Besiktas preview: need to finish the job

Evening everyone.

I know it's a bit early for a preview, but I'm not sure I'll be able to get back to you tomorrow. The press-conference has taken place already, so we are all set to discuss our options.

The back five

Szczesny should start between the sticks, with Emiliano (yes, he wants to be known as Emiliano) Martinez on the bench. I don't expect any surprises here.

The defense is not as predictable. Debuchy and Monreal are set to start on the flanks, but the central pair can be any combination of the three players we have. My hunch is Wenger will play a more conventional Mertesacker-Koscielny duo, as Chambers is more like the German regarding his qualities, while dropping Per himself means dropping the captain. Unlikely.

Midfield

Can Arsene spring a surprise and start Chambers in the holding position? Hard to say, really. I'm leaning towards "no" for several reasons:

1. We treaded this territory before the Everton game and Wenger went with Flamini in the end. Whether Mathieu was good or bad I can only guess, as I haven't seen the game, but it's highly unlikely Flamini fell short of his usual effective manner. So the Frenchman should play once more.
2. Chambers is exhausted. Simple as that. He played the three halves during the Emirates Cup and then went on to complete 4 games in rapid succession. The Englishman hasn't gone to the World Cup, of course, but he's only 19 and learning his trade in a relatively new position. Under the spotlight.

Ramsey and Arteta are both out, though for different reasons. Arsene expects the Spaniard to recover soon (maybe even in time for Leicester), but our skipper will surely miss tomorrow's clash. Ramsey is suspended.

This means another start for Jack Wilshere, in my view. He hasn't really impressed yet, but the manager has huge faith in Jack and, besides, the choice is dire. The Englishman should help out Flamini to shield the back four, but I think he'll make frequent forays forward. Authorized by Arsene, naturally.

Ozil, meanwhile, should start in his usual position as long as I'm concerned. Flanks really aren't his thing, so don't push him wide and keep fingers crossed he'll manage. Playing on the flank requires retracing your steps to help the full-backs and Ozil is far from a good defender. If, for some reason (like not being sharp enough) the German won't start, then Rosicky is the only remaining option. Not that it's a bad option.

The front three

I've saved the worst news for last, though you could have got an idea from a pic below. Giroud's injury looks serious, with L'Equipe suggesting the Frenchman can spend three months on the sidelines. A broken foot seems the most likely cause.

Now, this is a blow. Just yesterday I've gone over why Giroud is such an important player for us. And now he's out, probably for long. This means some transfer activity is due.

First off, Arsene basically vetoed Podolski's departure by saying:

“Podolski is in the squad tomorrow and will stay with us.”

This is, I'm sure, a necessity. With Giroud injured, we cannot afford to lose any players in that department, even though Podolski is far down the pecking order for that centre-forward position. We all know he CAN put in a shift there if push comes to shove, so him staying is good news.

But who will start in Giroud's place tomorrow night? Sanogo, who's been talked up by the Ox? Campbell, who has talked up himself? Or Sanchez, despite not the best of showings against Everton? I don't even rule Poldi out. He's the freshest one, probably the most clinical finisher we have and has been with Arsenal longer than the previous three. I do think the German is a genuine option.

However, I'd put my money (if I had any) on either Sanogo or Campbell. Both are good at holding up the ball and bringing others into play. Personally, though, I'd love to see Joel up front. He's more experienced, than Sanogo, much more technical with the ball at his feet and quick enough to run behind defenders' backs. We know that much from the World Cup. What we also know, however, is that Arsene trusts Sanogo, which he showed time and again by starting the Frenchman last year in pivotal games against Liverpool and Bayern Munich and once again this year by starting Yaya on the opening day.

The flanks are the only place we have a plethora of options. I'd personally start Oxlade-Chamberlain and Cazorla, but you can never guess what Arsene will do.

The verdict

Do we have enough to go through? I'll be cautiously optimistic here, as I'm not very good at making predictions. We have the support of our fans, we play on a real pitch (contrary to what we've played on in Turkey) and we do have some genuinely good players, despite Arteta's, Gibbs' and Giroud's injures and Ramsey's suspension. Also, Bilic will watch the game from the stands, after he was sent off late in the day during the first leg.

