Good day to you.
I haven't written here for some time and quite a few things happened while I was out and about. Starting with:
Giroud's return
That's right, ladies and gentlemen, Olivier has resumed normal training sessions, as far back as Thursday. And that means the HFB should be available for selection against United. Taking into account Welbeck has gone away with England and still has a game to play (congratulations on his brace against Slovenia, by the way), we may see Giroud start on Saturday.
However, I'm pretty sure he won't. You just don't start a game of that calibre and intensity after three months out. A couple of weeks' training will have done Olivier a world of good, of course, but the Frenchman needs a bit of competitive football before he finds his form. I'm thinking Giroud coming on from the bench for a hat-trick hero Welbeck (What? One can dream, right?) is best we can hope for.
Whether he plays on the weekend or not is not that important really. What IS important, though, is that we've got our best (for the last two seasons) goalscorer back. Whatever you think of the Frenchman, he's capable of putting the ball into the back of the net, a quality that's been lacking from Welbeck's game recently. So it's good to see Giroud back.
The unhappy players
Podolski up first:
"I have to worry about what will happen in the winter and will look for talks with the club".
I'm not happy with my position at the moment and it would also be rubbish for that to continue. I am still having fun with football, but when you take away the competition (of regular matches) from me, which I find so awesome, then I am not happy. But if nothing happens in the winter, then I'll stay. It's not as though I am completely unsatisfied."
I don't know why [I don't play], for that you'll have to ask the coach in England. You can't even say I am in a crisis, because I don't have the possibility to show what I can do. I always give everything in training, but when you only get eight to ten minutes in a game, it's difficult. You're only just warming up."
With Poldi the situation is quite simple: he's a sub and, barring a spate of injuries in the forward positions, he'll remain a sub. Even when the competition on the flanks wasn't so fierce Podolski didn't make the grade, now with the acquisition of Sanchez and Walcott's return, I won't be hugely surprised to see the German dropped altogether for our game against United. So him leaving in January is quite possible.
Rosicky is next:
"I'm not sure what's going on. I understand that I am 34 years old and that it probably plays a role whether I like it or not. That's without a doubt. However, I am not in physical decline.
"When I played for the (Czech Republic) national team against Holland I ran 12km and according to the tests at Arsenal I'm in the top five in terms of speed."
"We are on good terms, so I do not really know what it is. It is purely a coach's decision. It's not my decline. My health is fine too. Of course I want to play, but there's not much I can do about it.
Here's the situation is surprising to me, truth be told. Yes, Rosicky is not a starter with everyone fit, but when Ozil sustained an injury I thought the Czech would be involved more. After all, him and Cazorla are our most natural playmakers and Santi isn't exactly in top form right now.
But Arsene decided to tackle the problem of Ozi's absence differently. He introduced Sanchez to the proceedings and, while we are very obviously reaping the benefits of this decision in terms of goal-scoring, Sanchez's erratic passing cannot be ignored altogether.
The happy players
Campbell (remember him?) is, surprisingly, calm about his situation:
“What they have been saying is not true, I’m very calm. I have not been furious. Obviously, yes, I would like to be playing, but that’s something that has to be earned day by day. I have to keep training and waiting for the opportunity, I know it’s a very competitive team.
“It’s one of the best teams in the world where there are many important players. I have to be patient, keep training and I know my chance will arrive and I’ll have to take advantage of it when it comes."
Here we have trust issues by the looks of it. Arsene, for some reason or another, just doesn't trust Campbell and this lead to the Costa-Rican's omission in favour of Sanogo. Just like Podolski, Campbell plays in a position where the competition is at its finest, but, at least when Podolski is trusted to make an impact with the clock ticking away, Campbell is thrown on when the situation is beyond saving.
I'm glad Campbell wants to stay and fight for his place, at a time when others would opt to seek pastures new, however, I'll be hard-pressed to name where Campbell might fit in. Perhaps with Poldi on his way out and Cazorla not getting any younger Joel may get his chance next season, but for now he'll have to make do with occasional substitute appearances.
Another happy player is Alexis Sanchez (surprise!):
“Now that I’m here, sometimes I stop to look my teammates in practice and I realize that I’m surrounded by a lot of quality. I have been impressed by the attitude and talent. I know that with this group we can win many titles in the coming years. I’m convinced.”
“I’ve been impressed,” he continued. “I love how they look and create spaces, individual and collective movements.
“I tell you seriously, I like what I see so much that I have repeated many times that if we have the winning mentality needed, and if we are positive and go out to win every game, I know we can win in any competition.”
Love this guy. Absolutely. What an attitude, what a mentality. Did you know he scored another goal while on international duty, against Venezuela? That makes him fifth top scorer for the national team, with 25 goals. Fifteen more, and he'll become the record holder.
The holding position
There are talks afloat about Arteta's contract extension, one which will see him stay at the Club till 2016. Personally, I have no issue with that. Yes, the Spaniard isn't young anymore, but he can create order from chaos. His presence has a calming effect on the team as a whole and, more importantly, Mikel is experienced enough to organise the midfield, like no one else can do in our squad. It was visible how we missed Arteta against Anderlecht and Swansea and so, if he stays, I'll take no issue with that. On the contrary, I'll be glad to see the Spaniard continue at the Club beyond his current contract.
However, as the transfer window draws closer, suggestions as to who we might buy emerge. I've stumbled upon a very good article, which makes perfect sense to me. Give it a go, I don't want to spoil the fun for you.
That's it for now. I'll get back here on Thursday if something new pops up.
Until then
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