Sentences with phrase «midfielder season before»

Not exact matches

Arteta is certainly very talented, despite getting on in years, and will be hoping to get chance to impress Arsene Wenger before the season ends, but with the dogfight Arsenal are in with Man City and Man United for second place means that he is unlikely to be risked at the moment as the club has a whole host of talent in midfield right now.

Considering Arsenal's tight schedule, the duo are not going to play every game and with a few more performances like the one against Hull, Mohammed Elneny may well rise above the pecking order in central midfield before the start of next season.

The Spanish midfielder is clearly delighted to be back on the training pitch after missing most of this season, but I wonder how soon it will be before he actually gets back into the Arsenal teams, because things have changed in his absence.

The Arsenal midfielder was in a race to prove his fitness before the end of the season, and is now set to start for his country in one of two matches remaining before finding out if he has secured his place in the final 23 - man squad.

If you want to avoid those kinds of issues, then taking a look at the free - agent market for attacking midfielders before your season starts would be the best route to take.

Our little Spaniard Santi Cazorla was expected to have played his last game for Arsenal after having yet another operation just before Christmas, but now perhaps Arsene Wenger still harbours hopes that our brilliant midfielder could return to play in our Europa League games this season.

With just a month left to go before the start of the new Premier League season the Gunners have added only the central midfield star of the Switzerland national team.

The veteran midfielder was snubbed by Jose Mourinho at the start of the season and made rare appearances for the Red Devils before leaving for MLS earlier this year.

Whichever way I believe the big thing to join Arsenal will be a defensive midfielder however not in the January transfer window but before the start of the 2015/16 season.

As I believe a defensive midfielder is the next big thing the club will buy before the 2015/16 season begins, I just wonder who this player maybe.

In the midfield, (including RWB & LWB) we have a whole bunch of tweeners... none offer the full package, none make sense in our manager's current favourite formation, except for Sead on the left and Ox on the right, and all of them have never shown any consistency for more than a heartbeat... Sead, who I'm including in this category because of our present formation, looks like a positive addition, minus his occasional brain farts, but I would rather see what he could do in a back 4 before making my mind up... Ox, who has never played better, which isn't saying much considering his largely underwhelming play in previous seasons, seems to have found a home in this new formation; unfortunately, can we really expect this oft - injured player to handle the taxing duties that come with said position over the long haul, not to mention, it looks like he has no intention of staying... Ramsey has relied on the empathy that stems from his gruesome injury years ago and the excitement that was generated a few years back when he finally seemed to put in altogether, but on the whole he has been a big disappointment (neither he nor the Ox have scored enough to warrant a regular spot)... Wiltshire should be put on a weekly contract then played until he suffers his first injury, if and when that occurs he should be shipped - out and no one should very be allowed to say his name on club grounds ever again... Elnehy & Coq are average players who couldn't make any of the top 7 teams currently in the EPL... both have showed some great energy on the pitch, but neither are top quality and no good team can afford to have that many average players on their bench playing the same position, especially with Coq's injury history / discipline concerns and Elheny's headless chicken tendencies... as for Xhaka, his tenure here so far has been incredibly underwhelming... we know he has some skills to provide the long ball but his defensive work is piss poor and he gives the ball away too cheaply and far too often... finally, the enigma himself, Ozil, so much skill with his left foot but his presence has been more frustrating than uplifting... in many respects his failure has been directly related to the failure of this club to provide him with the necessary players up front, minus Sanchez of course, and unless something drastic happens very soon his legacy will be largely a negative one (much like Wenger's)

Man City midfielder James Milner will wait until the end of the season before deciding his future with Liverpool continuing to monitor to England international.

With the exception of chambers that back four was our starting defense last season before Monreal & Bellerin earned those fullback positions.The midfield was awful therefore the attack couldnt get service.

I am not really sure how much of a tactical genius the former Arsenal and England midfield star is himself, as Paul Merson lasted less than two years in his one and only job as a manager, before being sacked by Walsall as they were heading for a second relegation in three seasons.

Before the season Santi shifted to midfield and we recalled Coquelin people would claim Wenger would be crazy for even trying them together!

