Has Podolski proved his point to Arsenal boss?

Lukas Podolski has still started just one game for Arsenal this season and that was the loss to Southampton in our first Capital One cup game. But after some complaining in the press about his lack of playing opportunities, the Germany international striker seems to have knuckled down and proved his fitness to Arsene Wenger.

Because the boss had suggested that the reason for him not giving Podolski more time on the pitch so far this season was that he had yet to get properly match sharp after the summer exploits of winning the World Cup in Brazil. So the fact that Wenger gave him another 10 minutes at the end of today’s win over Burnley, when we were already 2-0 up and the result was not at risk, suggests to me that player and manager are pulling in the same direction.

Maybe it was the fact that the 29-year old front man rescued an extremely unlikey win against Anderlecht in Belgium, but with Arsenal not really getting the goals that our possession and creativity deserve, Podolski’s finishing could prove to be vital in the coming weeks and months.

And seeing him nearly score a hat-trick in the 10 minutes he had against Burnley is a timely reminder to us and Wenger that Podolski is still an important member of the Arsenal squad, as long as he keeps himself fit and sharp. So do you think that Podolski will soon be getting his second start of the season?

Tags Burnley Wenger

71 Comments

  1. 2 seasons back Poldi was scoring goals like mad and was LEADING THE LEAGUE IN ASSISTS.

    What was Wenger’s response to this good fortune? He benched him.

    No. Very little penetrates Wenger’s thinking unless Wenger wants it to penetrate.

    1. wenger’s the main limiting factor in arsenal’s ability now.
      here’s a way to double pod’s contribution: bring him on
      in min 70 instead of min80.

      what can u do in 10min?
      why not sub at min80? give the sub a chance.

      1. That is ABSOLUTE nonsense. He was NOT injured. That was a rumor quickly disproven when Wenger called on him to fill in for Giroud when suspended.

        HE WAS BENCHED when Wenger decided that Cazorla was a winger – an idea that has rarely worked at all on the pitch.

        Don’t spew nonsense. I happen to know better.

        1. You talk rubbish! Podolski finished last season on a run… cazorla has played on the wing because Lukas wasn’t match fit after w/cup! last season towards the end when he played he defended better, we have still not had a fit podolski for a whole season yet to get the best from him! and he is class as seen in 10 mims today, dont knock what U obviously know f**k all about fool!
          squad will be stronger after injury comebacks!
          All U spew is bollox! A real fan looks deeper than just media and twats!
          Try going to game, then going home and watching it again in case u missed something!…….
          U match of the day supporters are such experts……lol
          Fools!
          COYG

          1. I don’t know what Poldi finishing great last season has to do with being benched 2 seasons back.

            There was a completely made up rumor to excuse Wenger about Poldi being injured. But this fantasy injury was never reported by Arsenal, by Germany or by Poldi.

            Furthermore Poldi was on the bench every game and played great when called upon every time. Quite a feat for an injured player.

            Then the rumor mongers claimed Poldi had an ankle injury and his foot would fall off if he played too much and required immediate surgery in the summer – more made up stuff.

            In early June traveled to the U.S. with the German National team and played 2 full games without problem. Needless to say this imaginary surgery never happened as it was all made up nonsense from idiots -like you apparently.

          2. no,Cazorla became a winger because Wenger favors Ozil too much,an he thinks he can fit Wilshere an Ramsey effectively into the same midfield,he can’t against the top teams these 2 can’t really play 2gether

    2. Pls i don’t get the hype of Welbeck is it because he is English or because he puts in a shift but we need our striker to bang in goals not dropping deep all the way to CDM position when he should be in the box ready to pounce on chances. Welbeck has a very poor first touch and ball control as a striker because if you notice he keeps on losing the ball cause his touch is way too heavy. Apart from the game where he got a hat trick he has been very poor and i’m starting to miss Giroud something i never thought i would say

      I think Podolski should start ahead of Welbeck for our next game

      1. Welbeck is a second rate striker lets be honest about it, I don’t see him getting 20 goals a season, he always starts well in each game but after 15-20 minutes he is non existent… His first touch is like Bambi on Ice (Sanogo)..

        People want to give it to Giroud which is fair sometimes, but he is better than Welbeck. All our current strikers are second or 3rd choice..

        1. A pure striker like Huntelaar or Higuain is what we need. Welbeck started strongly, but his work rate as well as pace have dropped dramatically in recent weeks. I have my doubts if he could do a Sturridge for us.

          1. @Twig I don’t see him doing a Sturridge cause as a fellow footballer i know from experience that you need to have a very good first touch and ball control to be a top striker and Welbeck has neither. I still feel we need a striker if we want to win the UCL and EPL but i don’t see us getting one cause Wenger will say we have Giroud, Sanogo, Welbeck. Akpom, Podolski but i will like Podolski to have like a run of 3 games to prove himself as a striker cause he is our best finisher

        2. Welbeck MUST learn how to use his pace to gain advantage – that is the one thing that could establish him as a decent striker.

