That would be a dream come true, but it's 6 points + 2 games in hand...so that's 4 Chelsea losses + 2 Arsenal wins away from being 2nd on goal difference.

 
Yeah, that wasn't a serious suggestion...but sometimes it's nice to play make-believe. And thanks to a cracking goal from Burnley, we are well and truly one point out of second. It's not been a vintage year for the Premier League (it's been quite a while since you could say that), and my doubts about Wenger persist, but an FA Cup defense plus finishing second in the league would be pretty damn good even if we go out to Monaco as expected on Tuesday.

 

[mikeford]

 
Theo was a little wasteful and I saw him not track back a few times - my mate is getting increasingly annoyed by Theo and is convinced he'll get sold in the summer as he's been outstripped by Ox and Welbeck, who both work harder. Wenger's meh comments about his new contract seem to suggest this could happen. 
 
The team is being rebuilt into a team that looks tougher and harder to beat: more defending from the front on, more counter attacking. This, honestly, is what won Wenger his two doubles, so I am happy to see this. 

We should be so lucky to unload Theo on some dumb team. He is all pace, and little else. Now would be the time to cash in on a player whos isnt technically sound or proficient. 

 

[Spacemans Bong]

 
It was a weird choice but my guess is that he figured the goalie had the angles covered.

Match of the Day, in the middle of complaining about him, showed a camera angle closer to pitch level which suggested precisely that.

Gotta push those narratives.

 

[Conigliaro's Potential]

Jose says Arsenal is in the title race...
 
http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/mar/15/jose-mourinho-arsenal-chelsea-title
 
...although let's be fair, he's just trying to up the pressure on Wenger a smidge to make sure Arsenal isn't in the title race. Mourinho rarely says stuff like this without calculating the exact effect he wants it to have on his target. (Not that he always gets those calculations correct, but still.)

 

[Morgan's Magic Snowplow]

Schneiderlin versus Chelsea:
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Drc6g9gRB40
 
He won possession a total of 21 times apparently!  That's a very tough and aggressive midfield he was working against and he slapped them around.
 
I like Le Coq a lot but we need somebody else on the roster who can play DM at a high level and preferably a more technical player that would be better for games where we need more passing and quality in possession out of that position.  Schneiderlin would give us that while also being able to play the box-to-box role.  Gundogan would work too.
 
We'd have a lot of options in midfield with a group of Ramsey-Wilshere-Cazorla-Schneiderlin-Coquelin and we'd be much better positioned to weather the inevitable periods when Wilshere and/or Ramsey are injured.
 
My ideal summer window would be adding Schneiderlin or Gundogan to the midfield and then a young forward with lots of potential who can play in the center (Lacazette or Dybala perhaps).  I'd sell Podolski and Campbell to offset costs and maybe also see what the market is for Theo, who increasingly doesn't look like he has much of a future with the club.

 

[blueguitar322]

The other advantage to Schneiderlin is that he's homegrown, so he's essentially a free roster spot.  I just wish he was on a different side than Southampton, they've been devastated by outgoing transfers.
 
Here's a crazy idea that would never work: swap Schneiderlin for Theo.  Southampton get one of their old prospects back, we get the DM/CM we need.  Of course Southampton wouldn't be able to afford Theo's 100k/week wages.
 
I do wonder how close we came to signing him this last summer.  From what I remember, Southampton had offers for him that met their valuation, but couldn't afford to lose yet another player.  Schneiderlin went public with his frustration too.  I just don't remember seeing confirmation that the pursuing team was Arsenal.

 

[Spacemans Bong]

I'd rather go for Sami Khedira. It seems like Real Madrid have got bored of him, so now's the time to strike.

 

[Zomp]

How are you guys pronouncing Lacazette?  I assumed it was la-ka-zet but I think an announcer yesterday said la-cha-zet-ee

 

[Morgan's Magic Snowplow]

How are you guys pronouncing Lacazette?  I assumed it was la-ka-zet but I think an announcer yesterday said la-cha-zet-ee

 
I've always assumed the former as well.
 

I'd rather go for Sami Khedira. It seems like Real Madrid have got bored of him, so now's the time to strike.

 
I think he's top quality but the injury history really scares me.

 

[Morgan's Magic Snowplow]

I do wonder how close we came to signing him this last summer.  From what I remember, Southampton had offers for him that met their valuation, but couldn't afford to lose yet another player.  Schneiderlin went public with his frustration too.  I just don't remember seeing confirmation that the pursuing team was Arsenal.

