Evening everyone.
It's West Ham at the Emirates tomorrow and this is our final league game before we face Monaco in the Champions League. A win is hugely important for two reasons: bar City, everyone else from the top 7 has a tough opponent and is likely to drop points and, secondly, we need to be in the mood when we don on our Champions League outfit come Tuesday.
Team news update
We just can't catch a break with injures. Flamini is back in the squad & Gabriel is due to return on Sunday, but Wilshere is still out, while Oxlade's hamstring strain will keep the Englishman sidelined for 3-4 weeks:
"It's a classic hamstring. That means he will be out for three weeks, four weeks maximum. He will not be available for England as well."
The England part also sheds some light on why Arsene seems keen to downplay Wilshere's availability. Either that, or Wilshere is slowly becoming Diaby. God forbid.
However, as we have Ramsey up and running, I'm much more concerned about Oxlade. The Ox was the first name on the teamsheet the whole first half of the season. At some point I even expressed concerns about his fatigue levels. And now he's in and out again, just when he produced a stunning display against United. Real shame.
"It's very frustrating for him because he played more games than ever this season. In the last two months I feel he was a bit in and out. He has shown again on Monday night what an important player he can be for Arsenal and for England. It's a shame that in the final sprint and he's not there."
I wonder whether that opens the door for Walcott. I intended to write an article on Theo's current predicament at Arsenal a couple of days back, but then I saw Tim Stillman's column and decided he said everything I wanted to say.
To me it looks like a make-or-break situation with Walcott. His strengths are obvious, but so are his shortcomings. He's not switched on defensively, most of the time. He likes to drift infield and effectively limits Bellerin's passing options. He prefers to play without the ball by making runs behind the opposition's defense, but finds space hard to come by when we face defensive-minded teams. He's not the strongest player or technically most gifted to get past defenders or out of tight spots. His passing (if it's present) is sometimes wayward and even when it's not, Theo is hardly an Ozil or a Cazorla.
And what exactly are his strengths? Pace and finishing, I'd say. He is also, despite the aforementioned tendency of his to drift inside, the closest thing we have to a winger. Ox is number one in that regard, Walcott probably comes second.
I really think Theo will have his work cut out between now and May to convince he's earned a new contract. With rumours afloat that Wenger will have 50 million to spend in the summer, we may well be on the lookout for a more complete winger. Sure, we still need a defensive midfielder (even if only an understudy to Coq) and the jury is out on our goalkeeping situation, but we can get both a goalie and a DM and have enough money left for a quality winger. Especially if we sell Podolski, Jenkinson and Walcott. Something to chew on.
Righto, onto our probable squad tomorrow.
Defense
Ospina will be back in goal, no doubt about that and I wouldn't be too surprised to see an unchanged defense. Monreal did brilliantly upon his return and doesn't deserve to be dropped in the slightest, while the only other change I can envisage is Chambers coming in for someone, but for whom? Mertesacker? Unlikely, both because the German had a good game and because it's too risky to play Chambo alongside Bellerin.
The only other option is removing Bellerin himself, but again I don't see why Arsene should do this. Bellerin is on form, he dovetails with Monreal nicely and, finally, rotation for the sake of rotation doesn't make any sense. Moving on.
Midfield
Here we have an interesting dilemma. I was quite certain Ramsey would start against United for a more balanced midfield, instead Cazorla did. Furthemore, when Oxlade strained his hammy, it was Ozil who was shunted on the right flank, not Cazorla and it hints at the manager's reluctance to remove the diminutive Spaniard from central midfield.
So I'd say there's only one chance for this happening: simple exhaustion. Cazorla has played a lot this season, he's definitely in the top three along with Sanchez and Mertesacker, so giving him a rest may not be completely off the cards tomorrow.
If he does play, however, then it may indirectly affect Walcott's chances. I'm pretty sure Coquelin, Ramsey and Ozil will start whatsoever and, as such, the German will play on the right flank. Walcott's flank.
Attack
And so it's a turning point for Walcott. If he plays, it will happen at the expense of Ramsey or Cazorla, maybe even Welbeck. If he cannot find his way into the team without Oxlade and is second to Ozil or Welbeck, both of whom aren't typical wingers, then it's time to say cheerio to Theo.
With Wenger hinting he'll make two-three changes I wonder whether Alexis will be given a rest. And it's also interesting to see who starts up front: Giroud or Welbeck.
Personally, I'd go with Giroud. He's just the better man for me. Aerial ability, hold-up play, distribution, physical qualities: you name it. He's better than Welbeck at CF and should play as such.
Tomorrow's front three is the most unpredictable part it seems. I'd like to think Wenger will go with Alexis-Giroud-Ozil, but I won't be hugely surprised to see Welbeck and Walcott come in for any of the three.
The verdict
A quick look at West Ham's results will show you they've won only twice in the league in three months. That, coupled with Carroll's and Valencia's unavailability and our good home record (overall and against West Ham), hints that anything less than three points will be an underachievement for Arsenal. However, Premier League is Premier League, no team can be taken for granted here, so let's just treat it as any other game. That means showing up, showing up with the right attitude and, basically, putting in a shift.
So come on you Gunners.
One last thing. Bellerin seems to have signed a new contract with the Club, one which will keep him here for the next four years and I'm personally very happy he did. The young Spaniard has progressed magnificently this year, he's our number one right-back at the moment of speaking and you feel there is still a lot to come from him. However, I think Bellerin's rise to prominence signals an end to Jenkinson's career at Arsenal and it's a very sad thing. Jenko is a Gunner at heart, seeing him part ways with the Club will be heart-breaking, but I just don't see where he fits in. Hope Arsene has a plan which includes the Englishman in it.
