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Arsenal's summer shopping list
Topic Started: May 12 2009, 08:33 PM (251 Views)
moley
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Keizer Keisuke
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We’ve diagnosed the problems, identified the targets and given our recommendations....now it’s your turn.

There’s nothing every football fans loves more than to speculate on where their team needs to strengthen, how much to spend and who to buy. Our team-by-team analysis of what needs to be done is the perfect chance for just that.

We have pinpointed the weak spots and given our suggestion for who should be the number one priority as well as a handful of alternatives.

Will Arsene Wenger heed our advice? Have we missed a trick? Is our budget unrealistic? Who would YOU sign? Don’t be shy in letting us know by dropping us a comment at the foot of the page. Let the debate commence.....

Goalkeeper - Diego Lopez (Villarreal): Manuel Almunia maybe deserves another chance but is about as close to being England’s number one as Scott Carson and Lukasz Fabianski has done very little to justify his manager’s seemingly endless faith. We’d suggest the Pole is sent packing, Almunia is put on the bench and Lopez is given the nod.
Alternatives: Yohann Pele (Le Mans), Robert Green (West Ham)

Centre Back - Phil Jagielka (Everton): Mikael Silvestre is not up to the job....of that there is no doubt. Kolo Toure could also be sacrificed and at least two replacements brought in. Jagielka’s injury could be carried over into next season but his imperious form at the back is just what the doctor ordered.
Alternatives: Brede Hangeland (Fulham), Joleon Lescott (Everton), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Matthew Upson (West Ham), Sebastien Bassong (Newcastle)

Centre Midfield - Gareth Barry (Aston Villa): See what we’re doing here? That English spine that is so often mooted. Few Arsenal fans would argue that Wenger has more than enough of an attacking threat in midfield but, in more defensive terms, he has got next to nothing. The cultured Villa skipper looks to be just the ticket while, surely, surely Abou Diaby’s time is up!
Alternatives: Gokhan Inler (Udinese), Marcos Senna (Villarreal)

Striker - Samuel Eto'o (Barcelona): There was a time when people would have had you believe that this guy was past it. Wenger's a big fan and would no doubt never have written him off. Emmanuel 'turn it on when I like' Adebayor can go and this more than adequate replacement brought in.
Alternatives: Roque Santa Cruz (Blackburn), Obafemi Martins (Newcastle), Pavel Pogrebnyak (Zenit), Klaas Jan Huntelaar (Real Madrid)
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Vardy’s Mum
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I'll tear your throat out
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Ugghhh. The alternate strikers list does not make pretty reading. Santa Cruz and Martins are shit.

To work this out we need to look at who we have and the assign them to their strongest positions. Throw the "this guy can play here, here, here, here and here if we need" bollocks out the window.

GK: Almunia, Fabianski (out). Better number two in.

RB: Sagna, Eboue

LB: Clichy, Gibbs

CB: Toure Gallas, Silvestre (out), Djourou. Hangeland, Lescott or Cahill in realistically

Central midfield: Cesc, Denilson, Song, Diaby, Ramsey. Stick with them I say.

LM: Nobody who I think plays there as their strongest position, need left footer. A few can do a good backup job. Capel in.

RM: Nasri. A few others who can do a good job if we need, nobody needed.

AM/SS: Arshavin, RVP, Bendtner. Nobody needed.

ST: Eduardo, Ade, Vela, Walcott. Nobody needed.

Basically we have a lot of strength in depth, but Wenger must be brutal and stick players on the bench rather than trying to fit them in in positions they can't play in. Ade, Walcott, RVP, Bendtner, Denilson, Diaby must all be on the bench if everyone's fully fit. No fucking around trying to find space for them.

Provided we only get rid of Fabianski and Silvestre, a new GK, CB and LW is all we need i reckon. Further player development, less rotation, and keeping players in their strongest position and we'll be fine.
Edited by Vardy’s Mum, May 12 2009, 08:50 PM.
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CockneyMackem'
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KING DEV
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CM is where your biggest problem is! you need someone like viera. And isnt capel the one with bad homesickenss

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"I didnt bring the magic back, its always been here... I just came back to find it" - Bob Stokoe
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ManYou
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Jagielka shouldn't leave Everton just yet IMO. He was great last season, has improved this season, give it another season and if he still performs to a high level then he is, for me ready for a big club at the top level. Maybe I'm wrong though and I wouldn't be surprised if he went to Arsenal and proved to be a big hit, he's a no-nonsense defender and is just what Arsenal need.

If I were him, I'd stay at Everton for another season at least. as I said, if he performs like this season or even improves further he will be high on most clubs wanted lists and I would even think big foreign clubs would take an interest. More reason for someone to go for him now but he still has a bit to prove and Everton and Moyes is the right club and manager for him at this time.

