Casemiro immediately understands the danger inherent in the situation (giving away
the ball on your side of the pitch to a speedy attacker that has the high pressing attackers already with him).
Not exact matches
Theres Probably a notice board
on the
side of the
pitch stating»
Ball not included»?
They were fantastic
on both
sides of the
ball as they put up 27
on Offense and
pitched a shutout as well.
Aside from the goal though, he's been one
of, if not the best, players
on the
pitch in the last two games, as his all - round technical quality
on the
ball is making a huge different for Fernando Santos and his men, and he looks like he is going to relish playing a pivotal role in Guardiola's
side next season and beyond.
Wellbeck and Chambers far too clumsy with the
ball at their feet to both be playing
on the same
side of the
pitch
The OXs natural abilities really suites the RWB role and that will help him hide his main shortcoming which is his lousy final
ball, until a time when he sorts that out and he can then advance to the right
of the attack which is his second best position at the moment — Just like Gareth Bale did at Tottenham but
on the left
side of the
pitch.
«After, we defended very well
on some situations and it was very disappointing to give the
ball away with just 10 seconds to go in the first - half with a throw - in for us in the other
side of the
pitch.
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
But ultimately it all depends
on who is
on the
pitch and if luck is
on Arsenal's
side, we'd have Santi Cazorla ready to put the
ball in the back
of the net.
Nothing like one underachiever blowing smoke up the ass
of another... we know that Ozil has some incredible technical gifts, but to be considered the best you have to bring more than just assists to the table... for me, a top player has to possess a more well - rounded game, which doesn't mean they need to be a beast
on both ends
of the
pitch, but they must have the ability to take their game to another level when it matters most... although he amassed some record - like stats early
on, it set the bar too high, so when people expected him to duplicate those numbers each year the pressure seemed to get the best
of our soft - spoken star... obviously that's not an excuse for what has happened in the meantime, but it's important to make note
of a few things: (1) his best year was a transition year for many
of the traditionally dominant teams in the EPL, so that clearly made the numbers appear better than they actually were and (2) Wenger's system, or lack thereof, didn't do him any favours; by playing him out
of position and by not acquiring world - class striker and / or right -
side forward that would best fit an Ozil - centered offensive scheme certainly hurt his chances to repeat his earlier peformances, (3) the loss
of Cazorla, who took a lot
of pressure off Ozil in the midfield and was highly efficient when it came to getting him the
ball in space, negatively impacted his effectiveness and (4) he likewise missed a good chunk
of games and frankly never looked himself when he eventually returned to the field... overall the Ozil experiment has had mixed reviews and rightfully so, but I do have some empathy for the man because he has always carried himself the same way, whether for Real or the German National team, yet he has only suffered any lengthy down periods with Arsenal... to me that goes directly to this club's inability to surround him with the necessary players to succeed, especially for someone who is a pass first type
of player; as such, this simply highlights our club's ineffective and antiquated transfer policies... frankly I'm disappointed in both Ozil and our management team for not stepping up when it counted because they had a chance to do something special, but they didn't have it in them... there is no one that better exemplifies our recent history than Ozil, brief moments
of greatness undercut by long periods
of disappointing play, only made worse by his mopey posturing like a younger slightly less awkward Wenger... what a terribly waste
Through
balls from Ramsey and Carzola (if he finds his boots) and factor in big Welbeck's turn
of speed with Sanchez pulling defenders all over the left
side of the
pitch and we could (if Wenger doesn't slow it down) have some beautiful attacking / counter attacking football
on the horizon.
Ozil needs to be played more centrally if we hope to benefit from his creativity with the
ball and Welbeck's first touch is far too sloppy to be played along
side Lacazette... we need to find a formation which allows more service to those making runs from the middle
of the
pitch... Lacazette can not play so much with his back to goal or we're simply playing the same unsuccessful offensive scheme we played with Giroud, who is much better in that type
of role... I can only hope we keep Sanchez and purchase a true defensive midfielder then switch to a 4 -4-1-1, which allows us to have Ozil play more centrally with Sead and Sanchez
on the left
side and Ox and Bellerin
on the right, which would stretch defences so much that we could overwhelm most opponents with both runs in behind and overlapping runs out wide
Loic Perrin has been a leader
of Saint - Etiennes team for the last 4 seasons hes a LEADER
on the
pitch Versatile and hes tough as any ive seen him man handle Ibrahimovic and hes not just a blast the
ball clear type
of player he always looks for the pass and prolific in the air he would bring something to Arsenal that we need, Do nt talk about what league players are from Koscielny actually came from Ligue2 and hes a Boss, Alexis came from barcalona and hes little pitbull two player
on the opposite
sides of Ex-Club levels so you cant talk about what league they are from to judge
on ability.
The build up to the two goals came from his
side of the
pitch, a full back in the modern game that carried zero attacking threat, zero composure
on the
ball, and zero recovery speed is as useful as a ballboy.
Indeed, in the first half there was probably too much
of that, with little time
on the
ball for either
side and a tendency to release the
ball rather too quickly either out
of a desire to get it up to the other end
of the
pitch as quickly as possible or to get out
of the way
of a set
of flying studs heading in your direction.
This is now the second time he's forced his way out
of a
side, and that won't sit well with Wenger who believes respect off the
pitch is just as important as what he can do with a
ball on the
pitch.
This can especially be a problem for Van Dijk if the rest
of the
side is struggling — in the same way a frustrated forward may drop ever deeper when his
side struggles
on the
ball, Van Dijk can push ever higher up the
pitch if the players ahead
of him are struggling to influence the game.
Chelsea had been
on top for most
of the second half but were struggling to impose themselves at the last ten minutes, as Arsenal were doing well to hold onto the
ball in the middle
of the
pitch as they continued to frustrate the home
side.
Chelsea's primary method
of attack was working the
ball down the left, with Willian often coming over to that
side of the
pitch to make it easier, before quickly switching play to Victor Moses
on the right.
There are plenty
of players who can ping the
ball around the
pitch, especially against a
side as defensive as Galati who hardly sent anyone upfield to put pressure
on the
ball in the areas where Rooney received it, but how many can unlock defences in the way Rooney can, score spectacular goals or just make things happen in the final third?