A lot is riding on the outcome of this match. Not only whether we'll play among the best, but also the approval of our potential transfer targets, to say nothing of the hefty sum of money which we'll get for qualifying and which can be invested in new players.

And we now need not only a centre-back, but also a striker. This bit is clear. Remy, Welbeck and Cavani were named as potential replacements for Giroud in the immediate wake of his injury, but I just don't know. Wenger is an admirer of Cavani, but PSG doesn't look eager to let their only real forward go. Remy failed a medical at Liverpool (what are the chances of him doing likewise at Arsenal?) and Welbeck is, well, not good enough for a crumbling United side. Should we do them a favour and pay real cash for someone who didn't make it with Van Gaal's side?

Whoever we bring in, I don't think it'll happen before tomorrow's game. Right now we are focused on winning and going through, calling up potential targets is far from ideal preparation. Football first, transfer stuff later. But before the window closes, Arsene.

That's it for today. If something new and exciting happens between now and tomorrow's evening, I'll do my best to get back to you here. If I don't succeed, or there's nothing to report, then I'll return with a review on Thursday.

Until later and c'mon you reds. Tear Besiktas a new one

Ollie Giroud still the main man

Well, I promised to write an article on Giroud, didn't I? So here it goes.

I've seen a lot of people praise the Frenchman over the last few days and rightly so: despite all his shortcomings, Olivier has become integral to our style of play, something he once again demonstrated after coming off the bench on Saturday to help us salvage a point.

In the first half Arsene tried a new (experimental) formation with Alexis acting as a pure forward, though he's not your typical fighting machine like Giroud. Sanchez has qualities which are more commonly found among "false nines" - Messi being the prime example, but against Everton the Chilean was basically asked to do Giroud's job. That may well be the reason behind Sanchez' substitution. Sure, Sanchez is an athlete, at the same time he's less of a poacher and fighter. It's early in the day, but my hunch is Sanchez likes to drop deeper to collect the ball and then play it off his teammates, waiting for a pass to send him clean through. That's why it's vital to have the likes of Ozil and Ramsey feeding the Chilean. Even then, though, his style is markedly different to Giroud.

Can it be we've become so used to Giroud, so dependent on the Frenchman, dare I say, that the little experiment with Sanchez didn't work out? I'm pretty sure that's not the end of the story, that Wenger will try again and that eventually we will become accustomed to seeing Alexis up front, but it requires time and work. Most notably, it will call for a total overhaul of our current set-up, which in itself is no small thing. Sanchez hasn't bedded in yet, the understanding of how his partners operate should come with time, but for now Giroud will remain our go-to striker.

So what is it that makes Olivier such an important player for us? All of the above, or, in a nutshell, Giroud's qualities, which are attributed to classical strikers. Operates with his back to the goal to bring others into play? Check. A physical presence that causes headaches to central defenders? Check. A good fighter in the air? Check. Poacher, a kind of fox-in-the-box? Check.

Just look at how most teams operate nowadays. City has Dzeko, Real has Benzema, PSG has Cavani, Atletico has Mandzukic. I'd even go as far as to say that Rooney, Costa and Higuain are more static than your typical nines. Bottom line is, they are a physical presence in the box.

All of that makes Giroud's probable injury scarier still. Guardian reports on how the Frenchman can miss a couple of weeks and the odds are not weighed in the Frenchman's favour to start against Besiktas in two days. Whether that means exploiting Sanchez up top once more, or giving a chance to Campbell or Sanogo is something I'll go over in my usual preview. We'll know more on Giroud's availability in a day or two to have a shot at our formation and, God forbid, the Frenchman's alternatives.

It seems that a lot is riding on Giroud's fitness. First off, our transfer plans. Arsene was quick to talk Olivier's contribution up after the Everton game, while also acknowledging we are well-stocked on players in attack:

"We have Sanogo who will be an important asset, we have Giroud, we have Lukas Podolski, we have Joel Campbell who can play centre forward. We have Alexis and Walcott coming back. Let's not forget that".

The boss was even quicker to state it's hard to find a better option in an overcrowded market:

"All of our opponents look for strikers as well and nobody finds a world-class striker available who is better than the strikers you have."