          1. Can’t you see that Welbeck is doing what Wenger told him to do?
            He is now acting as more of a target man, playing way too much with his back to goal.
            That won’t work for a big striker like Welbeck, his frame is simply too big to be spinning in the box and when he waits for players to catch up so do the defenders!
            I wish Wenger would take off the shackles and let him run and take his chances, make the best of his talents.

        3. True..he starts of well and then fades..really think he does not have the predatory instincts of a striker! The will to out muscle the defenders and somehow get to the end of a cross! we should have bought huntelaar when RVP left- we missed a trick. Now we live with what we have got! Giroud isn’t anything better. True that our main strikers will be 2nd/3rd choice in most top teams !

    3. LUCAS! You have proved your point, power in those shot’s, great to see! ARSENE, give him more playing time, he deserve’s it. His goals can win us some games, of that I am very sure.

  2. Should get the start today against Burnley.

    I always say that… 10 mins (especially we were 2-0 against Burnley) is a humiliation.
    30 minutes makes more sense.
    Occasionally start against mid-table team will keep his happiness and game form.

    Just no clue why we had to wait till 80th minutes today.

    1. To be honest..Podolski has been blwowng a bit of hot and cold. Sometimes he looks like the world beater we always cried out for and on somme days won’t even realize he is on the pitch. However, agree that player of his ability deserves a run of games. I never understood why we cannot make more use of subs. People like rosicky, campbell and podolski have hardly got any game time and they are as good as any our first team. It is just that they have never been played. If anything they need game time and wenger needs to rotate!

      OT: I am really pissed with cazorla – the guy is a playmaker- one of the better ones we have had over the years and yet he is so inconsistent- had a howler of a game yesterday. With ozil out, this is his chance but he hardly looks interested ! too nice a guy to be playing football i believe

  3. Alternate ratings to KJ.

    Shez (4): Had little to do, made 1 or 2 decent saves, but was also sloppy and could have cist us. Hope Ospina recovers soon.

    Chambers (6): Good defensively, good going forward got into good positions, but needs to work on his crossing a lot.

    Mert (5): Looked nervous with some of the up and under balls that he let bounce. Did save Schez from a blunder.

    Monreal (6): Did well out of position again, was calm when he had the ball. he should take corners from the left (Carzola wastes them).

    Gibbs (6.5): Did well defensively and on attack, some good crosses and made some very good runs. Unlucky with offside.

    Arteta (6): Did his job, broke up play and kept play going.

    Flamini (7): Did his job, broke up play, when Burnley came out in 2nd half he tried to get our players to move up and not sit back in their shells. Great toe poke to Schez to stop certain goal. Often dropped back to make 3 CB while Chambers and Gibbs went forward.

    Carzola (3): Got into good scoring positions, but was wasteful, clearly low on confidence. Rosiky should start next game. Corners were woeful as always.

    Ox (7.5): Took on defenders, they had no idea how to contain them, put excellent crosses and corners into box, but we were missing Ramsey/ OG to put one in the net. No other players get into those positions to just toe poke a goal. Passing was much improved.

    Sanchez (10): No need to say anything, a legend in the making, Saurez quality without the appetite for human flesh.

    Welbeck (6): pressed well, fought for balls, the desire is there. Was not on Sanchez wave length today and he touches were not the best, but he chased down lost balls and was even at Lb.

    Ramsey (6): Came on an Arsenal came to life, he was the catalyst. Can’t wait to have him fully fit.

    Theo (N/A): Great cameo, looks good and clearly has an eye for goal. Arsenal had get in bag already.

    Poldolski (N/A): Will be sad to see him go, never really got a chance, great impact sub. He is suited for 15 min appearances when goals are needed. Almost broke the post in half with that thunderous volley.

    Wenger (8): Made proactive changes and did not wsit to late. Ramsey change was immense.

    ref (3): Had we got the penalty, we would have nails left.

    Linesman (3): Needs contacts, Gibbs miles on side.

    1. How are you gonna give Szczesny a 4 when he kept a clean sheet. I understand there was not much to do but he still has a presense lol. He didn’t make any mistakes. 6.5

      1. Lol he himself is a mistake waiting to happen. Don’t want to unduly criticize him but do not really see 1) how he has consistently been improving year after year and 2) how is he better than other keepers than Minolet/Krul etc..I will never even go to the extent of comparing him to the manu gk ! For me as we climb up the ladder and again start being a force in the PL, we need to slowly eliminate the weak links in the team !

        1. Get a proper GK- solid and reliable
        2. DM position has to be sorted out for the years to come by 2 new personnel one potentially world class and the other his apprentice- Arteta and Flamini have to go
        3. In 1/2 seasons we need to look out to get an upgrade on Cazorla- someone who can play both central and on the wings
        4. Get a world class CB. No compromises should be made here. Like they say- strikers win you matches- defenders win you titles.

        5. Lastly a striker- get a world class one! No more girouds and welbecks plz

        Other than that I think we are well stocked in the erst of the areas to be champions again.

    2. Your ratings are worse than that of KJ. If you think Cazorla’s performance was a 3, then you clearly didn’t watch the match, or you’re simply hating.