The Arsenal injury curse strikes again and what we were initially told was a fairly minor ankle problem ended up needing an operation to fix it, and now we have the usual setback to his recovery and the upshot of it all is that our Spanish midfield maestro Santi Cazorla will not be adding, during the current season at least, to the eight Premier League appearances he made before being subbed off during the Champions League hammering of Ludogorets Razgrad.

This is an incredibly difficult question to answer for a variety of reasons, most importantly because over the years our once vaunted «beautiful» style of play has become a shadow of it's former self, only to be replaced by a less than stellar «plug and play» mentality where players play out of position and adjustments / substitutions are rarely forthcoming before the 75th minute... if you look at our current players, very few would make sense in the traditional Wengerian system... at present, we don't have the personnel to move the ball quickly from deep - lying position, efficient one touch midfielders that can make the necessary through balls or the disciplined and pacey forwards to stretch defences into wide positions, without the aid of the backs coming up into the final 3rd, so that we can attack the defensive lanes in the same clinical fashion we did years ago... on this current squad, we have only 1 central defender on staf, Mustafi, who seems to have any prowess in the offensive zone or who can even pass two zones through so that we can advance play quickly out of our own end (I have seen some inklings that suggest Holding might have some offensive qualities but too early to tell)... unfortunately Mustafi has a tendency to get himself in trouble when he gets overly aggressive on the ball... from our backs out wide, we've seen pace from the likes of Bellerin and Gibbs and the spirited albeit offensively stunted play of Monreal, but none of these players possess the skill - set required in the offensive zone for the new Wenger scheme which requires deft touches, timely runs to the baseline and consistent crossing, especially when Giroud was playing and his ratio of scored goals per clear chances was relatively low (better last year though)... obviously I like Bellerin's future prospects, as you can't teach pace, but I do worry that he regressed last season, which was obvious to Wenger because there was no way he would have used Ox as the right side wing - back so often knowing that Barcelona could come calling in the off - season, if he thought otherwise... as for our midfielders, not a single one, minus the more confident Xhaka I watched played for the Swiss national team a couple years ago, who truly makes sense under the traditional Wenger model... Ramsey holds onto the ball too long, gives the ball away cheaply far too often and abandons his defensive responsibilities on a regular basis (doesn't score enough recently to justify): that being said, I've always thought he does possess a little something special, unfortunately he thinks so too... Xhaka is a little too slow to ever boss the midfield and he tends to telegraph his one true strength, his long ball play: although I must admit he did get a bit better during some points in the latter part of last season... it always made me wonder why whenever he played with Coq Wenger always seemed to play Francis in a more advanced role on the pitch... as for Coq, he is way too reckless at the wrong times and has exhibited little offensive prowess yet finds himself in and around the box far too often... let's face it Wenger was ready to throw him in the trash heap when injuries forced him to use Francis and then he had the nerve to act like this was all part of a bigger Wenger constructed plan... he like Ramsey, Xhaka and Elneny don't offer the skills necessary to satisfy the quick transitory nature of our old offensive scheme or the stout defensive mindset needed to protect the defensive zone so that our offensive players can remain aggressive in the final third... on the front end, we have Ozil, a player of immense skill but stunted by his physical demeanor that tends to offend, the fact that he's been played out of position far too many times since arriving and that the players in front of him, minus Sanchez, make little to no sense considering what he has to offer (especially Giroud); just think about the quick counter-attack offence in Real or the space and protection he receives in the German National team's midfield, where teams couldn't afford to focus too heavily on one individual... this player was a passing «specialist» long before he arrived in North London, so only an arrogant or ignorant individual would try to reinvent the wheel and / or not surround such a talent with the necessary components... in regards to Ox, Walcott and Welbeck, although they all possess serious talents I see them in large part as headless chickens who are on the injury table too much, lack the necessary first - touch and / or lack the finishing flair to warrant their inclusion in a regular starting eleven; I would say that, of the 3, Ox showed the most upside once we went to a back 3, but even he became a bit too consumed by his pending contract talks before the season ended and that concerned me a bit... if I had to choose one of those 3 players to stay on it would be Ox due to his potential as a plausible alternative to Bellerin in that wing - back position should we continue to use that formation... in Sanchez, we get one of the most committed skill players we've seen on this squad for some years but that could all change soon, if it hasn't already of course... strangely enough, even he doesn't make sense given the constructs of the original Wenger offensive model because he holds onto the ball too long and he will give the ball up a little too often in the offensive zone... a fact that is largely forgotten due to his infectious energy and the fact that the numbers he has achieved seem to justify the means... finally, and in many ways most crucially, Giroud, there is nothing about this team or the offensive system that Wenger has traditionally employed that would even suggest such a player would make sense as a starter... too slow, too inefficient and way too easily dispossessed... once again, I think he has some special skills and, at times, has showed some world - class qualities but he's lack of mobility is an albatross around the necks of our offence... so when you ask who would be our best starting 11, I don't have a clue because of the 5 or 6 players that truly deserve a place in this side, 1 just arrived, 3 aren't under contract beyond 2018 and the other was just sold to Juve... man, this is theraputic because following this team is like an addiction to heroin without the benefits

