Arsenal 3-1 Sunderland: Campbell inspires Gunners to knock out Sunderland

So, we started out cup defense campaign successfully on Saturday, having dispatched Sunderland 3-1. It was, I think, a thoroughly enjoyable viewing for the neutrals and even Arsenal fans might have relaxed a little bit in the latter stages, after the Gunners went 2 up.

Let’s shoot straight to the points of interest then.

Team selection

It’s fair to say yours truly had a particularly bad day at guessing the squad. None of Ospina, Mertesacker and Flamini made their entrances (although Ospina was kept out by a late groin problem, otherwise he was all set to start). Instead, we saw Gabriel pair Koscielny (our captain for the occasion), Giroud keep his place in what looked like a 4-4-2 together with Walcott, while in midfield we witnessed a surprise duo of Iwobi and Chambers flanked by Ox and Campbell. Gibbs and Hector started at full-back positions.

If the selection was surprising, the fact it worked quite well was even more so. I don’t think we’ll see Iwobi alongside Chambers anytime soon, for instance, yet it’s not because neither did well. Calum had another solid outing in the holding position, looking very tidy on the ball and calm without it (unfortunately I can’t give you the numbers, neither Whoscored nor StatsZone app collect data for the FA Cup), while Iwobi was probably the surprise package of the night, finding pockets of space and not holding onto the ball for too long.

We also witnessed improved performances from Gibbs and Oxlade. The Ox was hit-and-miss in the first half, before collecting himself in the second, which saw his shot rebound off the post and his wonderful long ball find Bellerin so that the Spaniard could feed Giroud. Gibbs, meanwhile provided a good outlet on the left, willing to attack the space in front of him and basically working that left wing alone, cause neither Theo nor Oxlade looked even remotely interested in staying wide.

All in all, a very good showing from our fringe players (Arteta and Jeff made solid cameos too). Good to know we have quality back-up. That of all freshly introduced faces Gabriel looked the most underwhelming (didn’t make any major mistake however, as far as I can recall) tells you a lot about our second-string players.

The goals scored

They were all so delicious I’ll link you to all three.

For the first Koscielny threaded a fine pass to Iwobi, who, in his turn, made an even better pass to Walcott. Theo skinned Yedlin and then cut the ball back for the onrushing Campbell. The Costa-Rican made the finish look easy, when in fact it wasn’t, as replays demonstrated. 1-1.

Our second of the night was scored by a substitute Aaron Ramsey. Campbell played a clever 1-2 with Bellerin on the edge of the box, Hector won the foot race against Danny Graham and his subsequent low cross found Ramsey, whose left-footed finish made it 2-1.

Now, let me take this moment to congratulate Ramsey. It was his 4th goal of the season, but his first quality passage of play in this regard. His previous three came against Watford, Sunderland (both very scrappy) and Aston Villa (a simple tap-in), but Saturday’s goal will, I hope, sparkle Aaron’s true return to former heights.

The goal showcased everything good about Rambo in the middle: the quality of his runs, his energetic approach to his duties and, of course, his ability to put the ball into the back of the net effortlessly, without overcooking things. Aaron had a very good December too, scoring twice and assisting a couple more, let’s hope he builds on it.

Finally, our third goal was my favourite of the night. It started with Oxlade getting the ball in midfield, spotting Bellerin making a run and weighing the perfect pass into Hector’s pass. Our right-back sprinted past Van Anholt and then played the ball to Giroud. The quality of the pass and Giroud’s positioning were such that the Frenchman had the easiest of tasks of tapping it in. 3-1.

On top of these goals, we had quite a few other chances to score. That’s why I enjoyed our performance so much: it was a scintillating attacking display, the concept of which Van Gaal cannot grasp.

Hector Bellerin

The Spaniard mostly looked off-colour since coming back from injury at the end of November (City game exempting), but was one of our stand-out performers vs the Black Cats.

