Sentences with phrase «even in defensive midfield»

Often deployed off the front for club and country — even in defensive midfield under Van Gaal — Rooney's career is one that has stuttered in recent seasons as his goal tally fell and all - round contribution slipped close to unacceptable levels.

Apart from his preferred position at centre - half, the German international can also play with equal comfort at either of the full - back positions and even in defensive midfield, surely Arsenal can do with a player like that!

Not exact matches

and as i mentioned yesterday the notion that Coquelīn will get injured is hypothetical and even without any clear competition from anyone in the team for his position he still produced performances that put him in the top 10 defensive midfielders in Europe despite playing half a season..

It's difficult to blame Ozil for the difficulties he's faced at Arsenal without looking at the big picture... like the fans, he too was lied to by Wenger... there is no doubt in my mind that he was told by Wenger that he was trying desperately to recreate our earlier success by acquiring players that fit the system he ran when Henry was in his prime... as we know this hasn't happened... in order for Ozl to flourish he needs some speed up front, forwards that can make intelligent runs, a boss in the midfield to compensate for his obvious defensive liabilities and defenders who can transition from defence to offence quickly and efficiently... much like he had in Real and with the German National squad... unfortunately he ended up on a squad that has a striker who plays with his back to goal, very few intelligent runs into the box, minus Sanchez, no one to take pressure off him in the midfield, once Cazorla was injured, average defensive midfielders around him, which simply highlighted his lacking defensive qualities and defenders who lack the necessary cutting edge when it comes to transitional passing... instead of blaming Ozil, which is simply too easy, especially considering his mopey disposition, we should be asking ownership and / or Wenger why they brought him in if they didn't intend on doing what was necessary to get the best from him... can you imagine Ozil playing with the likes of Henry, Viera, Petit and Pires, it would be incredibly to watch and even more difficult to stop... so the only thing different between his experiences in Real and with the German team versus his time at Arsenal are the players around him and we all know who is in charge of making those decisions, the Grinch who stole soccer

Even this summer I still don't expect Wenger to get a defensive midfielder (because of that attacking in our dna bs) or a top box2box player Wenger is as clueless as they come.

In the next season we could spend even more, and considering that other areas are well stocked except for defensive midfield and central defence, I believe we will spend big in acquiring a defensive midfieldeIn the next season we could spend even more, and considering that other areas are well stocked except for defensive midfield and central defence, I believe we will spend big in acquiring a defensive midfieldein acquiring a defensive midfielder.

Another impressive defensive midfielder, Daley Blind can also fill in as a left - back, so may not have too much to worry about with Gundogan's arrival, even if his best role has perhaps been in front of the back four.

Not so long ago, when Wilshere was snubbed by England because Southgate wanted Jack to be getting regular first team football in the Defensive Midfielder role, Wenger admitted that he wanted Jack to play further forward, and he even specified where he saw him playing in future.

Our 3 back is just so wrong.We don't have natural wingbacks even in this formation.It also seems to me that lots of people here believe if you're good at right or left fullback then automatically you're good at RWB / LWB which quite frankly is untrue.That's why Oxlade Chamberlain can be considered at RWB but not right back.At RWB or LWB you're asking too much in terms of attack from Bellerin and Kolasinac.A proper wing back can be viewed as a more defensive winger which quite frankly none of them are and they don't possess the flexibility too to play that way.Our midfielders are also not disciplined enough because in 3 back there's a huge gap in the centre of the field that must be covered by our CM's so indiscipline only means disaster.We also have Ozil who looks like he's playing at RW in 3 back.In that we're limiting his impact because Ozil takes on his man because he wants to not because he likes to.You can't play such players at the wing.He's a proper No. 10 who likes to be given freedom.That's why Ozil plays likes he's lazy on the ball and stuff.It's because he wants to be free and for that you need to put him at No. 10.

Lahm, when he plays as the midfield pivot, is pivotal to the Bavarians maintaining a good defensive shape but, even he, with his lack of pace, cost Bayern in the first leg at the Bernabeu.

I do nt think we need another defensive midfielder we have Xhaka who in my personal opinion had a decent first season (made some early mistakes but we saw him adapt to the role and learn as the season went on - i aspect him to do develop even more next season)

He's a bit overrated I must say.I also don't get those who are asking him to tackle well.The fact is he's not a good tackler.I fear Wenger has made him untouchable in our team such that even if he plays badly he still starts.I mean if people are saying he's not a DM in the first place then is he also a CM?If he's a CM does he have the quality to play along side a DM?These are the questions we need to ask ourselves.If he's a CM then he's good at distributing from deep and also up top but he can't hold thd ball in tight spaces or dribble which is very important.If he's a DM then he simply can't defend.That's why for us to be successful in the long term with him we need a hybrid midfielder or what I call a defensive box to box midfielder.

He also played really well for the under 21s against West Brom on Thursday evening and is the only player in the Arsenal squad, apart from Mathieu Flamini, that is a proper defensive midfielder.