By and large, however, it was another season of frustration due to injury for the talented midfielder, especially after he was showing signs of real form before the rash tackle from Man United defender Paddy McNair.

Wenger has no problem with playing midfielders in defence, as we have seen with Elneny and Gabriel (before he was sold) earlier this season, but it is hardly an ideal situation in a big game like this.

The seasons before Rooney was moved to the midfield, he was bagging 25 to 30 + goals a season — something I doubt Giroud will ever accomplish let's be frank.

If any one is wiping off the floor trust me when I say Arsenal will wipe Liverpool to the floor You are all down and out before even the season begins we will have carzola elnany coq xsaka in midfield with many more to arrive ramsey elixes geroud ozil campbel and many more trust me Arsenal are strong and they will put a good fight for sure

It's important for me because I am a midfielder and I always want to help the team score, and I will try to make more before the end of the season.

No matter how you slice it, this admission is reason enough for termination of both Wenger and Gazidis... this owner, who has personally poisoned every major sporting organization he currently owns in North America (Rams, Avalanche & Nuggets), has no regard for the concerns of the fans, just ask anyone in St. Louis, home of the once - vaunted «Greatest Show on Earth»... they had to endure numerous losing campaigns under his reign, before suffering the ultimate humiliation, as he moved the team to Los Angeles to quench his seemingly unending financial thirst... do you think it's a coincidence that ever since his arrival both Wenger and Gazidis have made grand claims each and every May to secure season ticket sales then fail to live up to the billing... they will do anything to make money except the very things that would make the most sense from a soccer perspective: buying a world - class striker since RVP, a Viera - like boss in the midfield and a dominant, physical CB in the mold of Adams or Sol... let's face it, they didn't even try

Let me quickly remind you before you forget again and again that this very problem was outlined before the close of transfer window, instead of making reinforcements, he sold our true back up central defender, didn't buy replacement after he «promised», and played an already poor left back out of position for cover, we have not had a defensive midfielder after Gilberto left, so tell me again how these problems are fresh from this season... Its time arsenal fans stop glory hunting and realise that even if Wenger hand us the EPL (a chance fatter gunnersaurus)... HE NEEDS TO GO!!!

Wenger should sort out that midfield & defence before the season begins, and what is it with our players always passing around the box, just try & shoot.

I want you to be more of a Lampard son because you can... get us 15 goals each season before you ultimately retire here and i will make a stature myself and plant it at the emirates if they don't... Guys i know these kid is not Iniesta but he works his ass off, he is a fighter, he is young, he loves arsenal and most most important, HE SCORES PLENTY OF GOALS FROM MIDFIELD... Play him in his preferred position mr wenger and having matured, i know he wont disappoint us all..

Schweinsteiger may be seen as the ideal man to help link midfield and attack and the Man United boss is clearly in the mood for spending and is reportedly still looking to add another signing or two before the season gets underway.

In 1962, legendary Czechoslovakian midfielder Josep Masopust took the gong after leading his nation to the final, which they lost to a Garrincha - inspired Brazil; his greatest season with Dukla Prague had come the year before, as they reached the semi-finals of the 1966 - 67 European Cup.

The Arsenal and Spain midfielder Santi Cazorla suggested ahead of this current international break that it would be a chance for him to recharge his batteries and enjoy himself before the serious business of the season ahead.

This could be where Delph comes in, with the former Leeds United midfielder having enjoyed a fine start to the season before Villa before his absence through injury coincided with Paul Lambert's side entering a dreadful run that has thrust them into a relegation battle.

