Sentences with phrase «potential as a defender»

Not exact matches

In defense we can have Gibbs and Chambers (also considering Jenkinson if he improves himself) as great defenders if they improve, they have the potential to be one of the best and if Wenger brings one or two more good and young defenders in January or next summer, we can have a great Arsenal team for the future years.

Even though the Arsenal and Spain star Hector Bellerin has been saying the right things in recent times on the subject of his future as a Gunner amid the growing number of Arsenal transfer rumours about his potential return to Spain's La Liga with his boyhood club FC Barcelona, we really wanted this to be confirmed by the defender signing a new contract with Arsenal.

Bellerin — obviously great pace, but regressed this past season as a crosser, dribbler and on the defensive end... likened him to a faster Alves type who didn't always run to the end - line and would cut back into the middle, beat defenders and take some shots from outside the box (we desperately need better shooters from outside the box on this squad)... wouldn't give up on him because he has a lot of potential but if Barcelona came calling and offered anything over $ 45 million and we are using a 3 - back going forward he would be gone so fast it would make his head spin

The Blues boss has admitted his surprise towards the playing time of the young central - defender, and has given him praise of the highest order at Stamford Bridge by describing him as a potential replacement to Terry, saying, «They (Terry and Zouma) are different players.

Rodgers has been concerned with the performances of some of his defenders this term, and with either Daniel Agger or Martin Skrtel likely to make way this summer the manager is keen to bring in a player with potential to grow as well as someone capable of slotting into the first team on board to replace them.

Meanwhile the reigning champions of England have also been linked with potential moves for highly - rated Galatasaray defender Alex Telles [via Independent Sport] as well as a shock # 15 million swoop for Tottenham's Danny Rose [via Telegraph Sport].

In a potential double raid on Arsenal, the Daily Mirror have also linked defender Hector Bellerin as a transfer target for the Red Devils.

good defenders don't go cold like offensive players The issue is that I don't think Donovan is even gonna look at them as potential solutions to the problems he largely created by benching them.

Arsenal are on the trail of young Greek defender Kostas Manolas, according to the Metro, as the Gunners look to find a replacement for defender Thomas Vermaelen, whose potential transfer to Manchester United could be accelerated now that Belgium have exited the World Cup.

Hayden in my opinion strikes me as a player who does have potential and could turn out to be a very good defender in the future.

In the context of today's game we should be thankful that we had extra men in midgield as midgieders rescued us time without numbers from potential consequences of silly errors by our defenders.

Szczesny sold (neutral, he does have potential but was not needed anyway), the Ox sold (he hasn't proven himself, wanted very high wages, and was sold for 35 million, neutral), Gabriel sold (neutral, could progress further but will never be a top central defender, just a squad player), Campbell back on loan (not needed), Perez on loan (was unused so we might as well have someone else pay his wages)

According to the Metro, Juventus director Fabio Paratici explained that the club are not overly concerned about the potential loss of superstar midfielder Paul Pogba or defender Leonardo Bonucci as they are prepared to bring in replacements if need be.

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

Arsenal are in talks over a potential # 15 million signing of Inter Milan defender Jeison Murillo, according to a report in the Mirror and it has also been claimed that Inter Milan captain Mauro Icardi has been put up for sale by the club, as they need to raise # 40 million to balance their books.

He has slotted in well as the left sided defender in a back three and while he lacks the physical stature to command the air he is astute in sniffing out potential danger.

The Mirror are also reporting that the Portuguese international looks to have a number of options available to him, with Juventus eyeing him up as a potential replacement for the departing Dani Alves, whilst Barcelona also have him as an option should they fail in their attempts to sign Arsenal defender Hector Bellerin.