He recorded two assists, made some timely tackles and made such an overwhelmingly positive impression on Arsenal fans they voted him MoM later. I think Hector’s improved performance may also be a sign of blossoming understanding with Joel Campbell. He knows the Costa-Rican will help him out defensively, but on Saturday we’ve also been treated to how daunting their partnership may be further up field. This understanding of each other’s weaknesses and strengths, which stems from playing together for a period of time, is quite beneficial to both the players and the team as a whole.

Joel Campbell

Now here’s my personal MoM. I don’t begrudge Hector the award, his performance was stellar, but to me Campbell’s industrious display defined the outcome. His first-time finish from a Theo cutback evened things out, while he claims himself a pre-assist for that one-two with Bellerin.

Joel also put in a shift (as always) in defense and in pressing and closing down the opponents. He popped up everywhere on the field, reminding me both of Ramsey and Alexis in this regard and I don’t think there can be a higher praise for our winger.

Furthermore, Joel reminds me of Ramsey in more ways than one. It’s not only his work rate, his overall contribution and playing qualities also make me think of Aaron. Thing is, neither are exceptional at anything, which they compensate by being good at everything. Campbell does what only Ramsey is capable of in this side: he brings balance. That’s why the idea of Campbell in the middle, at which I first scoffed, doesn’t seem as absurd to me now. After all, look at how many positions Ramsey can cover if needs must. Only in my memory he played on the wings (both wings!) at central midfield and at 10, and even at right-back and centre-back. Was he bad in any of these positions? No. This is what we might have on our hands with Campbell. Fortunately, he sees himself as a winger or striker and has no claims to play centrally, I say “fortunately” because our midfield is already pretty congested, while our wings could use another body as it is.

After the game, Wenger was also full of compliments for the Costa-Rican:

“He is kind of in Coquelin's position last year. Nobody expected him [to do well] and now he is taking his place in the team and he is ready to fight for the position and he is efficient.

I agree [that he is playing with confidence]. That comes out of his game. Compare one month ago to today, he believes he belongs there and has a right to play.”

Think a comparison of this kind is quite telling, especially coming from the manager. I also think Campbell deserves his place in the starting line-up and I wouldn’t omit him when Sanchez returns. Which means a drop for either Theo or Giroud. At this point in time I’m more comfortable with dropping either than Campbell.

The verdict

It was a nice game and a great result for us. Barring a couple of bad individual decisions, we looked comfortable despite changing things around quite a bit. We also showed a mental aspect to our game by coming from behind to win it, so there’s also that. Nice to know we can pull off these comebacks from time to time, for it looked like our last happened quite a while back.

The win puts us through to the 4th round, the draw for which will be held on Monday. Till January 30th we can forget all about it, though, and turn our eye to Liverpool, Stoke and Chelsea. Quite a package, eh?

I’ll be back with you to preview our trip to Anfield (hilariously, the Scousers nearly lost to 4th-division Exeter and now face a replay) in a couple of days.

Till then bask in the glow of our win

Sunderland preview: getting down to business

Howdy.

We start our FA Cup defense on Saturday by hosting Sunderland in the 3rd round. Once again we play a Premier League side, having played Hull City last year and Spurs before that - in fact, I don’t remember when was the last time we played a lower-league opposition in the 3rd round, but that’s a topic for another day.

For now, we just have to be grateful it’s a home fixture. However, the timing is weird - why does the fixture have to held on the weekend? Why not play it midweek as usual, with Premier League games either side of it? I don’t get it, but it’s something we’ll have to work around.

Team news update

“The team news is that, from last week, we have no big injuries, and the squad will be similar to the squad who played the last game against Newcastle. Will a young player or two start? I haven’t decided yet.”

It looks like heavy rotation is not on Arsene’s mind, especially in the light of this bit:

“The thinking is to give absolutely everything to qualify. We are the holders of the cup and I know as well by experience that it is very important that you get in the competition and that you have a successful third round. It’s a tricky one, always, the third round.”

What further complicates matters is no players returning, barring Mikel Arteta. The Spaniard played for our reserve team on the January 5th and looks set to be included in the squad for the first time since late November.

