Robin van Persie is the main man at Arsenal, not Cesc Fábregas

There is a strange phenomenon in football where a player’s stock seems to rise when they are out injured. Fans can be heard saying: “If only Player X was on the pitch, he could have made a real difference” , especially when things aren’t going well for the team in question. A recent example is Joe Cole, who sadly has become – for want of a better word – rubbish. And yet Chelsea and Liverpool fans maintained that everything would come good when the  England “maestro” returned to action. Unfortunately for them, things didn’t work out. Cole was frozen out at Chelsea and has made a blistering start to his career at Liverpool, who he has helped catapult into the relegation dogfight.

Happily for Arsenal, the situation with Robin van Persie is markedly different. Even though the Dutchman has been out for large chunks of his Arsenal career, every time he has come back, he has shown the kind of form that has made him one of the top strikers in Europe. After leading the line for Holland in every match of the World Cup, van Persie returned to Arsenal and promptly got injured (again). His latest comeback has transformed the team’s attack, with the team scoring 3, 3, 3, 0 (the dodgy Man City match) and 3 in the matches van Persie has started since his last injury. No disrespect to Marouane Chamakh, who has done a good job since signing from Bordeaux, but van Persie’s movement and ability to bring others into play have served to increase the attacking options for the team. The Dutchman’s long-range shooting and set pieces have also helped to add variety to Arsenal’s offense, which has often become too one-dimensional.

During his time out, van Persie also seems to have become better in the air, winning many headers from goal kicks and notably getting the better of John Terry numerous times in the fantastic 3-1 victory against Chelsea. Indeed, van Persie’s last goal was a header, which he crashed in at the far post from Nicklas Bendtner’s superb cross. Interestingly, the return of van Persie has allowed Arsène Wenger to decide on a definite first XI which looks as strong as any in the league. The forward line is much more fluid as van Persie likes to interchange with Theo Walcott, who has developed a real eye for goal this season. Samir Nasri has forged a great understanding with Fábregas and is arguably the outstanding player in the Premier League. With those two creating for van Persie and Walcott, Arsenal have looked irresistible at times, especially when contrasted with the insipid display at Old Trafford.

With Arsenal still in the hunt for all 4 trophies, it is imperative that they keep van Persie fit and in form. At this rate, they could even trouble the mighty Barcelona in the Champions League..

Arsenal 09/10 season review

Arsenal followed up a disappointing 08/09 season with a slightly stronger showing this time around. However, the usual problems of injuries and defensive mistakes ultimately led to another trophyless season. The miserable run at the end of the season means I won’t quite be as positive as I first thought (or hoped) but overall it does represent a step in the right direction.

Arsenal got what they deserved in terms of both the league and the Champions League. Clearly, they were not at the level of Chelsea or Manchester United (just look at the head-to-head meetings) and were humbled by Barcelona in Europe. Here are a few conclusions to take away from this season’s action.

The new 4-3-3 formation still needs work

Arsène Wenger deployed a new 4-3-3 formation, very much in the style of Barcelona, for the new season. The aim of the formation was to relieve Cesc Fábregas of some of his defensive duties and allow a more fluid, dynamic way of attacking. Somewhat surprisingly (for the English), Nicklas Bendtner was not used as the focal point of attack but shifted to the right, with Robin van Persie as a slightly atypical centre-forward. This turned out to be a fantastic decision, as van Persie linked play perfectly in the middle, while Bendtner dominated his opposing left-back aerially, giving the option of long diagonal balls when required. Cesc also flourished, grabbing a career-best 19 goals for the season and providing plenty of assists as well.

Where the system fell down was in the application of pressing and the over-reliance on van Persie to play the central striker role. Early on in the season, the intensity and execution of the pressing was very good, allowing the team to win the ball in dangerous areas à la Barcelona. As the season dragged on and injuries began to take their toll, the pressing became less intense and less organised, allowing the better teams to exploit the gaps that were left (Barcelona gave Arsenal a lesson in both the application of pressing and attacking). The goals really started to dry up around Christmas, when injuries to van Persie and Bendtner left Andrei Arshavin to play centre-forward. In fact, the team averaged over 3 goals per game with van Persie and 1.77 without, displaying the Dutchman’s importance.