Time for some brutal honesty... this team, as it stands, is in no better position to compete next season than they were 12 months ago, minus the fact that some fans have been easily snowed by the acquisition of Lacazette, the free transfer LB and the release of Sanogo... if you look at the facts carefully you will see a team that still has far more questions than answers... to better show what I mean by this statement I will briefly discuss the current state of affairs on a position - by - position basis... in goal we have 4 potential candidates, but in reality we have only 1 option with any real future and somehow he's the only one we have actively tried to get rid of for years because he and his father were a little too involved on social media and he got caught smoking (funny how people still defend Wiltshire under the same and far worse circumstances)... you would think we would want to keep any goaltender that Juventus had interest in, as they seem to have a pretty good history when it comes to that position... as far as the defenders on our current roster there are only a few individuals whom have the skill and / or youth worthy of our time and / or investment, as such we should get rid of anyone who doesn't meet those simple requirements, which means we should get rid of DeBouchy, Gibbs, Gabriel, Mertz and loan out Chambers to see if last seasons foray with Middlesborough was an anomaly or a prediction of things to come... some fans have lamented wildly about the return of Mertz to the starting lineup due to his FA Cup performance but these sort of pie in the sky meanderings are indicative of what's wrong with this club and it's wishy - washy fan - base... in addition to these moves the club should aggressively pursue the acquisition of dominant and mobile CB to stabilize an all too fragile defensive group that has self - destructed on numerous occasions over the past 5 seasons... moving forward and building on our need to re-establish our once dominant presence throughout the middle of the park we need to target a CDM then do whatever it takes to get that player into the fold without any of the usual nickel and diming we have become famous for (this kind of ruthless haggling has cost us numerous special players and certainly can't help make the player in question feel good about the way their future potential employer feels about them)... in order for us to become dominant again we need to be strong up the middle again from Goalkeeper to CB to DM to ACM to striker, like we did in our most glorious years before and during Wenger's reign... with this in mind, if we want Ozil to be that dominant attacking midfielder we can't keep leaving him exposed to constant ridicule about his lack of defensive prowess and provide him with the proper players in the final third... he was never a good defensive player in Real or with the German National squad and they certainly didn't suffer as a result of his presence on the pitch... as for the rest of the midfield the blame falls squarely in the hands of Wenger and Gazidis, the fact that Ramsey, Ox, Sanchez and even Ozil were allowed to regularly start when none of the aforementioned had more than a year left under contract is criminal for a club of this size and financial might... the fact that we could find money for Walcott and Xhaka, who weren't even guaranteed starters, means that our whole business model needs a complete overhaul... for me it's time to get rid of some serious deadweight, even if it means selling them below what you believe their market value is just to simply right this ship and change the stagnant culture that currently exists... this means saying goodbye to Wiltshire, Elneny, Carzola, Walcott and Ramsey... everyone, minus Elneny, have spent just as much time on the training table as on the field of play, which would be manageable if they weren't so inconsistent from a performance standpoint (excluding Carzola, who is like the recent version of Rosicky — too bad, both will be deeply missed)... in their places we need to bring in some proven performers with no history of injuries... up front, although I do like the possibilities that a player like Lacazette presents, the fact that we had to wait so many years to acquire some true quality at the striker position falls once again squarely at the feet of Wenger... this issue highlights the ultimate scam being perpetrated by this club since the arrival of Kroenke: pretend your a small market club when it comes to making purchases but milk your fans like a big market club when it comes to ticket prices and merchandising... I believe the reason why Wenger hasn't pursued someone of Henry's quality, minus a fairly inexpensive RVP, was that he knew that they would demand players of a similar ilk to be brought on board and that wasn't possible when the business model was that of a «selling» club... does it really make sense that we could only make a cheeky bid for Suarez, or that we couldn't get Higuain over the line when he was being offered up for half the price he eventually went to Juve for, or that we've only paid any interest to strikers who were clearly not going to press their current teams to let them go to Arsenal like Benzema or Cavani... just part of the facade that finally came crashing down when Sanchez finally called their bluff... the fact remains that no one wants to win more than Sanchez, including Wenger, and although I don't agree with everything that he has done off the field, I would much rather have Alexis front and center than a manager who has clearly bought into the Kroenke model in large part due to the fact that his enormous ego suggests that only he could accomplish great things without breaking the bank... unfortunately that isn't possible anymore as the game has changed quite dramatically in the last 15 years, which has left a largely complacent and complicit Wenger on the outside looking in... so don't blame those players who demanded more and were left wanting... don't blame those fans who have tried desperately to raise awareness for several years when cracks began to appear... place the blame at the feet of those who were well aware all along of the potential pitfalls of just such a plan but continued to follow it even when it was no longer a financial necessity, like it ever really was...