The bit of news everyone was waiting for with bated breath regarded Alexis and, unfortunately, the Chilean will not only miss the Sunderland game, he’ll also be unavailable for our trip to Anfield, with Wenger stating Sanchez could make his comeback against Stoke.

This situation worries me, I have to admit. A player who picked up a minor strain on November 29th and was set to return against City on December 21st is still out and he’ll remain out for at least another week. In case Alexis really does make his comeback against Stoke, it’ll mean 7 weeks on the sidelines. My unfounded fear is that the Chilean won’t make the Stoke squad, though. Hope I’m wrong and it has nothing to do with reality.

On a brighter note, Francis Coquelin started light running a week ago and is on course to return in early February, while Rosicky joins full training next week, so his return should be imminent. Arsene also gave an update on Mohamed Elneny:

“It is complicated a little bit but we are working hard on it and hopefully in the next two or three days we will get to the end of it.”

Can Elneny make it in time for Liverpool? I certainly hope so, though Arteta’s return provides us with a bit of safety net in this regard, meaning our need is no longer burning.

Arsene was also quizzed on whether Elneny will be the only signing Arsenal completes this window:

“The only one? I don’t rule out anyone else, but he will be at least one signing that comes into an area where we are short at the moment.”

To me it sounds exactly like Elneny will be the only one, though it’s hard to second-guess Arsene. I wouldn’t bet on anyone else coming in, though, especially since Arteta is back, while Coquelin and Rosicky are also nearing their respective returns.

Finally, Wenger shed some light on Gnabry’s situation at West Brom. There were rumours circulating earlier this week the German will return any day, however Arsene denied these:

“We have a commitment. The player wanted to go there. We have a commitment with West Brom. If they want to cancel the loan, they have to contact us and speak about it. But at the moment, we are not there.”

I’m not sure what’s happening there (apart from the fact Gnabry clearly isn’t getting game time), so we’ll just have to wait and see what happens next. The German’s situation was brilliantly dissected by @arseblog here if you are interested (keep in mind it was written before Arsene denied Gnabry is due to return).

Squad

While Wenger said the squad will be roughly the same (plus Arteta) that faced Newcastle, I’ll be mightily surprised if we are not treated to at least some changes. We face Liverpool and Stoke next, both very hard away games, so I’m not sure putting a further strain on our starters by fielding them all in a cup game is the way to go.

I think David Ospina is likely to replace Petr Cech in goal (the Colombian will soon have the imprint of his arse on the bench if he doesn’t get game time), while Gabriel, who was talked up by the manager after the Bournemouth game, is also due a start. I have a feeling Wenger will give Monreal a rest by replacing him with Gibbs, but Mert and Bellerin are likely to feature again from the first minutes. Might Chambers get a start on the right? We should, after all, be preparing ourselves for a world without Debuchy, so I’d say it is sensible to give our back-up right-back some minutes.

However, I don’t think Wenger will introduce three changes to our defense at once. He rarely does it and we know how it can backfire. Besides, Chambers last played at RB in December 2014 (barring his brief cameo against United last March). Reintroducing the young Englishman on the flank at a time when we don’t even know who’ll protect him on the wing may not be such a bright idea.

As for our midfield, I expect it to stay the same. Elneny is still sorting out his papers, Arteta has only just recovered and is unlikely to play the full 90, while Rosicky isn’t even in full training yet. So unless Wenger throws in Chambers to partner Flamini and rest Ozil, or fields a youngster (which is not out of the realms of possibility), there isn’t much scope for rotation. Whether our trio of Flamini, Ramsey and Ozil be able to play three games in 8 days is another thing entirely, one for the manager to address.

Finally, I’m pretty certain we’ll see both Ox and Theo start, so the only question is, who will be the third guy. Seeing as we need Giroud for both our next league games, I would give him a breather. Yes, like the rest of the team he had a full week to recover, but again, given our hectic (and rather congested, especially if we progress in the cup) schedule in January and February, Arsene also has to play the long-term game by managing the fitness of key players, a group to which Giroud no doubt belongs.