Wing play needs improving

This is crucial when opposing teams park the bus and persuade Arsenal to move the ball wide. All too often, Arsenal’s wing play has been poor, meaning fewer goalscoring opportunities for the strikers. Wenger likes to put a right-footed ‘winger’ on the left side of attack, who almost always cuts inside (and passes or shoots) and never tries to beat the opposing full-back. This places a lot of emphasis on the right-sided players to provide width and crosses into the box. Sagna, Eboué and Walcott have all been inaccurate when delivering the ball, which is often made more difficult by the lack of targets in the area. Even Bendtner likes to drift wide or drop deep to get the ball, instead of providing an option for the crosser.

The squad lacks leaders

There are far too many players in the squad who have a tendency to become lazy unless there is a strong figure on the pitch. Cesc did a fine job around Christmas, when he almost single-handedly dragged the team through a difficult period but when he was injured, the lack of leaders on the pitch was painfully obvious. Sol Campbell was brought in to lessen this effect, but still couldn’t prevent an end of season collapse in which a handful of players strolled around during defeats to Wigan and Blackburn.

Some fringe players need to sharpen up or leave

The squad players need to show more pride in wearing the Arsenal shirt. When the likes of Denílson and Rosický came in for Cesc and Arshavin, they showed very little  commitment, especially when trying to overcome a deficit. It was this type of showing that was so disappointing at the back end of the season. From a fan’s prespective, a player’s lack of ability can be forgiven, but a lack in effort can’t.

The injury situation can’t be coincidence

The number of injuries suffered this season definitely played a part in Arsenal dropping out of the title race. Against Barcelona for example, William Gallas, Thomas Vermaelen, Cesc, van Persie and Arshavin were all out injured. These key players were suffering from serious injuries all at the same time, and countless more were victims of muscle tears and little niggles. Nicklas Bendtner, Johan Djourou, Gaël Clichy, Eduardo and of course Rosický were also long-term absentees at certain points. Samir Nasri, Aaron Ramsey and Kieran Gibbs unfortunately lost large chunks of the season to broken bones which obviously can’t be prevented.

However, there is a growing suspicion that there is a systematic cause for the seemingly endless list of small muscle complaints. Whether it is something to do with training methods or medical mismanagement is anybody’s guess, but the club have decided to monitor the players’ training with GPS in the hope of being able to prevent further injuries from happening.

Cesc and van Persie are critical to any future success

Just look at the results when van Persie was fit, and when Cesc was injured. These two players bring so much to the side that their replacements can’t. Even when they are coming back from injury, they managed to do a better job in 20 minutes than the rest of the team put together. A half-fit van Persie transformed the North London derby on his return to action while Cesc came off the bench to inspire the team to victory against Aston Villa before injuring himself again. As usual, Cesc is still being talked of as a Barcelona transfer target and the media storm will likely get worse as the Barça will be holding presidential elections this summer.

A new keeper is a priority

All of Arsenal’s keepers have looked shaky at times during the season. Simply put, neither Manuel Almunia or Lukasz Fabianski are good enough for a club that has aspirations of major silverware. Many times during the season, the duo have directly contributed to lost points and poor results. For Almunia, think Birmingham away or conceding a crucial penalty at Old Trafford. For Fabianski, think Porto or Blackburn. In reserve, there is Vito Mannone, who is still very raw, and the talented Wojciech Szczesny who has been putting in brilliant performances for Brentford.

Arsenal desperately need an established top-class keeper if they are to seriously challenge in the league or Champions League. The names of Rob Green, Craig Gordon and even Gianluigi Buffon (please!) are being linked to the club, as well as usual suspect Sebastian Frey.

Several new signings are needed

Apart from a new keeper, the rest of the squad could do with strengthening, particularly in defence. Mikaël Silvestre and Philippe Senderos are likely to be followed out the door by William Gallas, whose contract negotiations have stalled.  Two central defenders would be needed to go with Vermaelen, Djourou and (hopefully) Campbell. Meanwhile, Alex Song could do with some cover for the crucial defensive midfield position. Inevitably, there is talk of Yaya Touré being available to fill the gap, now that he has fallen out of favour at Barcelona. In attack, Marouane Chamakh finally looks like he will make the move to Arsenal on a free transfer, paving the way for Eduardo or Carlos Vela to leave.

