Oxlade-Chamberlain back to full training and Serge Gnabry putting in an impressive shift against the Spuds, we have two young guns who should be chomping at the bit. Following Walcott’s injury, I’m sure it wouldn’t have gone unnoticed that the position that is open to them is very much a niche position. Of course, Wenger could plump for Rosicky
Unfortunately with work and the copious amounts of football, partying and compulsory family mingling over the Christmas period I haven’t had the opportunity to share my narrow minded, hidebound, Arsenal related views. I will not insult your intelligence (you bunch of dimwits) by trying to recap all that’s happened in recent weeks because you are all capable of keeping abreast of the pertinent issues in today’s modern society; so I will jump straight to the news of Theo’s torrid injury.
As far as injuries go, the ACL is about as bad as it gets and we can only hope that Theo’s tear is a straightforward one, if he has torn his meniscus as well, which is quite likely, then 6 months is an ambitious return date. As Theo has only returned to the team in recent months and only really regained form and fitness in the past 3 to 4 weeks, many have subdued the anxiety and panic with the belief that we made do without Walcott for the majority of the season so far, so we should be fine till the end. It may have gone unnoticed but Theo’s contribution isn’t solely related to goals or assists, nor is it even related to his build up play or set pieces but to the fact that he simply stretches the opposition by being on the pitch. He terrifies defenders just by running in their direction, his blistering pace causes so many teams to drop off allowing our midfielders to pick up little pockets of space. Additionally in recent weeks, his presence on the pitch has allowed Cazorla to drift inside more knowing that Theo will hug the far touchline and Gibbs will hug the left touchline. With his and Ramsey’s injury it looks like we’ll have to re-visit the drawing board.
Of course, it is not total doom and gloom; without being to callous, Theo’s loss is another’s opportunity and with Oxlade-Chamberlain back to full training and Serge Gnabry putting in an impressive shift against the Spuds, we have two young guns who should be chomping at the bit. Following Walcott’s injury, I’m sure it wouldn’t have gone unnoticed that the position that is open to them is very much a niche position. Of course, Wenger could plump for Rosicky to come in or shift Cazorla right and bring Podolski in but there is certainly a huge opportunity for one of these two youngsters to nail down a position in the team. Their willingness to run at defenders and hug the touchline gives them an incredible advantage in trying to cement a place. One might look at Rosicky, Cazorla and Ozil and come to the conclusion that they are superior players to the two youngsters but it doesn’t take a genius to realize that they are all very similar. My suspicion is that Gnabry will retain his place in the upcoming games until the Ox is match fit or Gnabry’s form drops.
Aside from the right wing berth, Theo’s injury also affects our centre forward debacle. With Theo available Wenger would have resisted delving into his transfer funds for another centre forward and held off until the summer when I believe he would have made a move for a high profile name. However, with Bentdner and Walcott injured, it looks like we will dip into the transfer kitty and look for a short term resolution. Of course, ideally I would rather see us spend an extra few million and get our number one target but I doubt it’s as easy as that. I believe the player we bring in will fall into one of two categories, a young, up and coming striker who needs game time or an older, more experienced gent who is coming to the end of his career and can be used sparingly (much like Larson was at United).
The question of course is who falls into these categories? It will not have escaped your attention that Morata from Real has been catching our eye; and with relations between the two clubs being mildly warm to one another I don’t think it would be a stretch of the imagination if we did go in for the Spaniard. I don’t really know enough about him to comment on his ability but he is highly rated by Madrid and has a penchant for scoring in important matches. I do think a loan signing would make sense given that Madrid are unlikely to want to sell and Morata is keen to get more game time with the World Cup on the horizon.
In the other category, Berbatov has been widely suggested as the key protagonist and with Fulham languishing near the foot of the table, maybe Berbatov would rather be competing for a trophy than scrapping for survival. Of course if Fulham do go down they will not want to have to continue paying the wages of a player who is unlikely to push himself in the Championship. I also believe that he’s hardly the best man for a survival battle, so maybe Fulham would be open to getting him off the books now and bringing in some players who can help keep them up (Kevin Phillips anyone?). Of course this is all hugely speculative and Fulham may indeed deem it wiser to hold onto Berbatov as he has the ability to change a game.
In truth I would be happy with either player if they came in. Morata would of course have something to prove and would relish playing in front of Ozil, Cazorla, Ramsey, et al. Whilst Berbatov, whom I always believed would have suited Arsenal’s slower style of play rather than United’s previous rapid style of counter attacking football (zing!), is coming to the end of his career, I do feel his languid style of play and ability to link up would help to keep the Arsenal wagon rolling.
Guess we’ll just have to wait and see.
Til next time,
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