So I’d stick Theo up top and Campbell on the wing. The Costa-Rican should be fresher than Ollie, having only made a cameo against Newcastle, so there you have it.

Predicted line-up: Ospina - Bellerin - Mertesacker - Gabriel - Gibbs - Flamini - Ramsey - Ozil - Campbell - Oxlade - Walcott

The verdict

As always, I believe we have what it takes to go through. Sun isn’t exactly shining out of Sunderland’s … ahem … players. After losing to us back in December, Sam Allardyce’s men went on to lose 4 consecutive league games, only recently ending this streak by beating Aston Villa at home. If you want to have a more detailed look at what Sunderland has to offer, I suggest you check out this quite brilliant “View from the opposition” piece.

As for me, I’ll keep my fingers crossed the Gunners will do the job and not pick any injuries along the way. The fun begins in the earnest soon. Hold onto your seats, ladies and gentlemen.

Until later and come on you Gunners.

Alexis Sanchez, the potential striker

As I was watching Liverpool tear apart Manchester City at the end of November, a simple thought was playing at the back of mind: Liverpool hugely benefitted that day from having a mobile centre-forward. Yes, Roberto Firmino may not be your centre-forward of choice, he is far from a finished article, he had a lot of weak performances this season, both before and after the City game (to the point when even the Liverpool fans started turning on him) and, finally, this may just have been an experiment from Klopp.

Indeed, while Klopp seems to be favouring a mobile striker overall (Robert Lewandowski to Chiro Immobile shift didn’t go down well, did it?), right now he opts for Benteke up front more and more often. In 12 league games Klopp has overseen, Benteke started exactly half - 6, with only start in the first 5 games, meaning 5 in the next 7. To me that looks like Klopp wanted to play with a pacy striker at the outset, trying Firmino and Origi (!) up front in equal measure, but then either decided these players were not of the standard he requires (which can see him make a move for a forward this window) or simply deciding a target man would be of more use to him for now.

However, I’m not here to talk about Klopp and his methods. Rather, I wanted to point out that Liverpool’s most scintillating performances this year happened as a result of deploying a mobile Firmino up top (the 3-1 win at Stamford Bridge and the aforementioned 4-1 drubbing of City at the Etihad just two weeks later). Of course, the wins could have been little bit accidental in the sense Klopp was an unknown quantity back then and his efficient deployment of gegenpressing coupled with Firmino up top (who never played there for Liverpool before) came as a surprise to Mourinho and Pellegrini respectively. Since then teams have adapted to this approach, utilising long balls to negate the press and catch Klopp’s men in front of the ball. I’ve veered off again. Aaargh.

The drubbing at the Etihad was as methodical and deserved as it was hyped and this got me thinking: could we attempt something similar at Arsenal? I’m not talking about gegenpressing, hamstrings seems to be popping like champagne bottles on New Year’s Eve from that; I’m talking about a mobile striker up top. Or, rather, about a fluid front three, which can interchange positions seamlessly and to devastating effect.

We’ve seen Theo up top, we know what he can do, we are aware of his limitations. We are a potent force with an in-form Theo spearheading our attack, however, I think another solution may be a better one. An internal solution at that, I’m not implying we should delve into the depths of the transfer market and splash on a new forward, especially at a time when really good forwards are few and far between and the forwards a class below are madly overpriced and completely unnecessary, seeing as both Giroud and Theo fit this mould. No, I’m talking about someone who’s been here for quite a while, someone who most thought would play at centre-forward. Someone who is a better version of Luis Suarez, in that he is more effective and less bitey. His name is Alexis Sanchez (so much drama for a title that will give it away :)).

I was watching with interest the ending of our 3-0 win over Dinamo Zagreb. As the game was drawing to a close, Arsene Wenger took off Giroud to give him some rest and moved Alexis to the centre-forward position. This was, I think, partially dictated by Theo’s absence. Wenger wanted to see how we’d fare if something (God forbid) happened to Giroud. He wanted to look at our other options. Campbell was still mostly on the fringes back then, Oxlade is no centre-forward and with Welbeck and Walcott still out, Sanchez was the only viable alternative left.