We definitely had some rumored interest but I don't know whether we were the ones to make a real offer. From what I recall, the heaviest rumors surrounded him moving to Spurs with Pocchetino.

 

[Spacemans Bong]

I'd rather go for the top quality player and cross my fingers. I'm not sure Schneiderlin is a title-winning player, which is the standard we should be aiming for. In a perfect world you'd have both, because he's the kind of deputy a title-winning club should have.
 
I had to Bonger this, but a black French guy? Lah-cah-zett. Never underestimate the ability of an Englishman to totally fuck up pronouncing a foreign player's name*.
 
 
* or club name. I just watched some YouTube highlights of Ajax beating Inter in 1972, and the great Brian Moore spends the entire game pronouncing Ajax with a hard J. Cringe!

 

[blueguitar322]

Khedira is not a defensive midfielder in any way, shape or form. I'd love to have him at the club but think of him as a bigger, German Wilshere instead of a Ramsey type or Coquelin on steroids. The club's weakness is more in the two-way and defensive midfield areas, so to me Khedira is not a priority.

Schneiderlin might not make any best-11 lists but he's youngish, proven in the EPL, homegrown status, and has both offensive and defensive tools in his arsenal (pun intended). Short of Pogba, he would probably be my preference this summer.

 

[mikeford]

A German Wilshere?

But Khedira isn't massively overrated by both club fans and country

 

[Conigliaro's Potential]

I like how we've suddenly been transported back in time to the August 2014 transfer window.

 

[blueguitar322]

I like how we've suddenly been transported back in time to the August 2014 transfer window.

 
Probably a verdict on last summer's transfer window, which would look even worse if not for the emergence of Coquelin and Bellerin.

 

[wonderland]

Not saying picking up a defensive mid wasn't a good idea but shouldn't the manager who works with the players have an idea that those players would/could emerge?

Signing name players for the sake of signing them isn't a great long term strategy.

 

[blueguitar322]

Good point and he definitely was aware of Bellerin, but he has stated numerous times that he was about to sell Coquelin, and recalled him only due to injury.  As far as we know, his defensive midfield depth chart was 1.Arteta, 2.Flamini, 3.Panic.

 

[blueguitar322]

Mesut Ozil: Arsenal star's stats show why he's back to his best
 
 

 
That’s been evident in his running stats. Ozil has covered more ground than anyone at Arsenal over the past two months. He was the top sprinter on his return to the XI against Aston Villa, ran the furthest in the next home game and topped both charts in his third game at the Emirates.
 
It is those intense runs at speed that are needed in order to find the space when attacking. They are the movements that make the difference and they are precisely the ones that can become less frequent when a player is suffering from fatigue.
That became an issue last season as Ozil’s form faded after Christmas. The hope this time around is that his injury-enforced absence might have played its part in refreshing the 26-year-old following his World Cup exertions.
 

 

[sachmoney]

Good point and he definitely was aware of Bellerin, but he has stated numerous times that he was about to sell Coquelin, and recalled him only due to injury.  As far as we know, his defensive midfield depth chart was 1.Arteta, 2.Flamini, 3.Panic.

Panic was the best option.

 

[blueguitar322]

For tomorrow's game at Monaco, I hope Chambers starts at CB along with Koscielny.  He has more recovery speed and that will be needed if Arsenal plans to throw players up the pitch in attack.  Ramsey should also help in the midfield, especially if he plays as he did against West Ham.

 

[Morgan's Magic Snowplow]

Such a predictable result that I don't even want to get into it. The match shows again why it was incredibly naive to throw caution to the wind in the first leg when we were down 1-0 and 2-1.

Its tempting to say "same old Arsenal" based on the result but this is still the best Arsenal squad I've seen in a long time. We've played 15 matches since January 1st and won 13 of them. If we can defend the FA Cup and finish second or third in the league I'll still consider it a successful season.

 

[Conigliaro's Potential]

If we can defend the FA Cup and finish second or third in the league I'll still consider it a successful season.

 
Yep. The FA Cup + fourth in the league is probably borderline successful, second/third in the league without winning the FA Cup is a push, and fourth in the league without the cup is the same ol' shite.
 
By the way, if Arsenal had lost 2-1 at home, they would have won 1-0 in Monaco. We all know this, right?

 

[mikeford]

The most obvious result possible.
 