READ MORE Big blow for Arsenal as another defender is ruled out for a lengthier spell than expected Arsenal a step closer to sealing # 80million transfer as potential rivals pull out Arsenal news

The asking price has made potential suitors think again about signing Astori, as both Liverpool and Southampton ended their interest in the 26 - year old this summer so they could pursue other targets this summer, with the Saints having signed Lyon defender Dejan Lovren this window, whilst the Reds are tracking Schalke defender Kyriakos Papadopoulos.

Versatile defender David Luiz is being rumoured as a potential make - weight in the deal, as the Spaniards deem Luiz's talents ideal for the Spanish style of football.

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...

It looks like we've now stepped - up our interest as Sky Sports News are citing Sky Germany as saying that Arsenal are in talks with Valencia over a potential deal to sign the defender this summer.

The same goes for Phillips, who did some really good things as a run defender, and who has the potential to get some decent pass rushes on early downs, regardless.

The re camp should start with Wenger Ozil sorry for those that love him not good enough when the chips are down Belerin (decent potential) but a good fee will get us a good defender Monreal — but a left back and have Gibbs as cover Xhaka not a champions league winning player Coq - we need a top top DM and have for years Walcott should get a decent fee for him Giroud

Manchester United are reportedly interested in a potential transfer swoop for Borussia Dortmund defender Marc Bartra as his club look open to selling him.

Chelsea are understood to be considering a move for Crystal Palace centre - back Scott Dann and are considering the Eagles defender as a potential long - term successor to skipper John Terry.

According to Metro via The Times, the Citizens are keen on signing the 21 - year - old defender from the Gunners this summer, as Pablo Zabaleta is expected to leave the Etihad Stadium, and the club have identified Bellerin as a potential candidate.

On June 8, United made their first official signing of their new era under the Portuguese in Eric Bertrand Bailly from Villarreal, a 22 - year - old defender described as a «raw talent» but with «the potential to become one of the best around» by Van Gaal's replacement at Old Trafford, according to the club's official website.

For a side that could effortlessly generate a total revenue circa # 500 - million plus in a year, every year — backed by a seismic TV deal, matchday revenue and commercial tie - ups left right and centre, the idea that United still play with a back four largely composed of Chris Smalling — a limited defender whose prime period has more often flattered to deceive than not, Ashley Young — a winger turned full back who is only getting older and Antonio Valencia — another of those reliable yet over 30 - year old footballers at United — with less potential to grow as a footballer.

Numerous strikers have been linked with a move to Palace but it seems like Pardew will need to bring in reinforcements at the back as well due to the potential departure of star defender Scott Dann and also due to advancing years of duo Damien Delaney and Brede Hangeland.

Both European giants have reportedly shortlist the Algerian defender as a potential transfer target.

With John Terry likely to have a smaller role than in previous seasons, Zouma has the potential to assert himself as Chelsea's first choice central defender.

Team this with a related report that Juve intend to reject all offers for Pogba — as well as defender Leonardo Bonucci and striker Paulo Dybala — and you have another potential sign that he may not be going any where this summer.

There's huge potential in the future to move central defenders to holding midfield [sechser], or a sechser as a striker and the striker drops deeper — players have to be more flexible.

Using his real life evolution as a barometer, it's easy to see why EA have given the defender such a high potential rating — after all, Barcelona have previously tried to sign the centre - back.

Or Jamaal Lascelles, who emerged over the last few weeks of the season as a rare beacon of hope for the future, a committed defender and potential skipper whose stature and willingness to be vocal both on the pitch and in the dressing room put many of his older and more experienced team - mates to shame.

Joel Matip has been the best defender for the Reds and Klopp is looking at Gimenez as a potential partner to the former Schalke man.

The Burnley defender was initially touted as a potential option to bolster the Red Devils» defense, but Jose Mourinho opted for a deal for Lindelof instead due to his additional international exposure.

Cuomo is a potential 2020 presidential candidate who has cast himself as a bold opponent of Trump and defender of women's rights.

The White House is vetting Jane L. Kelly, a career public defender turned federal appellate judge, as a potential nominee for the Supreme Court.