However, I’m inclined to think it wasn’t just a rehearsal for the worst-case scenario. It was another look at what Alexis can offer us up front. Alexis certainly didn’t disappoint in his 10-minute spell up top that night, but, unfortunately for everyone concerned, the Chilean pulled his hamstring against Norwich 5 days later, leaving us to rely on the ever-reliable Olivier Giroud. The Chilean hasn’t played since then, though all going well should return in time to face Sunderland (*knocks on wood*). As this game has been earmarked for rotation and Olivier Giroud needs a breather the most, I suspect we may see Sanchez start up top. Of course there’s the small matter of Theo wanting the same slice of the same pie, however, the Englishman himself may be rested for that game.

Anyway, 800 words in, I want to finally get to the crux of my article, namely: why I would give a run of games to Alexis in the centre-forward position.

He has speed and guile

Theo ticks the right boxes in the “speed” department, but he never really struck me as a player with outstanding technique on the ball. I don’t mean to say he is bad, no, however to me it looks like Alexis just has more tricks up his sleeve.

He has outstanding ball control and his dribbling ability is unparalleled among Arsenal players. The Chilean averages 3.3 successful dribbles per game, which equals 62% success rate, meaning he attempts 5.3 dribbles per game. Only Oxlade has better numbers here (3.6 successful dribbles per game, 67% success rate. However, these are the numbers from the 14/15 campaign for the Ox. In the 15/16 season, he only averages 1.5 successful dribbles per game with basically the same success rate - 68%! That means his numbers for dribbles attempted plummeted from 5.4 to just 2.2 - more than halved!)

He is selfish (in a good way)

How often have we complained of our players trying to walk the ball into the net? Even Olivier Giroud is more of a team player than a typical centre-forward. If there’s a teammate in a better

position, chances are Giroud will try a pass.

That’s an admirable quality, on one hand. Football is a team game (surprise!), selfish players often harm their respective sides more than help (I’m looking at you, Barkley). However, we can’t play eleven slick passers and hope it works. We need a focal point, someone to finish off our elaborate moves.

Here Alexis Sanchez fits the bill. I took his numbers (and everyone else’s who I’ll mention later) from the 14/15 campaign. The Chilean leads Arsenal in this regard and averages 3.5 shots per game, and that’s coming from the flanks. For comparison’s sake, one of the most selfish players on Earth (Ronaldo, in case you had doubts) averaged 6.4 per game.Messi averaged 4.9, Aguero 4.5, Lewandowski 3.4, Suarez 2.9. As you can see Alexis looks decent in this company, despite being a winger.

He is involved

That’s Alexis’ trademark feature. He is always doing stuff on the pitch. He is visibly there. He is involved.

In that sense Alexis is closer to our midfielders than strikers. I’ve become accustomed to the fact that Theo and Giroud complete around 20-30 passes per game, same as Oxlade and Campbell most of the time. That’s not a criticism per se. Sometimes I’d like Ollie or Theo to get more involved in what’s going on, however their playing style is a bit different. They can have a cracking game and still record the least touches (sometimes even less than our goalkeeper!)

However, Alexis is the type of player who takes games by the scruff of the neck. He’ll bully the opposition into making mistakes, he’ll drop deep to get involved in the build-up, he’ll drift to the flanks when the situation requires that. Alexis is more adaptable, more malleable, more versatile. Getting him on the end of things is unlikely to affect his contribution in other areas, but it is a move which can see him become a complete striker, maximising his goals output.

Last word

When we brought in Alexis Sanchez, most expected him to become our first-choice centre-forward. But our downright dreadful situation with wingers (Podolski and Campbell not contributing enough to merit a regular starting spot), coupled with injuries to Giroud and Walcott, not only saw Alexis on the wing, they also made us go and buy Welbeck. Welbeck, who staked a claim at CF, and one of the conditions upon he joined may, I suspect, be linked to given a run as a striker.