Something something fighting spirit blah blah blah
 
Out in the round of 16 fucking again.

 

[blueguitar322]

Newcastle 1-2 Arsenal
 
Fortunate win here.  Newcastle played with heart and utterly dominated the second half against an Arsenal side probably tired and emotionally drained after losing the CL tie vs Monaco.  Honestly should have been at minimum 2-2 or even 3-2 as Newcastle had two borderline, but probably legitimate, penalties denied.  Ugly (and even undeserved) wins still count three points, and this gives Arsenal 6 straight league victories.  Arsenal have lost two games since Jan 1, but have won every other game.
 
Thoughts on players' performance:

• Giroud is on fire.
• Welbeck had a weird game - he created a half dozen dangerous situations and had an assist, but most of those situations were soon snuffed out by himself via a poor touch or decision.
• After a dominant performance on Tuesday, Ramsey spent much of the game glory hunting and was consistently caught out of defensive position in the second half.
• Cazorla had an off game and was responsible for Newcastle's goal (did not track his man) but he's been Arsenal's second best player on the year and has played tons of minutes (second only to Mertesacker IIRC), so he deserves a mulligan IMHO.
• Chambers might not be a great fit for RB.  Newcastle had lots of joy attacking down that sideline (almost 50% of their attacks came on that side), and Chambers was continually turned around by rather pedestrian (albeit well-executed) dribbles and passing triangles.  He's still young though, so who knows how he'll develop.  (He did have a whopping 9 tackles and 4 interceptions,  but also gave the ball away four times.)
• When Bellerin came on, the whole defense clicked and Arsenal were never really troubled in the last 8-9 minutes or whatever it was.
• Gabriel still needs a bit of polishing but I love what he brings to the table.  Several Newcastle breaks in the first half would have been successful had Mertesacker been playing.

 

[deconstruction]

Yeah, phew. Amazing how quickly the game shifted. Arsenal could not put anything together in the 2nd half. Other than the two goals (off set pieces), there was a flurry of pressure in the first half, and then basically nothing in the 2nd other than a Welbeck break that led to a poor angle shot and a Bellerin cross for Giroud that Krul hanlded without too much trouble. That Giroud header though.
 
Rosicky for Cazorla was a good move; probably should've happened a bit earlier. He immediately controlled the midfield and made good decisions with the ball. Was refreshing after Cazorla was getting regularly bumped off the ball and had difficultly transitioning the game. Coquelin was brilliant in the first half with his positioning and tackling--in the 2nd, he was beaten at his own game more often than not. NUFC had too much space down the left wing, as you said. And that was a midfield issue, not just Chambers fault. When he was moved to wing, he found plenty of space (but his pace will always be an issue). Ramsey, ugh. How much did they miss Özil? 

 

[blueguitar322]

In what might be the most predictable update ever, an Arsenal player was injured during an international friendly.  Welbeck tweaked his knee.  It's not known how long he will be out.

 

[Conigliaro's Potential]

Ramsey had a nice game for Wales this evening, at least - a goal (assisted by Bale) and an assist (for Bale).

 

[soxfan121]

Bang up job on the title, marketing geniuses. Because if you hadn't Roethlisberger'ed it, the video would have totally sold it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OuDRxkZrYc

 

[bosox4283]

I work with a woman who is a big Arsenal fan. It's been a really horrible year for her: first, she was diagnosed with cancer, then, suddenly and unexpectedly, she lost her husband. They would watch all Arsenal games together -- one of their favorite things to do. She still watches the games, and even takes out their two Arsenal coffee mugs for morning matches. 
 
I wrote Arsenal an email the other day, asking the team to do a little something for this poor woman to bring her a little joy. The team responded immediately and offered to send her a letter signed by Wenger, as well as a signed team photo. 
 
I was really impressed with the swiftness and kindness of the response. Thanks, Arsenal. You'll make this woman really happy.

 

[Conigliaro's Potential]

Nice story - thanks for sharing.

 

[blueguitar322]

Hard to find anything to complain about.  Four laser-like finishes against a top team, and it felt like Arsenal controlled the entire game short of a 10-15 minute stretch midway through the first half.  Of course it helps that the team faced a Liverpool side reeling from a bad loss + lacking Skrtel + Sturridge coming back from injury.  Should the two teams meet in the FA Cup Final, it will probably be a different story and certainly not as one-sided as it was today.
 