Wigan 3-2 Arsenal: Almighty collapse leaves season in tatters

Arsenal put the pain of their derby defeat behind them by capitulating to an even more demoralising 3-2 reverse at Wigan. An incredible sequence of events in the final few minutes ended up with defeat being snatched from the jaws of victory and has effectively ended the season for Arsenal.

Arsenal failed to capitalise on Chelsea’s loss to Spurs and are now out of the title race, barring a miracle. The gap to Chelsea was 6 points before Sunday’s game, and after 75 minutes of action it looked inevitable that Arsenal would close the deficit to 3. Seemingly comfortable at 2-0 up after goals from Walcott and Silvestre, Wenger’s side contrived to concede 3 goals in 11 minutes at the end of the game. It was a collapse of epic proportions, something the English cricket team’s middle order would be ashamed of. As spectacular comebacks go, Wigan’s must be right up there with Liverpool-AC Milan in 2005. Except in that example, it was 2 powerhouses of European football in the Champions League, rather than relegation candidates against title challengers.

Whether it was a question of maturity, mental strength, mentality or lack of quality, this Arsenal team once again proved that they do not have what it takes to win trophies. Every time they have faced a crunch game, this Arsenal team has ended up losing. They were shown up against Chelsea, Manchester United and Barcelona. This week they surrendered to both Spurs and Wigan. The only time they have shown any backbone or stomach for the fight was in the 3-1 victory against Stoke, when Aaron Ramsey’s leg was broken.

This team looks like it will end up as the glorious failures of the Premier League, shot down in a blaze of glory just inches from the finish line. It is no coincidence that they did best when they were written off, when they had no expectation to win anything. As soon as they were back in the running, it was only a matter of time, of gravity, that they would fall down again.  They are the Icarus of the Premier League table. They aimed for the sun, but got too close to it and fell back down.

If I may continue the metaphor, Icarus tried to reach the sun again but Daedalus did not modify the wings, merely rebuilding them. The same thing happened and still Icarus can’t make it to the sun. No matter, Daedalus will patch the wings back up and Icarus can try again. To most observers, it would be obvious that the construction of the wings is flawed. The wax cannot withstand the heat, new materials are needed. Yet Daedalus is stubborn as ever, he is convinced that these wings will get Icarus to the sun. He keeps persisting with the design, oblivious to the fact that the materials he has are not sturdy enough.

As a coach, Wenger has absolute faith in his players, but it is in danger of becoming blind faith. The inability to find a top-class keeper is perhaps the most serious of his blind spots. Lukasz Fabianski stepped in for Almunia and made yet another costly error in a big game. He dropped a corner onto the head of Titus Bramble, who headed over the line from 2 yards. Before the Wigan game, the Pole had made mistakes in the Carling Cup final against Chelsea and the Porto match in the Champions League. He is clearly too error-prone to be a reliable number 1. Almunia is not much better, having been beaten from 35 yards in midweek and throwing the ball into the net against Birmingham.

Better defensive coaching would also help remedy the inherent frailty of the current set-up. Granted, Arsenal were without 3 of their top 4 centre backs against Wigan but even with Gallas, Vermaelen and Song, the team always gives the opposition a chance. It is no coincidence that Arsenal’s best defensive run in the Champions League happened when Wenger was helped by Martin Keown. It should not be forgotten that this sequence was achieved with a young Philippe Senderos and Mathieu Flamini in the back 4, showing the importance of organisation. This was clearly lacking against Barcelona, when Zlatan Ibrahimović twice beat the offside trap to score, and against Spurs when Gareth Bale was left all alone to make it 2-0. It should also be remembered that the defence Wenger inherited was one of the most well-organised defensive units in the history of the English game. Contrast that with the defence of the current Arsenal team, a defence that Wenger has built from scratch.

Something has to be said for the mentality of the current crop of players. None of them, bar Sol Campbell, have won the Premier League as part of Arsenal’s first XI. They have displayed they do not know how to win at the highest level, despite many of them being full internationals. I have already explained how the young players may feel a sense of entitlement, and so do not have the desire to drag the team forwards in tough times. This lack of drive and complacency has poisoned the mentality of the club and leaders on the pitch are few and far between. Why Wenger kept one of those leaders, Robin van Persie, on the bench til the 90th minute is a mystery, considering his excellent cameo on Wednesday. The team’s play in the second half was particularly sloppy, the midfield was unable to hold onto the ball and the team was unable to gain any attacking momentum. As against Spurs, Abou Diaby was especially ponderous, giving the ball away far too often.