The situation hardly improved in the 2nd half of the campaign (though Giroud returned), so Alexis continued to ply his trade on the wing. However this season I think Arsene may give Alexis another try at centre-forward. Walcott, Oxlade and Campbell are all fit and ready to contribute on the wings, meaning Wenger has options. The return of our centre midfielders and Rosicky will provide him with options further still.

All that’s left is the desire of both the manager and player to stage the experiment. An experiment with the potential of becoming a resounding success. After all, it’s not like Arsene doesn’t have a track record of converting wingers.

Arsenal 1-0 Newcastle: 1-0 to the Arsenal

“The thing I rue the most is that we never seem to get away with playing badly. We almost always get punished for not turning up, only the extent varies, whether it’s a fluky 2-0 opening-day loss to West Ham or a thorough bashing at the Allianz Arena.”

“That is the thing I love, and hate, most about Arsenal. This may well be the reason why I support them and will continue to do so. Nothing good ever comes easy for the Gunners. Our good results are a continuation of good performances. But we don’t get lucky bounces, or at least we don’t get them often enough to worth mentioning them. We either turn up, work hard and win, or we lose resoundingly.”

This is what I wrote a mere week ago, after we self-detonated at St. Mary’s. So when the final whistle blew on Saturday, I couldn’t quite believe we won the game.

Thing is, we played badly. There was indication we would win the game all the way until Koscielny scored from close range in the 72nd minute. The goal came as a result of Ozil’s corner and some tenacious work from Olivier Giroud to win two aerial duels in the space of several seconds.

Funny thing is (read: worrying thing) was that we could, and probably should, have gone behind before that. Newcastle had quite a few decent goalscoring opportunities, however their best chance came right after the restart, when Wijnaldum found himself one-on-one with Cech. First things first though, let’s start with our performance.

The performance

“It was a difficult game against a good Newcastle side. Our legs were heavy today, I must say. Overall we were tested against a team with a lot of technical quality and our fluency was not there and our movement was not there. Our motto was try to stick together and win the game how we can. The mental aspect of our team and our defence mentality was tested today rather than our quality going forward.”

We were far from our fluid performance vs Bournemouth and that was worrying. The players went into the game on the back of a win and with a 5-days rest, unlike vs Bournemouth, and still put in a pretty appalling performance.

I hope it’s more to do with the overall hectic schedule. If we count in City, we played 4 games in 12 days and that’s bound to have an effect. Maybe we looked better vs Bournemouth because a response was needed. Adrenaline levels were high after a defeat, we had a point to prove and so the heavy legs didn’t seem quite as heavy.

The players will now get a full week before taking on Sunderland in the cup. Enough time to recover both physically and mentally, get Alexis Sanchez back and maybe even buy a player or two.

Petr Cech

Our keeper was absolutely massive, making 6 saves in total. His stop in the 48th from one-on-one vs Wijnaldum was match-winning, but his other saves, if less spectacular, were very important too. Like the header he saved in the 16th minute, or another Wijnaldum shot from a tight angle in the 42nd minute.

Cech also makes claiming crosses or catching balls heading for the top corner look easy. In fact, I think Ospina could have struggled there, purely because of his height. Just think about that bicycle kick from Mitrovic in the dying seconds. Cech caught it very nonchalantly, matter-of-factly I’d say, but I don’t think it was really as easy as it looked.

On a side note, Cech completed 14 out of his 17 passes, racking up an 82% accuracy. I’m mentioning this because 9 of these 17 were long balls, 6 of them were successful. That’s a very good accuracy for long passes, especially for a keeper.

Laurent Koscielny

Probably the only other player, apart from Cech, worthy of separate inches after such a performance. Kos not only turned up at the right place at the right time to score the winning goal, he also had a complete defensive performance just when Monreal decided to take a night off.

Kos was successful with 31 of his 34 passes (91% accuracy), misplacing his 3 in the middle third, he created a brilliant chance for Olivier Giroud with a lovely through ball and he mopped everything up defensively, completing 4 interceptions (2 of these in and around our box) and blocking two shots in areas of danger.