It's fairly obvious Arsene puts a lot of faith in the players we have (surprising, eh?), but it's also quite evident Giroud is still central to our plans. Sanchez, as I've mentioned above, needs to adjust to his teammates just as much as they need to adapt to him, Walcott is still some way from full fitness. Even when fully fit, Theo (and also Poldi) are not as convincing as Giroud and thus can only be used sparingly, when the opposition allows it. Whilst Sanogo and Campbell are, forgive me, a couple of raw youngsters and the only difference between them is fans' perception. I don't mean their qualities, just their contribution up to this point. So it looks to me Wenger will only splash out cash on a new forward if Giroud's injury is more serious than Olivier himself, or Arsene, thinks.

It also seems that in this case any departures in the striking area will be vetoed by the gaffer. I'm pretty sure you have heard by now the rumours linking Podolski to Wolfsburg and Juventus. These have appeared after we've been linked to several wingers (Reus being the most prominent), so should Poldi leave, someone will come in.

However, there's nothing concrete on the possible "in" transfers yet, while Giroud's injury is very real and no less troubling. I don't want Arsenal to have unhappy players in the squad, even if their contribution is not the best. If 28 goals Poldi scored in two seasons can be dubbed so. So all fingers crossed Giroud's injury is manageable and all parties will proceed with their respective plans. Which, in their turn, will make everyone happy.

That's it for today. I'll probably get back to you tomorrow, but if not then expect the usual preview on the 26th.

Until later

Everton 2-2 Arsenal: character

Good evening folks.

Ah, the joys of a working Internet connection. I didn't have that luxury in Greece, even at the airport. I arrived there in time for the kick-off and was buoyed that Wi-Fi was free, but my happiness was short-lived. The connection worked like friendzone. It was there, but it wasn't functioning properly.

And so I had to make do with live text updates and ramble on Twitter. Both ways of following the game proved to be pretty effective, to my immense surprise and relief. I got a very clear picture of what was happening on the pitch and today's extended highlights were just an icing on the cake. However, let's start at the beginning.

The set-up

When I saw the squad over on Arseblog (where I got the updates from) I began to drool. Ozil, Mertesacker and Oxlade all started, while Alexis played in a central striker position. The ineffective Cazorla and, to a lesser extent, Giroud, were dropped. Podolski was omitted altogether and I don't like it.

Of the three Germans Poldi was involved the least (during the World Cup) and still hasn't even made the bench. Looks like he's on the brink of leaving Arsenal and I'll be both sad and worried if he does. The Twitter expert is a clinical finisher, had a brilliant goals-per-minute ratio last season despite not playing much and is also a mood-lifter/setter. Rumour has it we are willing to let Poldi go in order to replace him with Reus and, while I'm more than just fine with such a switch, I'll still miss Poldi's presence if he really does go.

Back to the squad, however and Alexis wasn't the only surprise in his newly-found role. Ozil started on the left with Oxlade on the right, but the defense looked even more intriguing, as Mert was paired up not with Koscielny, but rather Chambers. On paper, this set-up looked mouthwatering.

First half

It looked less so on the pitch. Oxlade was really the only one with opportunities to score, but his finishing and (sometimes) decision-making were off.

In defense, Arsenal were even less convincing. From what I can gather both Debuchy and Monreal were repeatedly caught out of position and Ozil didn't help much. The German just wasn't willing to track runners and we paid for it in the 19th minute. Barry put in a cross, no one cared enough to mark Coleman and so he headed home from close range. While our defending wasn't up to scratch, the goal is debatable, in my view.

Thing is, when Barry crossed, Lukaku was offside. He didn't touch the ball, but he surely held back some of our defenders, creating space for Coleman. The goal stood, however, and the matters deteriorated quickly enough for Everton to be 2-0 up at half-time.

Now, the second goal is a clear blunder from at least two referees: the main and the linesman. Lukaku fouled Mertesacker in the build-up and then put Naismaith clean through, only for Naismith to be offside.

You noticed how I didn't say "Naismith was flagged offside"? That's because he wasn't. He received the ball and slotted it home and the board showed 2-0 and the ref pointed to the centre. What makes this goal even more frustrating is the fact that offside wasn't coincidental. Debuchy and Flamini purposefully created an offside trap, only for the ref to suddenly become blind. And so Arsenal was two goals down at half-time.

Second half

During the break Arsene made a substitution: Alexis gave way to Giroud and at first it seemed like it was not going to be the Frenchman's day. He missed three chances some other clinical striker would have probably buried, but then Giroud's appearance magnificently paid off.