Having been a virtual ever present in his first four seasons at the west London club, making 195 appearances before the current camapain got under way, Ramires has started just two of Chelsea's first seven Premier League fixtures with Serbian battler Nemanja Matic getting the nod for a central midfield berth.

The English midfielder Jack Wilshere spent the first six months of this season begging Arsene Wenger to talk to him about a contract extension at Arsenal, but the Boss kept putting him off by saying that he would talk to him before the January transfer window despite Wilshere making it clear that he never wanted to play for any other team but Arsenal.

With automatic qualification for next season's Champions League all but secured despite the rather disappointing draw against Sunderland, Arsenal must now focus their attention on the FA Cup final against Aston Villa, and the Gunners midfielder Jack Wilshere has warned that the North London side must put things right in regards to form before the big game at Wembley.

He played in the midfield for us, was it last season or the season before, and he looked far more comfortable.

Are we mad, can nobody sitting on the arsenal board see we as a club are in decline, prices for players are going up up up, surely it would be wise to invest on 3/4 players now before wenger leaves the club and keep our good players, in 18 months time I can see defenders going for a hundred million, midfielders for hundred and fifty, and strikers for 200 million, in the long term it will cost arsenal more for players, fans will stop going to games which is evident now, and season ticket holders will not renew.

A little bit of confidence can always help you get that extra ounce of strength to overcome your rivals, and the Arsenal midfielder Francis Coquelin says that his team - mates are sure that this could be their season, and have thought that from before the season even started.

Even though the Arsenal and Wales midfielder was supposed to be back before the international break and has already returned to training after being out with a hamstring injury since the opening game of the Premier League season, Aaron Ramsey will not be fit enough to feature on Saturday when Swansea City and their new manager Bob Bradley come to north London.

Last season before his injury I'd have said him and Yaya Toure were the best midfielders in the league that season.

before he joined he bossed the midfield for switzerland and monchen but he has not shown that here - he has cost us games - especially this season were already too far behind — liability

Before his excellent 2015 - 2016 season with Dortmund, which saw him scoring and creating in bunches, he was more of a pass - first type midfielder.

The French midfielder scored his second Premier Legaue goal of the season, after latching unto a ground pass from Willian before lifting the ball over the goalkeeper to give Chelsea the lead at the Kirklees stadium.

Petr Cech kept his 150th clean sheet before a dislocated shoulder ended his season prematurely and Yaya Toure joined Frank Lampard as the only other midfielder to score 20 + goals in a single season.

The Galaxy finished its off - season work at about the same time it was kicking off its preseason schedule Saturday, completing a deal for Dutch midfielder Nigel de Jong just a couple of hours before limping past Armenian club FC Shirak, 2 - 1, in its first exhibition of the winter.

With one eye on Tuesday's qualifier with Club Brugge, we may see the two veteran midfielders as interchangeable throughout the season, but it seems likely that the former Bayern Munich man will be given one more opportunity off the bench first, before being given the nod on Tuesday.

The defensive midfield is an area of the squad that Mourinho appears intent on strengthening before the start of the new season and had identified Nemanja Matic as an early target.

After employing an acutely defensive midfielder in Lucas for years and seeing the outcome before scoring 102 goals this season, Liverpool have come to know what their strength is.

Palace boss Alan Pardew is looking to strengthen his midfield before the start of next season and is believed to be a keen admirer of Carrick's abilities.

Manchester United's bid to sign another midfielder before the start of the season continues as they turn their attentions to former target and Atletico Madrid star Arda Turan, reports in Turkey claim.

As we saw last season, Soldado struggled up front by himself, and often had to wait for the support from the midfield to come up before playing the ball through as he didn't have the confidence or sheer pace to take on a defender.