A serious shake-up is needed in the summer and hopefully new signings will be made. Wenger has spoken about how money is available and that there are shortcomings in the squad but he is unlikely to bring in more than a couple of players. Whether he will persist with his idealistic vision for another year is certain, but sooner or later he may have to sacrifice some of those ideals in order to win some trophies.

Tottenham 2-1 Arsenal: Gunners in losing to Spurs shocker!

Arsenal’s title ambitions were left in tatters as they slumped to a 2-1 defeat in the North London derby. The Gunners put in a sloppy performance which resulted in their first league defeat to Spurs since 1999. Robin van Persie made his comeback from injury after 5 months out, but even he couldn’t inspire the team to overcome a 2 goal deficit.

Arsenal displayed their usual failings in defeat last night: sloppy defending, tactical naivety, lack of squad depth and toothless attacking. The first Spurs goal came via a 30 yard volley from debutant Danny Rose. While the quality of the strike is indisputable, Almunia could have caught the corner rather than punching out. After that, Arsenal enjoyed a lot of possession without ever looking threatening. In fact, Gomes didn’t have to make a single save in the first half as an invisible wall seemed to be put up on the Spurs 18-yard line. Arsenal were comfortable with the ball up until that point, but couldn’t find the penetrating pass to get through, save one Bendtner chance.

Tottenham’s tactics were beautifully set up to counteract the Gunners’ lack of potency out wide. Knowing Tomáš Rosický would be playing on the left of attack, Harry Redknapp deployed Younes Kaboul, essentially a centre-back, on the right. Arsenal started with 2 right-backs, Sagna and Eboué, before bringing on Walcott. Again Redknapp countered by effectively playing 2 left-backs in Bale and Assou-Ekotto. In the middle, King and Dawson were able to deal with aerial balls to Bendtner, and the central midfielders tucked in to force Arsenal wide.

These tactics, combined with the deficiencies in the Arsenal midfield, meant Spurs looked fairly comfortable with their lead. Simply put, Denilson, Diaby, Rosický and Eboué had terrible games. In midfield, they looked assured in possession, passing the ball accurately and looking for space. When they came up against the line of Tottenham defenders, they seemed scared to try anything, whether it was beating the man or having a shot. Arsenal supporters would hope that Rosický, the Czech international captain, would be able to make a significant contribution to the attack, but his return has been a measly 3 goals in 31 appearances. Even though he was out for 18 months, he was rewarded with a no doubt improved contract along with Diaby and Denilson. Meanwhile, William Gallas, arguably the squad’s best defender, may yet leave the club on a free transfer as his new contract has yet to be finalised.

The life of a young player at Arsenal must be easy. Make no high-profile mistakes and wait for the stars (and Bendtner) to bail you out in the matches. Then sit back and watch as the team comes close to winning a trophy. You might be disappointed but it’s OK as you are still a young team and the titles will come. This lack of pressure has caused the development of many of the squad players to stagnate, yet they are encouraged to continue as bumper contracts are handed to them. I would say this applies to Diaby, Denilson, Vela, Walcott (to an extent) and Rosický. Of course, if you have the determination to succeed and not rest on your laurels, you could turn into the next Fábregas.

Back to the match, and Arsenal conceded again a minute into the second half, when Gareth Bale took advantage of a shocking defensive line, now including Silvestre, to make it 2-0. Wenger then introduced Walcott, to little effect, before the return of van Persie. The Dutchman immediately sparked the team into life, forcing Gomes into spectacular saves from a volley, free-kick and long shot. It showed how much Arsenal missed a player who was direct, skillful and not afraid to shoot. The goal soon came, and van Persie was at the heart of the action again. He slipped a ball down the right of the area to Walcott, who squared for Bendnter to stab in his 9th goal in 11 games. Gomes then tipped a Campbell header onto the bar as Arsenal pressed in vain for an equaliser.