First things first, though. Again Arsenal struggled to find a breakthrough, however Giroud's presence up front lifted the spirit and we slowly started to dominate and create chances. Wilshere looked sharper with Giroud on and then Arsene introduced Campbell and Cazorla.

The Spaniard became the hero in the 83rd minute. Our little magician can be brilliant on his day and this was definitely his day. Santi combined with Ozil on the left and then put in a low cross in the box. Ramsey was on hand to poke home and give us a lifeline.

Which we held on to. In the 90th minute Ramsey seemed to have overhit his cross to Monreal, but before Everton fans finished their gleeful "waaaaay" cry, Monreal's cross into the box found Giroud. And Giroud's header found the net. 2-2 and it's a draw that feels like a win.

The win was somewhat darkened by Giroud's injury, which he sustained late in the game. The Frenchman seemed to have strained his ankle when blocking a shot and was limping badly for the remaining couple of minutes. Arsene later stated that the sprained ankle doesn't look too good, however, Giroud himself has gone on record today and said he hopes to recover in time for our crucial midweek game. I sincerely hope he will, we cannot afford to lose him.

The aftermath

In short, we showed great spirit and resilience to earn a point. The game wasn't going our way for several reasons (atrocious refereeing not being the last), but we kept at it, which is hugely encouraging. This is what Arsene said:

"We got a strong point but a deserved one if you look at all the chances we had through the game. I think especially in the second half we had plenty of chances and we came back very late but our spirit maybe got us that point".

 And this is important from a purely psychological point of view. We now know that even when things are bad we can dig in and get a result. And earning points in unfavourable circumstances is a sign of true champions. It's very early to say it, I know, but I also know big teams will drop points at Goodison. So our point at this stage of the season may actually become a point gained.

That's it for today. Back with fresh news as soon as they find their way to me. Or the other way around.

Until later

Follow me on Twitter @AlexBaguzin

Everton preview: three out, three in

Evening everyone.

It's an away game at Goodison tomorrow in what will be a very important build-up to our midweek fixture.

Overview

Team news is mixed: Arteta, who sustained an ankle injury against Besiktas, is out. For how long, remains to be seen, but Guardian suggests it'll be at least two weeks before our skipper can help us again. Wenger admitted he may have to get creative if the ankle sprain is more than just a sprain.

This is an injury that worries me, I have to say. I've already argued Arteta's case and came to the conclusion that Arsene hasn't made Arteta captain to then drop the Spaniard in favour of a shiny new buy. This effectively rules out the possibility of a signing in that area, because we are already well-stocked on numbers in the centre of the park. There certainly remains a worry of Arteta being overrun in big games, but we better have it this way and figure something out, than have Mikel unavailable altogether. So people suggesting Arteta's injury is a blessing in disguise, an occurrence that may force the manager's hand in bringing in a 'DM' should sort out their priorities. I don't, in any way, think that the absence of one of our most heavily-relied upon midfielder is a good thing.

On the bright side, everyone else, who came through the Besiktas game, seems alright:

"We just have Mikel Arteta who is out for sure from the Everton game. Everybody else we have to check this morning, but we have no major [new] problems apart from him compared to Besiktas".

So, apart from Gibbs, Arteta and (possibly) Sanogo we have the same squad. Even better, the Germans are back in contention:

"I will check of course today and tomorrow to see if they will be available for selection. That is a target I fixed to them to prepare to be ready for selection against Everton. Will I use the three? Certainly not because they lack competition but they might be included for Saturday".

My bet is that these will replace Arteta, Miquel and Bellerin/Campbell which brings us to the matter of team selection.

Defense

It's Szczesny in goal, no doubt about it. He performed brilliantly against Besiktas after not the best of displays against Palace, so no reason whatsoever to drop Wojciech.

Debuchy and Monreal will continue on the flanks, having also put in a strong outing in Turkey. Besides, there really is no one to replace them.

The central pair looks the most interesting to me. Arsene, from my point of view, has a legitimate reason to play any two defenders. Mert can start on the bench because he's only just returned, Koscielny may be omitted due to his Achilles problems and Chambers is a) not really a CB and b) has played a lot of minutes recently. Moreover, the Englishman can be utilised further up the pitch, so no eyebrows will be raised should Calum not feature in central defense come tomorrow.