Arsenal are now two points clear of City in 2nd place, but City has a game in hand and plays Monday.  I don't hold out any realistic hopes of a title challenge but should Chelsea stumble (and stumble again, and again) Arsenal are in position to make things interesting.
 
Upcoming games are @Burnley, Reading (FA Cup Semi), and then Chelsea at home.

 

[Conigliaro's Potential]

For a while, I thought this was going to mirror the Monaco game at the Emirates - bright start, faded as the opposition came into the game and counter-attacked - and but for that horrible two-on-none miss it might have evolved that way. But sometimes you need a little luck to stay on top of a game, and Arsenal weathered those 15 minutes in the middle of the first half just well enough.
 
C'mon the Orcs!

 

[sachmoney]

I didn't think this was the sharpest game that Arsenal has played. The passing was a bit off at times. But as I said in the game thread, this was one of the best finishing games that I've seen them have. 
 
I totally agree that I felt the game was in control, but it's frustrating when your team is controlling the action and has nothing to show for it. You watch those first 15-20 minutes and you felt Arsenal should have had a goal or two. Liverpool had some real good chances after that and you felt lucky that it was still 0-0 and that it could've been easily 2-2, 3-3, or 3-0 one way or the other. 
 
Our domestic form right now is incredible.

 

[Morgan's Magic Snowplow]

Two thoughts on two of the goals after watching highlights again:
 
He won't get credit on the scoresheet but Ozil really created the first goal.  We were in possession, nothing was on, Santi and Coquelin were having trouble playing it forward, and Ozil drops back to a DM-type area around the center circle, picks up the ball, and plays a killer diagonal ball to Ramsey on the wing that instantly transforms a settled situation where Liverpool are defending deep as a team into an unsettled and dangerous one, such that Ramsey can easily pick out Bellerin, who can traipse into the area.  All credit to Bellerin for the dribble, composure, and the perfect finish.  But it was Ozil's vision and passing range that set everything up.
 
Giroud's goal was fantastic because he actually won the header off Ospina's goal kick that established possession, before charging forward receiving the pass, cutting inside and slamming it into the corner.  It was all the good qualities you want to see out of Giroud - physical hold up play, aggressive runs, scintillating finish from range - all condensed into 10 seconds.
 
In other news:
 
Tons of rumars are flying around that we will spend 6M euro to sign a top Argentine youth player, Maxi Romero, from Velez Sarsfield, a physical center forward apparently seen as one of the best youth players in Argentina.  If the deal does go through (not a given), its notable to me since (a) that is a lot of money to spend on an Argentine kid that just turned 16 so that says something interesting about how our scouts rate him and the money we have to spend on youth talent and (b) it further deepens a recent trend of Wenger showing muchgreater interest in South American players, which is interesting given his history (or lack thereof) with them.  Its somewhat stale news at this point but Palermo's management has effectively confirmed that we're in for Dybala this summer, plus you have Sanchez and Gabriel as well.  All this after going for ages with Eduardo, Denilson, and Vela our only Latin American signings since Gilberto (that I can remember at least).

 

[sachmoney]

Damian Martinez, one of our back up keepers, and Wellington Silva, who is on loan somewhere in Spain, come to mind as others.
 
EDIT: Samuel Galindo

 

[blueguitar322]

Its somewhat stale news at this point but Palermo's management has effectively confirmed that we're in for Dybala this summer

 
Who knows what's going on with Dybala.  Apparently Usumov made an inquiry (which just seems strange), but Wenger denies everything:
https://twitter.com/JamesOlley/status/583544377244516352
 
 

 

[soxfan121]

Tons of rumars are flying around that we will spend 6M euro to sign a top Argentine youth player, Maxi Romero, from Velez Sarsfield, a physical center forward apparently seen as one of the best youth players in Argentina.  If the deal does go through (not a given), its notable to me since (a) that is a lot of money to spend on an Argentine kid that just turned 16 so that says something interesting about how our scouts rate him and the money we have to spend on youth talent and (b) it further deepens a recent trend of Wenger showing muchgreater interest in South American players, which is interesting given his history (or lack thereof) with them.  Its somewhat stale news at this point but Palermo's management has effectively confirmed that we're in for Dybala this summer, plus you have Sanchez and Gabriel as well.  All this after going for ages with Eduardo, Denilson, and Vela our only Latin American signings since Gilberto (that I can remember at least).