In the end, defeat leaves Arsenal effectively 7 points behind Chelsea, as the leaders have a far better goal difference. Wenger can take some positives from the game as Nasri and Campbell performed admirably, and of course he will be buoyed by the successful return of van Persie. The Dutchman was crucial to Arsenal’s play in the early part of the season, with the team averaging 3.26 goals with him but only 1.77 without. The fact he had such an impact means the fans are left wondering what might have been had he stayed fit, but unfortunately this season was disrupted by the ankle injury he suffered while playing for the Netherlands. Hopefully, van Persie can inspire the team to a strong finish to the season, exact his revenge on Emmanuel Adebayor in the next home match, and maybe even drag Arsenal to second place in the league.

Arsenal exposed as a pale imitation of Barcelona

Though he may not admit it publicly, it is clear Arsène Wenger has tried to model his young side and academy on Barcelona’s. After all, who wouldn’t want their team to be incredibly successful and play exciting, passing football as a means to achieving great things?

Though he may not admit it publicly, it is clear Arsène Wenger has tried to model his young side and academy on Barcelona’s. After all, who wouldn’t want their team to be incredibly successful and play exciting, passing football as a means to achieving great things?

However, the reigning European champions showed just how far Arsenal need to come before they can be considered legitimate challengers to Pep Guardiola’s all-conquering team. The Gunners were subjected to a footballing lesson over both legs of the quarter-final, save a crazy 30 minutes at the Emirates stadium, as Barça ruthlessly exposed their offensive and defensive deficiencies. Indeed, the first 30 minutes at the Emirates has since been hailed as possibly the greatest 30 minutes ever played by a team in club football, with Barcelona bombarding the Arsenal goal by playing an incisive, hypnotic passing game.

Offensively, Barça were irresistible, and they were able to retain the ball unbelievably well. A possession stat of over 70% against Arsenal, themselves a team who keep possession well, was incredible. All their players are comfortable on the ball, never taking longer than they need but still taking care to make the right decision. Off the ball, Barça are just as effective, using a tactic of suffocating pressing high up the pitch to hurry the opposition into mistakes. This system relies on everyone, including the 3 forwards, doing their job. If even one player doesn’t put in the required effort, huge holes can be created, which the opposition can take advantage of.

Wenger has tried to copy this pressing system, but with limited success. During the games against Barcelona, the contrast was clear to see. Barcelona’s pressing was far more intense than Arsenal’s, helping to maintain the astonishing possession ratio.  The key man here is Sergio Busquets, ostensibly a holding midfielder, who is capable of expansive passing and is still proficient defensively. But in a team full of top class performers, 2 stand out over the rest: Xavi and Leo Messi.

Xavi is the heartbeat of Barcelona, the conductor of their sublime orchestra. He is the one who dictates the play from midfield, the one who sets the tempo, the central hub around which the likes of Messi, Iniesta and Ibrahimović can revolve around. He is one of the best passers of a football in world football but what stands out is his awareness of everything around him. He is able to see the run that nobody else sees, the opposition player closing him down, where the ball will be in 3 passes time. Without him, Barcelona would not be able to produce the same startlingly effective possession game. And then there’s Leo Messi. The best player in the world. He does things others think are impossible, things that are impossible for everyone else in the world. He scored 4 against Arsenal (definitely not impossible when Silvestre’s playing) but it was his third hat-trick in 2010. He could become the best player of all time and he is still only 22. Sid Lowe from the Guardian explains here and here.

Such praise should be mitigated by the fact that Arsenal were without 5 of their starting XI for at least one of the matcvhes: Cesc Fábregas, Andrei Arshavin, Robin van Persie, William Gallas and Alexandre Song. In a hypothetical match between the best XI’s of Barcelona and Arsenal the outcome of the tie may very well have been different but this demonstrates the gulf in resources available to both managers.

Wenger has been financially hamstrung while the debts for the new stadium are still being paid off. So last summer, he sold Emmanuel Adebayor for £25 million and replaced him with Nicklas Bendtner, an academy graduate. Meanwhile, Barcelona got rid of another world-class African footballer and disruptive influence in Samuel Eto’o and swapped him and €40 million for Zlatan Ibrahimović. Detractors of the Big 4 often say how unfair the current system is for distributing wealth and so the Big 4 become even richer and therefore even more dominant. But the Premier League negotiates TV deals as a whole and then splits income. In Spain, clubs are allowed to negotiate their own TV rights, making the supposed inequality in England look like full-blown communism. In fact Barcelona and Real Madrid make around €120 million in rights per year, compared to Sevilla’s €20 million. Further distorting the playing field is the prohibitive 50% tax band in England, which is notably higher than the soon to be defunct “Backham tax” which allows high-earning foreign nationals to pay just 23% in tax rather than 43%.