It's a tough choice, really. I'd go with the Mertescielny axis to give Chambers a breather, but only if both Mertesacker and Koscielny are alright.

Midfield

I'm almost positive Wilshere will start, that after being talked up and shielded from criticism by Wenger. Though Jack will still have to find his on-pitch position and push someone down the pecking order to become a regular starter, Arsene definitely trusts the Englishman and I see no reason why we shouldn't do the same. True, Jack is a bit hit-and-miss at the moment regarding his performances, but I'm ready (as most Arsenal fans are) to provide him with the support he needs to blossom. That he has potential to do so, I don't doubt.

The other two can prove to be tricky. I'd personally start Ozil and then think long and hard about who should replace Arteta in his holding position. With Ozil, it's obvious. We've lacked his penetration and ability to slice defences apart in the opening two games, so he should come back and assume his position, if fully fit.

It's difficult to pick the third player in our triquetra. It's either Chambers (who's done brilliantly thus far, though in a slightly different position) or Flamini. I see why people crave to start Chambers there, especially after all the talk from Wenger about how he sees Chambers in defensive midfield in the future. But I still think it's a risky thing to do. Chambers is the only back-up to Mertescielny we currently have, and if the Englishman gets crocked then we'll find ourselves down to four senior defenders. And this isn't pretty. So I'd go with Flamini. And his desire to defend his teammates is not the last thing on my list "Why I'd pick Flamini".

Attack

The trickiest bit. Should Arsene reconsider his strategy of playing with a target man after a weak showing from both Sanogo and Giroud? Or was their respective weak performances down to little service?

If it's the second scenario, then Ozil's reintroduction should do the trick. If, for some reason, both Frenchmen are unable to produce at the moment, then keep the elder in reserve and drop Sanogo altogether.

And play Sanchez up front. Truth be told, I'm excited about this prospect. The Chilean up front with Ozil feeding him is a mouthwatering possibility.

However, we also have to think about the flanks. I'd have no problem starting Oxlade after his strong cameos from the bench, but who should play on the left? We have some options to consider, all are not ideal and this is the part where I lament Walcott's absence. Had he been fit, I'd start him on the right and Oxlade on the left.

He's not, however, and so we have Cazorla, Campbell and Podolski to choose from. The main question is this: will Arsene trust Santi enough to start him after two bad outings? If he does, then Cazorla starts and Poldi is a bench sub. Campbell may not even make the squad. If he doesn't, then I'd go with the German, considering it may be one of his last games.

The verdict

Like it was the case last time, we have options in attack and midfield (especially since the Germans are back in action), but are once again a bit short in defense. Mertesacker's return steadies our ship a bit, however, so we can push defensive worries our of our heads for the time being and focus on getting a result, preferably with a good performance to go with it.

Goodison is a hard place to visit, but it's not like we are Burnley or QPR (no offence). Should we catch our rhythm (aargh), we can look forward to getting the three points.

Unfortunately, I'll most likely miss a chunk of the game, maybe even the size of 90 minutes, as I'll be at the airport. Had the kick-off not been a late one, I would have managed, but it's not. However, normal service will resume on August 24th when I'll lay my hands on some decent Internet and get back to you with my thoughts on the game.

Until then, have a good weekend.

And c'mon you Gunners

P.S. Completely forgot about Aaron Ramsey. Of course the Welshman will start, given he'll miss our midweek game. Ramsey is likely to feature alongside Flamini and that puts in jeopardy Wilshere's chances. Maybe the Englishman will play under the striker and Ozil will be on the bench. I don't exclude Wilshere's appearance on the left, at the expense of Cazorla either. That will put Podolski even farther down the line.

Besiktas 0-0 Arsenal: need a better performance in London

Evening folks.

So, on Tuesday we played out a 0-0 draw against Besiktas and the game turned out to be every bit as hard as I've predicted. There are positives to be taken from the game, first and foremost that we haven't lost, while also keeping our goal intact, but we also had a hell of a hard night.

First half

Koscielny and Wilshere were deemed fit to start, while Gibbs and Sanogo were left behind. Giroud started up front and it would prove to be not the best of decisions from Arsene. Bellerin, Miquel and Flamini (who recovered from his illness) made the bench.