Wenger doesn't know how to win the PL He inherited many of the players in late 90's He didn't build our legendary brick walll of a defense That's why we havent had one since they broke up We didn't even adequately replace Viera (who again Wenger inheited) Coquelin came from our academy like Bellerin (very few top players come from Academy) And Coquelin isn't good enough Wenger will NOT spend big on a Defensive Midfielder

Right once again I've have to clarify I'm not an aob or akb and I am by no means defending him, He should of signed a striker and a defensive midfielder or at least one of them even if he felt we needed one or not, but I do have to say we have a very good squad this is a better squad than stayed 1st longer then anyone else a few seasons ago and with cech I say a better squad then earned more points then anybody in the 2nd half of the season.

I sat «player «rather than «right back «or even defender because the «9 - year old has already taken up two roles in his fledgling Arsenal career and there has also been talk that he might get a chance to show what he can do as a defensive midfielder.

For all us Arsenal fans know, Arsene Wenger might not even be thinking about signing a player to strengthen the Gunners in the defensive midfield area when the January transfer window opens.

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

Elneny coquelin Ramsey xhaka will not get a football club top 4 bcoz the balance ain't ready right it was so obvious bs L City that we need another's midfielder that's holds the ball and can pass forward directly with defensive positioning even nzonzi would cost more than 20mil it's getting real boring being just short every season when ur in the hardest league on the planet

Alex Oxldae Chamberlain is a very good player.Whenever he plays he is world class and yes that is what i see in him whenever he plays.He has destroyed world class full backs and centre backs to earn the world class tag.To me he really is a world class player.It is only injury that has stopped him from carrying on.By the way have you guys seen YASSIN FORTUNE just when i thought Adelaide was the real deal then he shows up.He even look much more promising to me to be honest.Now all, Wenger has to do is to sign a cf and a defensive midfielder although to me i still see some weakness in the team.

I doubt whether either will start but I also reckon they will both be on the subs bench, even though both play in the same position of defensive midfield.

And even though the Gunners will be expecting to take the game to Chelsea I reckon that the boss will want his strongest defensive midfielder on the pitch in order to stop any counter attacks leading to a goal.

Even a blind man could see we need to buy defender / defensive midfielder in transfer market.

Are you really naive enough to believe that Wenger would bring anyone into this current locker room that is going to be given a strong voice... have you not been watching, listening or reading about our club for years... Lehman is a blind Wenger follower, which is the only reason he was even considered... just for a second think of all the strong personalities that have played for this club that have never been seriously considered even though they have expressed legitimate interest in participating in the coaching process... even worse, think of all the former greats who aren't even allowed on the same pitch as Wenger because they have offered their advice and / or criticism to the infallible one... I dare you to find a manager that has distanced himself from his former players as much as this man... it's the very reason why only one player I can think of has ever returned to play for Wenger and that was Flamini, which was hilarious considering we were desperately looking for a top quality defensive midfielder but Wenger could somehow find no one better than Flamini in the whole wide world... let's face it this club was simply trying to appease it's disgruntled fans by declaring that Wenger would no longer be given Ca rte Blanche when it came to the backroom staff so they probably asked him to give them a list of those who he would allow in the locker room... on that list he wrote Lehman, Pires and Bergkamp, likely because the first two are the only former players who haven't publicly questioned his horrible decision - making and the last one because he won't get in an airplane

Although a natural central midfielder, the Germany international can play in a more defensive role and even a winger.

It is no accident that when coquelin stepped in the breech arsenal suddenly became more balanced, even the players themselves have been quoted saying something similar, we have been asking for this type of player for years now, a true Defensive Midfielder, not the flashy type, not the box to box, but one who sits in front the back four and do the ungrateful job.

Hahaha.Which game were you watching?I'll give credit for fhe comeback and goals but defensively and even in attack especially the 1st half we were garbage.I strongly warned against not playing a defensive midfielder in this match and I believe we could've won had Coquelin started or come on when we were 3 - 2 up.The only real positive in this match is Maitland Nikes though at times I thought his positional sense was garbage.He stood his ground very well and defended very well in 1 v 1's.

Wenger has no concept of defensive coaching — none whatsoever and frequently plays attacking players out of position, even giving attacking midfielders the midfield anchor role as in the case of Arteta.

from the last two transfer windows possibly even longer fans have been urging, asking, pleading with afc and wenger to bring in a credible defensive midfield options and asking for quality to be added throughout our team — no - one here should be suprised at where we are placed at this point in the campaign.

I don't even know why he started Welbeck ahead of Walcott in the first place, Welbeck was giving away the ball too often on the right and wasn't helping Bellerin in defence.Bellerin too can't be blameless for being caught out of position many times, he didn't even know who he was marking.The reason why we lost the midfield battle wasn't because Coquelin didn't do much, the problem was with Ramsey and Cazorla, they were loosing possesion too often in our own half giving more room for counter attack Coquelin alone couldn't contain opponent's pressure for the full 90minutes he needed help too defencively from Ramsey who didn't give him any, Ramsey now sees himself as an AM who could go forward at anytime and ignore his defensive responsibility.Koscielny didn't do much to prevent the second goal.