So Wenger has decided to grow his own players. This is far cheaper than importing expensive fully-developed players, and has the added benefit of imposing a style from an early age so integration into the first team is theoretically much easier. Indeed, Wenger has attracted numerous plaudits for the way he has run his academy, producing players such as Ashley Cole, David Bentley, Gael Clichy, Jack Wilshere, Kieran Gibbs and Cesc Fábregas. The team currently has 3 academy graduates in the starting lineup: Clichy, Fábregas and Bendtner. Buying players young and developing them also is a money-spinner for Arsenal. Wenger has made millions from the sales of Nicolas Anelka, Patrick Vieira and Emmanuel Adebayor to name just a few.

But Wenger can only dream of having an academy like Barcelona’s. La Masia has become a production line for top class players over the years. Some of the players to pass through it include Iván de la Peña, Mikel Arteta, José Reina, Guardiola himself and erm, Cesc Fábregas. Their first team squad is full of players who have passed through La Masia, like Xavi, Andrés Iniesta, Carles Puyol, Gerard Piqué, Sergio Busquets, Víctor Valdés, Pedro and of course Messi.

Just 2 weeks ago, Arsenal had a legitimate shot at 2 trophies and many people, including myself, were starting to believe that Wenger was right, and they are finally becoming a major force in world football. However, the meeting with Barcelona shows just how far Wenger’s men have to go before they reach the top.

Arsenal 5-0 Porto: Bendtner hat-trick helps Arsenal progress

Nicklas Bendtner silenced his critics last night as Arsenal surged through to the Champions League quarter-finals. The big Dane has always been supremely confident in himself and last night’s performance showed that confidence is justified.

The Gunners went into the match having to overcome a 2-1 deficit and without injured skipper Cesc Fábregas, who had been ruled out with a hamstring problem. Manuel Almunia stepped in to take the armband, meaning Lukasz Fabianski dropped to the bench after his horror performance in the first leg. Andrei Arshavin returned to the starting lineup following his substitute appearance against Burnley and he turned out to be one of the most influential players on the night, along with Samir Nasri and Bendtner.

Arsenal started brilliantly, bombarding Helton in the Porto goal from the outset. After 10 minutes Nasri knocked a lovely ball through towards Arshavin, which a combination of defender and keeper blocked, only to see the ball fall into the path of Bendtner on the edge of the area. Bendnter, who was widely criticised following his string of misses against Burnley, made no mistake and slid in to make it 1-0. He increased the lead 15 minutes later after Arshavin slalomed past 3 Porto defenders on the edge of the box and squared for the easiest of tap-ins.

Arsenal were now  ahead on aggregate, and it looked like this realisation started to affect their play. Nerves crept in and the introduction of the lively Rodriguez sparked Porto into life.  Almunia was tested when Falcao hit a shot from 12 yards and a corner was cleared off the line by Nasri. Moments later, the tie was put beyond doubt as that man Nasri produced an extraordinary piece of brilliance that was fit to decide any game.

Picking the ball up on the right edge of the area, he danced round 3 Porto players before slamming past Helton from the tightest of angles. It was one of the best individual goals of the season and capped a brilliant performance from the young Frenchman. Taking the creative reins from Fábregas is no easy task, but Nasri stepped up admirably, creating chances with his passing and looking dangerous with the ball at his feet. This performance might even have given a boost to his World Cup ambitions, with Nasri playing in a central role behind the main striker, where the France coach Raymond Domenech would want to deploy him. Watch the goal here.

By now the Gunners were rampant and Emmanuel Eboué added the fourth after a lightning break from a Porto corner led by Arshavin. Bendtner completed his hat-trick from the penalty spot in injury time after Eboué was brought down by Fucile. Overall, it was a great display from Arsène Wenger’s men, although Porto didn’t prove to be the sternest test. Full highlights can be found here (thanks to Arsenalist for the links).