It was obvious from the off Arsenal will have to dig deep to win the game. The atmosphere inside the stadium was so hostile even I felt uncomfortable just listening to all the whistling and booing. What it was like for the players in red-and-white, I don't like to think about.

The quality of the pitch, the heat and Besiktas players themselves (spurred on by the crowd) ensured we had a difficult first fifteen minutes. In fact, had it not been for Szczesny's alertness, Arsenal could have gone behind twice. The Pole deflected Ba's shot onto the bar when the striker's ambitious attempt from the half hit the target and then came out on top once more, when the Senegalese got behind Chambers and nearly slotted the ball home on the volley.

Arsenal then started to get back into the game, but lacked a clinical finisher in the final third. Alexis was creative and bullish, often creating space, but his teammates failed to capitalize on the Chilean's wit and energy. Cazorla flashed an effort wide, Wilshere's clever shot was saved and Giroud missed two clear-cut chances.

For the first, the Frenchamn received the ball in the six-yard box, but failed to to unleash a shot on the turn and for the second, he even failed to connect with the ball, after being weaved clean through by a clever lob pass from Ramsey. We could have paid dearly for such wastefulness a minute from half-time, but, thankfully, Ba dragged his effort wide with only Szczesny to beat.

Second half

The second period started with a bang. Giroud set up Ramsey, but the Welshman took too long on the ball when one-on-one and the defenders returned to snatch the ball from him. Besiktas responded immediately, but Sahan, mercifully, curled his shot just wide of the far post with Szczesny clutching thin air.

The affair soon got muddled. Besiktas had more of the ball, though we created better opportunities on the counter. The ineffectiveness of Cazorla, Giroud and Wilshere (completely lost in that second half) ensured we didn't make the most of our chances.

Then, on the hour, another problem added to the growing list of Arsene's worries, as Arteta had to be replaced because of an injury. Flamini came on, did his usual stunt (got booked), but was a positive influence overall. He wasn't as fluid or creative in his passing than the Spaniard, however.

Things quickly gone from bad to worse. We already had Monreal and Flamini on yellows, with Arteta subbed due to an ankle injury, then, on the 80th minute, Ramsey pulled back someone-someone and was branded a second booking. Arsenal was down to ten men, with ten minutes to go. I fully expected Arsene to close up shop and imagine my surprise when it didn't happen. Sure, Besiktas again saw more of the ball, but we actually could have nicked a winner right at the death.

First Chambers headed wide from a corner and then Oxlade powered his way into the box, danced around a defender and fired a vicious effort which rebounded off the post. Replays showed their keeper got a hand to it, otherwise we would have returned to London victorious, I suspect.

The aftermath

This is what Arsene had to say after the game:

"We always want to win but look, Besiktas could have won the game, and we could have won the game as well. Maybe a draw is a fair result because both teams had chances to win the game. We know Besiktas are a good team. They played with 100 per cent pace and did fought for every single ball. We faced a very good Besiktas team tonight who were at our level. Their commitment was absolutely fantastic."

Hard to argue with any of the above, really. I remember we had a very hard qualifier against Udinese a couple of years back, but back then we were not as strong financially and didn't possess such a roster of players. However, as I've said before the game, away games in Turkey are always very hard, for a number of reasons.

Now we need to get the job done at the Emirates and only a win will see us through. However, we'd be without Ramsey and very likely Arteta, while the performances of some others leave a great deal to be desired.

I, for one, think that Cazorla, Giroud and Wilshere all had a bad game. And I cannot grasp why. The World Cup is no excuse, because Sanchez, Debuchy, Koscielny and others delivered. And these have played a lot more than the aforementioned trio. However, if we are to remove Santi, Olivier and Jack from the starting line-up in a return leg it will add up to five changes, coupled with Ramsey's and (possibly) Arteta's absence.

Anyway, we have a game against Everton looming large, so we can discuss the squad choice tomorrow. For today, though, it's hard to say anything conclusive on the result against Besiktas. I have a good feeling we'll be able to overpower the Turks inside the Emirates, but it's only a hunch. Though I still think we shouldn't worry just yet. We have another game coming up and it's important we get a good performance in that one, to build up confidence.

Whether we have the ability to do it with the players we have, I'll be back to speculate on tomorrow.

Until then