Oxlade vs Campbell

It looks like the Costa-Rican has won the battle for now. The Ox was quite lethargic all game. He racked up decent numbers in passing, created a shot for his teammate and made more of an impact than Theo on the other wing, but then that’s not saying much, as Theo was virtually invisible.

When Campbell came on, it felt like a breath of fresh air. His direct dribbling and huge desire to make things happen were in stark contrast to Oxlade’s indifferent attitude.

Right now Oxlade looks lost. His confidence is very low, so much so he almost stopped using his best weapon: dribbling. Maybe he was told to take less risks after we conceded a couple of times as a direct consequence of Alex trying to dribble out of dangerous areas and he took these instructions very literally. I don’t know.

What I do know is that Ox needs to break the vicious circle somehow. Or he’ll spend the better part of the period from now to May on the bench.

The aftermath

“To not drop points with the way we played today, I think it is very important. It helps the team as well because you go through moments where you don’t play well. The memory of having done that before and still having won the game, helps you to hang on sometimes.”

It’s nice to know we can “win ugly” if we need to. We looked absolutely off the pace, yet clinched the three points.

The win sees us become the sole leaders of the Premier League. Leicester dropped points at home to Bournemouth, which means they now trail us by 2 points. City are 3 behind, having pulled off a miraculous, if somewhat undeserved, comeback away at Watford.

We now have to get ready for some pretty daunting fixtures, which will come at us in quick succession. Unlike the 4 teams still involved in the Capital One Cup we get a full week between now and the FA cup game. It also yields the added benefit of both Liverpool and Stoke playing extra games.

Right, that’s it from me for now. Enjoy the win and staying top, I’ll most likely be back with you midweek.

Until then

Newcastle preview: start the year with a bang

Welcome to the New Year.

Our Boxing Day merry-go-round draws to a close with a game against Newcastle and this is the part where I cherish we haven’t progressed further in the Carling Cup. Yes, the manner in which we crashed out was nasty and I certainly wouldn’t want Arsenal to lose on purpose so that the team can have it a bit easier later on, but I won’t cry bitter tears over our exit.

Why? Firstly, we have a stretched squad. Any team would be stretched with 8 seniors out, however it doesn’t make fighting on three fronts in early January easier. Secondly, we have avoided Stoke away and that’s a fixture I genuinely hate. We rarely play good football at Stoke, escape with decent results less often still and on top of that are prone to losing one or two players at the Britannia. Finally, the semi-finals of the Carling Cup take place on the 5th/6th, meaning only a 3/4-days rest both before and after the game. Considering our next three league game (Newcastle exempting) are Liverpool, Stoke and Chelsea (the first two away from home), I would hate the thought of our threadbare squad having to play 7 games inside 25 days in January (4 league matches, 2 cup semi-finals and the FA Cup 3rd round).

As it is, we only have to hold out for one league game, before the players get a week’s rest, which should allow us to get some of the walking wounded back. Maybe even make a signing or two, who knows? Let’s start with the team news. Oh and, before I forget, kudos to Sohum for doing a marvellous job while yours truly was away treading the dangerous waters of the German exam.

Team news update

We have no immediate worries from the Bournemouth game:

“We have no new injuries from Bournemouth, only fatigue. Everybody is alright.”

We might also have Flamini back, though Alexis should still be a week away:

“We might have Flamini back. Alexis will be too short for Newcastle. He [could] be back for Sunderland.”

Finally, Arsene shed some light on our last short-term injury, that of Mikel Arteta:

“Arteta is back in training but is too short [of match fitness] to be selected in a competitive game.”

Rosicky should be back next, but the Czech will only be back in full training in three weeks. It’ll then take several weeks to get back to some kind of competitive level, so I’d say mid-February is the realistic return date for him.

Unfortunately, we have bad news on both Welbeck and Wilshere, who should be back around end of February.That means we’ll have to make do without both (plus Cazorla, Coquelin and Rosicky) for most (if not all) of our heavy two-month schedule.