Until later
Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)
It's West Ham at the Emirates tomorrow and this is our final league game before we face Monaco in the Champions League. A win is hugely important for two reasons: bar City, everyone else from the top 7 has a tough opponent and is likely to drop points and, secondly, we need to be in the mood when we don on our Champions League outfit come Tuesday.
Team news update
We just can't catch a break with injures. Flamini is back in the squad & Gabriel is due to return on Sunday, but Wilshere is still out, while Oxlade's hamstring strain will keep the Englishman sidelined for 3-4 weeks:
"It's a classic hamstring. That means he will be out for three weeks, four weeks maximum. He will not be available for England as well."
The England part also sheds some light on why Arsene seems keen to downplay Wilshere's availability. Either that, or Wilshere is slowly becoming Diaby. God forbid.
However, as we have Ramsey up and running, I'm much more concerned about Oxlade. The Ox was the first name on the teamsheet the whole first half of the season. At some point I even expressed concerns about his fatigue levels. And now he's in and out again, just when he produced a stunning display against United. Real shame.
"It's very frustrating for him because he played more games than ever this season. In the last two months I feel he was a bit in and out. He has shown again on Monday night what an important player he can be for Arsenal and for England. It's a shame that in the final sprint and he's not there."
I wonder whether that opens the door for Walcott. I intended to write an article on Theo's current predicament at Arsenal a couple of days back, but then I saw Tim Stillman's column and decided he said everything I wanted to say.
To me it looks like a make-or-break situation with Walcott. His strengths are obvious, but so are his shortcomings. He's not switched on defensively, most of the time. He likes to drift infield and effectively limits Bellerin's passing options. He prefers to play without the ball by making runs behind the opposition's defense, but finds space hard to come by when we face defensive-minded teams. He's not the strongest player or technically most gifted to get past defenders or out of tight spots. His passing (if it's present) is sometimes wayward and even when it's not, Theo is hardly an Ozil or a Cazorla.
And what exactly are his strengths? Pace and finishing, I'd say. He is also, despite the aforementioned tendency of his to drift inside, the closest thing we have to a winger. Ox is number one in that regard, Walcott probably comes second.
I really think Theo will have his work cut out between now and May to convince he's earned a new contract. With rumours afloat that Wenger will have 50 million to spend in the summer, we may well be on the lookout for a more complete winger. Sure, we still need a defensive midfielder (even if only an understudy to Coq) and the jury is out on our goalkeeping situation, but we can get both a goalie and a DM and have enough money left for a quality winger. Especially if we sell Podolski, Jenkinson and Walcott. Something to chew on.
Righto, onto our probable squad tomorrow.
Defense
Ospina will be back in goal, no doubt about that and I wouldn't be too surprised to see an unchanged defense. Monreal did brilliantly upon his return and doesn't deserve to be dropped in the slightest, while the only other change I can envisage is Chambers coming in for someone, but for whom? Mertesacker? Unlikely, both because the German had a good game and because it's too risky to play Chambo alongside Bellerin.
The only other option is removing Bellerin himself, but again I don't see why Arsene should do this. Bellerin is on form, he dovetails with Monreal nicely and, finally, rotation for the sake of rotation doesn't make any sense. Moving on.
Midfield
Here we have an interesting dilemma. I was quite certain Ramsey would start against United for a more balanced midfield, instead Cazorla did. Furthemore, when Oxlade strained his hammy, it was Ozil who was shunted on the right flank, not Cazorla and it hints at the manager's reluctance to remove the diminutive Spaniard from central midfield.
So I'd say there's only one chance for this happening: simple exhaustion. Cazorla has played a lot this season, he's definitely in the top three along with Sanchez and Mertesacker, so giving him a rest may not be completely off the cards tomorrow.
If he does play, however, then it may indirectly affect Walcott's chances. I'm pretty sure Coquelin, Ramsey and Ozil will start whatsoever and, as such, the German will play on the right flank. Walcott's flank.
Attack
And so it's a turning point for Walcott. If he plays, it will happen at the expense of Ramsey or Cazorla, maybe even Welbeck. If he cannot find his way into the team without Oxlade and is second to Ozil or Welbeck, both of whom aren't typical wingers, then it's time to say cheerio to Theo.
With Wenger hinting he'll make two-three changes I wonder whether Alexis will be given a rest. And it's also interesting to see who starts up front: Giroud or Welbeck.
Personally, I'd go with Giroud. He's just the better man for me. Aerial ability, hold-up play, distribution, physical qualities: you name it. He's better than Welbeck at CF and should play as such.
Tomorrow's front three is the most unpredictable part it seems. I'd like to think Wenger will go with Alexis-Giroud-Ozil, but I won't be hugely surprised to see Welbeck and Walcott come in for any of the three.
The verdict
A quick look at West Ham's results will show you they've won only twice in the league in three months. That, coupled with Carroll's and Valencia's unavailability and our good home record (overall and against West Ham), hints that anything less than three points will be an underachievement for Arsenal. However, Premier League is Premier League, no team can be taken for granted here, so let's just treat it as any other game. That means showing up, showing up with the right attitude and, basically, putting in a shift.
So come on you Gunners.
One last thing. Bellerin seems to have signed a new contract with the Club, one which will keep him here for the next four years and I'm personally very happy he did. The young Spaniard has progressed magnificently this year, he's our number one right-back at the moment of speaking and you feel there is still a lot to come from him. However, I think Bellerin's rise to prominence signals an end to Jenkinson's career at Arsenal and it's a very sad thing. Jenko is a Gunner at heart, seeing him part ways with the Club will be heart-breaking, but I just don't see where he fits in. Hope Arsene has a plan which includes the Englishman in it.
Until later
Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)