 
1. Can't join until (transfer window) after his 18th birthday, correct?
2. Does the recent FA crap about work permits and "keep English football English" factor in here? Like Galindo never got a work permit, did he? And if standards are getting harder, it's likely a 16 year old with no caps will also be failed?

I'm betting Bonger knows.

 

[Spacemans Bong]

If he's Argentine there's about an 80% chance he has an Italian ancestor and therefore qualifies for an Italian passport.
 
Italy's citizenship laws really are a godsend for Argentine players, the vast majority of people in RG qualify for Italian citizenship. Also means that Italy can pick them for their national team (hey Camoranesi!).
 
Edit: So besides not needing a work permit, I think this means he can join the club at 16 and not 18 too.

 

[blueguitar322]

What did you all think of Ramsey starting wide right yesterday?  At first blush, I thought it was a bit strange given that his strengths include his engine and tackling, neither of which is traditionally crucial to winger play.  It did, however, prevent him from playing too far out of position.  
 
Ramsey hasn't played as a wide midfielder at all this year (confirmed by Whoscored) and to my recollection didn't at all last year, either.  Thus to date every time Wenger played the trio of Cazorla/Ozil/Ramsey, it was with Ramsey in the middle with one of Cazorla/Ozil as CAM (typically Ozil last year, Cazorla this year) and the other wide (Ozil this year, Cazorla last year).  I'm very bullish on Ramsey because he has the raw tools to be a world-class player - and indeed was, for three months last season.  His endurance is unmatched, his defensive numbers are usually very solid, and he fits right in with the slick combination passing that Wenger wants.  His weakness this year has been his lack of positional awareness.  Based on the sample size of a single game, I have no clue if this is Wenger redefining Ramsey's role in the team - i.e. prioritizing Cazorla and Ozil in the center - or if it's just part of Ramsey's continued development. I look forward to seeing the lineups against Burnley and Reading.

 

[blueguitar322]

 
1. Can't join until (transfer window) after his 18th birthday, correct?
2. Does the recent FA crap about work permits and "keep English football English" factor in here? Like Galindo never got a work permit, did he? And if standards are getting harder, it's likely a 16 year old with no caps will also be failed?

I'm betting Bonger knows.

Can Arsenal sign him and then loan him out until he's eligible?  I'm trying to recall if Chelsea have ever done that when faced with passport issues, as they are huge fans of the post-FFP loan strategy.

 

[soxfan121]

Can Arsenal sign him and then loan him out until he's eligible?  I'm trying to recall if Chelsea have ever done that when faced with passport issues, as they are huge fans of the post-FFP loan strategy.

 
Chelsea has done it; they've got a few guys - Bertrand Traore comes to mind - who toil at Vitesse for a few years in search of a work permit. But they're all Brazilian/African, IIRC, so what Bonger posted above makes a ton of sense. 

 

[sachmoney]

Apparently, Barcelona inquired about Bellerin a month ago. They were told that he signed a 4 year deal with an option of 2 more. I don't expect Arsenal to hold onto him forever. I do want to see him here for the next few seasons though.

 

[Morgan's Magic Snowplow]

 
Who knows what's going on with Dybala.  Apparently Usumov made an inquiry (which just seems strange), but Wenger denies everything:
https://twitter.com/JamesOlley/status/583544377244516352
 
 

 
Wenger when asked about Cazorla shortly before signing him: "I don't know this guy!"
 
Wenger denying interest means nothing as he does this routinely with transfer targets.  The Usmanov angle smells fishy but there is a ton of smoke about us and Dybala, including reporting from Gianluca Di Marzio, who is fairly reliable (at least as transfer journalism goes) when it comes to Italian football, so I think its likely we've at least had preliminary talks.  I doubt we sign him but its still another South American player in which we seem to be interested.

 

[blueguitar322]

 

[Morgan's Magic Snowplow]

Three updates on Maxi Romero:
 
(1) DICK LAW is in Buenos Aires to seal the deal in ways that only DICK LAW can.
 
(2) Romero will supposedly spend the next two years at Velez, which is probably a good thing regardless of his work permit situation.
 
(3) The press has started calling him the "Next Lionel Messi." Not only is hype of that nature always ridiculous, but he actually is nothing like Messi from what I can tell from the few videos available.  He looks like a relatively physical CF who scores a lot of goals with his head and has the potential to become a well-rounded box striker, not a winger/creator type or a guy who will play all across the front line.  The "Next Diego Milito" seems more accurate (and even that, of course, is wishful thinking with a 16-year-old).