Gareth Barry would be an excellent signing for The Gunners IMO, he is that tough, towering figure in midfield that they crave and he's not bad on he ball either and gets forward and contributes all across the midfield spectrum. Competent player and with real quality footballers alongside him, he could really flourish. I'm sure there's more 'household' names out there, but I think Barry is as good as most of them and he's proven in the PL. Good character and would take minimal time to settle.

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Vardy’s Mum
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Song has been our best player of late. His energy is ever improving, and he makes some delightful passes.(Eduardo in the FA Cup, Walcott against Chelsea). I expect him to keep improving and make a fine partner for Cesc in the long run.
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Vardy’s Mum
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CockneyMackem'
May 12 2009, 08:48 PM
CM is where your biggest problem is! you need someone like viera. And isnt capel the one with bad homesickenss
Defence is clearly where our biggest problem is. Fish mouth should be nowhere near a premier league defence no matter how many injuries there are, let alone ours.

And Wenger needs to learn that you don't rotate keeper unless it's a necessity. His faith in Fabianski is misplaced to the max.
Edited by Vardy’s Mum, May 12 2009, 08:55 PM.
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GunnerBoy
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Prediction & Scorers Double 13/14
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CockneyMackem'
May 12 2009, 08:48 PM
CM is where your biggest problem is! you need someone like viera. And isnt capel the one with bad homesickenss
Nah thats jesus navas, same team wrong wing :D
"3-0, easy win. I'll quit the forum if we lose, we're not Arsenal mate we sort our business." Ant on the FA Cup final 15/4/2013
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ManYou
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Thierry Henry
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I like that Capel fella, good player.
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Homer
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I am the King
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We can talk until we go all blue but lets be honest Wenger will never listen to the fans or the media so we are just wasting our breath.
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7seven7
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Dirk Kuyt
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Wenger needs to swallow his pride and admit that his youth policy has been a colossal failure. What he seems to be unaware of is that you cant polish a turd and make it into gold and that no side, even Barcelona, play without a really quality defensive minded midfielder. As I've said previously, before I'm told that Denilson has the greatest tackle completion or interception rate around, is that Denilson is the deeplying playmaker in a midfield 3, not the aggressive tackler in a midfield 2. A player of tenacity is required and leadership at the bakc is essential.
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elcule
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7seven7
May 13 2009, 08:27 AM
no side, even Barcelona, play without a really quality defensive minded midfielder.
United... :lol:

Who wrote this list? Anyone with the sense to put Phil Jagielka as their number one defensive is barking up the right tree in my view. :thumbsup:
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Winner.

"If I go to Anfield and someone puts the ball into the box and Carragher hammers it out of play the fans applaud. At Camp Nou you would never be applauded for that." - Xavi
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Vardy’s Mum
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I'll tear your throat out
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7seven7
May 13 2009, 08:27 AM
Wenger needs to swallow his pride and admit that his youth policy has been a colossal failure. What he seems to be unaware of is that you cant polish a turd and make it into gold and that no side, even Barcelona, play without a really quality defensive minded midfielder. As I've said previously, before I'm told that Denilson has the greatest tackle completion or interception rate around, is that Denilson is the deeplying playmaker in a midfield 3, not the aggressive tackler in a midfield 2. A player of tenacity is required and leadership at the bakc is essential.
Alex Song has been top notch lately. He's got a very bright future as a defensive midfielder i promise you. In defence we do need another leader because things go ragged the moment that Gallas gets injured. As good as Toure can be, he can't organize a defence like Gallas. So when he partners the inept Silvestre, or the still learning Djouorou, it can become quite shambolic. Hence the need to sign one real leader at the back if Gallas stays, and two if he leaves.

Having said all this though, you really can't underestimate just how much playing Fabianski and Silvestre has fucked us up in recent weeks. Just those two alone have probably accounted for 75 percent of the goals we've conceded that would never have happened with Almunia and Gallas. THEY ARE AWFUL.
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moley
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Keizer Keisuke
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elcule
May 13 2009, 01:36 PM
7seven7
May 13 2009, 08:27 AM
no side, even Barcelona, play without a really quality defensive minded midfielder.
United... :lol:

Who wrote this list? Anyone with the sense to put Phil Jagielka as their number one defensive is barking up the right tree in my view. :thumbsup:
some setanta employee :)
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rollingstone
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Viru
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Wow Samuel Eto'o would be a brilliant signing, but right now, it's not what they need. The defensive spine needs to be sorted out so that the attacking section of the team can flourish. Whether they do this by rocking up the CB pairing with Lescott/Jagielka/Chiellini as DaGunners thinks they should do, or whether they bolster the midfield with Matuidi/Barry - who would I my book be a great signing - is up to Wenger. He owes it to his attacking talent.
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Artrun
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Francesco
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Can't he do both? DMF and some CBs?
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