Our midfield no longer picks itself, but I expect Wenger to opt for the most defensive approach of fielding Francis Coquelin alongside new signing Granit Xhaka from the start of the match, and possibly even playing Mohamed Elneny in a box - to - box role to stop our opponents from trying to over-run us on the break.

Abou Diaby also lacks the positional discipline to play the defensive midfield role as well as Vieira did — or even in a box to box partnership.

Even after that the fans were patient when we started rebuilding the team which started by acquiring Ozil but in 2015 when we acquired only Chec we failed to get defensive midfield and a good striker fans started getting uncomfortable.

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...

Xhaka, who I like, or at least I like the Xhaka who plays for the Swiss national squad, has shown to be in way over his head in the premiership... of course he showed late in the year that he can stretch the field with the long ball but our squad isn't really set - up for that style of play... most of his long passes are in the air not on the ground and our squad without Giroud, which should have been sold the minute the transfer window officially opened, is one of the smallest in England... we need someone who can pick out the runs of our forwards in the lanes and who is fast enough to come forward into space without conceding his defensive responsibilities... we rarely see him shoot or even be in a position on the field to do so, we rarely, if ever, see him used for set pieces and it appears that the only person at the club who has ever coached him up when it comes to tackling is Coq, which explains his atrocious disciplinary record... maybe it's me but didn't you see him coming in and contributing more from an offensive perspective, with his killer left foot, than a deep - lying midfielder... if that wasn't the case we are the stupidest team alive for taking him over Kante

Le Coq has been brilliant for the Gunners since his return, and it seems that he has convinced most Arsenal fans (and even Wenger now) that he is the defensive midfielder that we have all been calling for in the last two years.

There is no doubt that Arsenal need a new young, strong and steady defensive midfielder even though Arsene Wenger has been burying his head in the sand to ignore the fact for the last few seasons.

Even with Arsenal having allowed Jack Wilshere to go and join Premier League club AFC Bournemouth on loan for the season and with Aaron Ramsey not expected back in action from his hamstring injury until next weekend, the Arsenal defensive midfielder Francis Coquelin could well find himself sat on the bench today as the Gunners play host to Southampton.

Even after the academy graduate Francis Coquelin came back from his loan spell at Charlton and surprised us all with his fine form and combative performances, recording the best stats in the Premier League for a defensive midfielder, lots of Arsenal fans were calling on the manager to go into the transfer market and spend some big money, which he did this summer to sign Xhaka from Borussia Monchengladbach.

Last year when he was playing and doing a fine job in tackles, the need for defensive midfielder wasn't even arising.

Even Xhaka plays no. 10 for the Swiss.Until we handle our defensive midfield, we'll keep conceding the most goals in the top 6.

Even if Wenger was given # 300 million to spend, he still would not get a top defensive midfielder because it's not his philosophy to get that sort of player Wenger has kept faith in some average players while other teams have got Kante, Matic, Gundogan, Pogba, Gueye, Wanyama etc Wenger did not sign enough players for us to finish 4th this season Even Leicester has won the PL for heavens sake.

too conservative in my opinon, even mou had a dig at him, saying his side watched him delay the game by passing from side to side the whole time, the team has no balance in my opinion, 3 attacking midfielders, 1 defensive mid, 1 winger, and a so so striker, with the back four, thats what it is.

While still one of the best defensive midfielders in the world, Sergio Busquets has been uncharacteristically turnover prone, Andres Iniesta has struggled with form for the majority of the season and even though Xavi continues to play at a high level he had his playing time regulated because of injury concerns due to his age.

Sides that have won the Premier League have always had a strong performer in the defensive - midfield role, with Roy Keane and Patrick Vieira in the late 90s and early 2000s, along with the likes of Claude Makelele, Nemanja Matic and even Danny Drinkwater at Leicester City last term.

Even Liverpool are interested in the 25 - year - old defensive midfielder, who has a release clause of $ 59million in his contract (Daily Star).

Shehu can play as a right back, left back, defensive midfielder and even in an offence role depending on the demands of the coach, and his work rate has further endeared him to the coach.

Powell's average position on the night was higher than any player in Portland's defensive line, and even that of holding midfielder Diego Chara.

There is a rising feeling that the van Persie affair — which is not something new or uncommon for Arsenal to deal with, even if it is unpleasant — has overshadowed the fact that in the areas that really matter, the core defensive and midfield positions that titles are won and lost in, Arsenal are remarkably settled.

With this formation change that Mauricio Pochettino has implemented into the side, Spurs might want to look at additional backup in the defensive midfield either now or in the summer, even more so after selling Tom Carroll to Swansea.