Having 5 injured is a lot for a 24-man squad, especially since two of these were regular starters in 2015 calendar year. It puts an enormous strain on the remaining 19 to perform week in, week out with very little rotation.

Transfer blabber

This also puts an onus on Arsene Wenger to do stuff during the transfer window, something the Frenchman himself admitted:

"I'll be busy, that's for sure. I am already busy and I said already one month ago we are a bit short to deal with all the competitions we face, especially in midfield. We will be busy, yes."

He almost as good as confirmed we have completed our first signing in the face of Mohamed Elneny, an Egyptian midfielder playing for Basel:

"Unfortunately we cannot announce anything at the moment about this player [Elneny] because nothing has been concluded."

For something to be concluded it has to be started, moreover, Wenger didn’t flat-out deny his interest, which to me sounds like the player is basically on his way. The Guardian claims Elneny has already passed his medical and only work permit issues needs sorting out.

I cannot say I have heard anything about the guy, so I can’t say anything about his playing style, traits, personality and so on. However, I can thoroughly recommend you an ESPN article on Elneny. I found it enlightening.

Wenger also talked about possible Debuchy’s exit:

"It's not impossible [that Debuchy will leave]. I'm happy if he stays but we'll see."

Sounds far from reassuring, does it? If I were a betting man, I’d wager Debuchy won’t be with us in February. This creates a shortage in the defensive department. 7 defenders is pushing it. We were okay with 7 in 13-14, but far from okay in 14-15 until we bought Gabriel in January. So I hope Wenger is working on bringing in another right-back (maybe on loan) in case Debuchy leaves.

Finally, one player in (Elneny) is hardly the definition of being busy (even if we count in Debuchy in/out stuff), that’s why I think Arsene may have a surprise in store for us. Most likely we’ll bring in Elneny early on and then try and sign another player closer to the end of January’s transfer window. A winger, perhaps?

Squad

With Wenger saying he’ll rotate, I wonder what players he had in mind. Koscielny, Monreal and Campbell all got a rest vs Bournemouth, so I’m pretty sure these three will start on Saturday.

From the current members of the squad, Bellerin, Mertesacker, Ramsey, Ozil and Giroud are in need of a rest the most. Ramsey maybe less so, he’s only been back for a little over a month (still has 21 appearances in all competitions), but Bellerin and Mertesacker (22 apps), Ozil (25) and Giroud (27) can use a breather.

Problem is, while Bellerin and Mert can be replaced by Debuchy and Gabriel (wonder whether Arsene would want to play Debuchy, though, for reasons not related to his fitness/footballing ability) and Giroud can give way to Theo, with Ox and Campbell on the wings, we really don’t have anyone to step in for Ramsey and Ozil. No one can do the job they are doing now.

So I guess they’ll have to play this one game and then, hopefully, we’ll have Elneny and Sanchez available to give Rambo and Mesut some rest.

One last thing. I think both Chambers and Gabriel did grand against Bournemouth. Both deserve to start, in my opinion.

Predicted line-up*: Cech - Bellerin - Gabriel - Koscielny - Monreal - Chambers - Ramsey - Ozil - Campbell - Oxlade - Walcott

*probably well wide off the mark

The verdict

We have been pretty comfortable playing Newcastle in the last couple of seasons, with repeated drubbing of the Magpies at home (4-1, 7-3 etc.). Furthermore, we are on a decent run right now, while Newcastle are flirting with relegation.

The game represents one of our more winnable (on paper) fixtures for the next two months. After that we face the abovementioned Liverpool, Stoke and Chelsea in January, then Southampton, Bournemouth, Leicester and United in February, before rounding it all off with Swansea and Spurs at the beginning of March. Factor in two games against Barcelona and (hopefully) more than just the 3rd round tie of the FA Cup, add the fact most our league games are away matches and I’m already getting a bit nervous.

For now, though, it’s Newcastle. Let’s deal with this one game at a time.

Come on you Gunners.

Back with a review