        1. The only thing that was off in his game was the finishing, and it wasn’t as if he was skying his efforts. The Burnley defenders simply made some astonishing last gasp saves. He was very close to getting a brace today. Anyway, it’s partly his own fault… setting the bar so high for himself with his 2012/13 performance 🙂

          1. He got a open goal that he took it so casual till the defender make a block. If he sharp enough that will be a goal.

          2. I thought Cazorla was alright, he was always in the right place but his finishing still letting him down.. But I would rather have a player like Cazorla who makes chances and gets into goal scoring positions. To me that shows a very intelligent player who knows where to be but his finishing is is main weakness..

            His first season showed us that he is a very important player…

    3. Sanchez 10 “Suarez quality”. Are you kidding me. Dont even try to compare Sanchez with Suarez!! Alexis Sanchez is twice the player Suarez is!!

      1. Suarez is the best Striker in the world according to me. He is nuts but a big talent. A 9 ou t of 10. ( Dirty 9).

        Sanchez is a perfect 8. ( cleannnnnnnnn).

  4. If we won 2-1 would we be happy?

    Chelsea squeaked by, hopefully this will bring best out of team.

    When we have right balance we are dangerous, could easily have Ben 7-0 if not for great keeping and dire defending.

  5. The 1st goal by Sanchez is class to me. With his height, he out jump two defenders to score. The energy and determination is class. He is not only class, also an example for his team mates.

  6. Can someone be so kind and send me a link where i can watch the full game a new. I kinda missed the game which almost never happens to me. I would like to watch it. Soo plz help a gunner in need.

    As for the goals i saw from the highlights. The first one was amazing. So difficult, yet the incredible Sanchez made it look so easy.

    1. @Thndo.. Lets not get carried away, the only matches Monreal has played have been straight forward for us, Hull, Sunderland, Anderlecht and Burnley.. Non of those guys tested us. We have been lucky that we have played these teams with Monreal as a CB.

      But I think he has done very well..

  7. I remind everybody it is mighty Burnley arsenal has just beaten and it was not so easy.I doubt this same team would have beaten any big team,open your eyes nothing has changed,it s still the favourites of wenger and the others can rot on the bench or have a ridicule 10 mn of play.
    You gonna see we will loose Campbell in the transfer and he will turn to be a great player.I think that the reason Wenger does not want to give a chance is because he compete for the same post as walcot and chamberlain and he will always prioritize them as they are brithish.
    The fool has no notion of rotating,he destroyed chamak,Vermalen Bentner by not giving them enough chance.Hopefully he will correct his mistakes and buy a DM and CB in winter but his mentality has over saturated for me.

  8. Can someone enlightened me, is mert was always jog around and wait for ball to come to him? I find he can’t even make a quick steps, did he know how to run?

  9. We have been here so many times, we keep saying start him or him but then when they start they always disappoint and can’t grab their chance.

    I really like Poldi but he just seems to do much better as a substitute, but when he starts he just does look out of sorts, he is so frustrating. But we have nothing to lose, lets just start these guys sometimes.

    1. exactly. Poldi is a great sub, but he’s ineffective as a starter. Still a valuable player, but he should be a 60min sub if we need a goal or something. He never played well for us when he was given the striker role. I would still choose Welbeck over him.

          1. We dont have the luxury to try new things out. We need to perform in a specific formation and turn it into perfection. Poldi will be off. We need a new LW as our past current ones where all non LW.

            Sanchez could play there, but i dont trust our players staying injurie free. So a new Lw besides the Dm and Cb should be a must.

            The donkey Giroud will soon be back. He aint good enough for the starting role but a good sub player he deff is. Chuba Akpom should be taken seriously aswell. Kid has talent.

            1. @Ks… Remind me of any LW we have ever had since 1996.. You guys keep going on about LW, it’s a myth….

              So if we get this so called LW, we would then play Walcott on one side, the new LW on the other side, Ozil in the #10, Welbeck/Giroud upfront. Ramsey B2B and Flamini or Arteta DM..

              So then where does Sanchez fit in or play?

  10. Podolski is a great finisher, but does not merit a start, presently he offers more off the bench and i rather keep the pair of sanchez and cazorla together in the squad, both have a good understanding of each other.

    Defensively cazorla is better than podolski, creatively cazorla is better than podolski, the only spot podolski win is finishing, but the question lies would he be in the spot in the 90 minutes from previous games i doubt it. Give him 20-30 minutes against a tired defense sure.

    I will agree that time on the bench may have dampen his spirit and commitment, but he is rather better at being a sub than a starter

    1. Cazorla plays better defense than Poldi is a myth. Nobody and not any stats proves that. More obvious, we scored a lot less than before.

  11. Wenger needs to give the players who have the hunger to play a chance. Podolski, Cambell and Rosicky. It was bec of Poldi and Rosicky we did se great last year. This year Wenger is freezing them out bec of fav. Wenger will deff sell Poldi out bec of his age and 100k salary, but as long as he is around i wish that he continues to smile and give his all for the club.

  12. To me Podolski has shown he can handle disappointment and rejection with a smile and that says an awful lot for the man. Like a few others in the squad he needs a little encouragement to tip him over into being and excellent team player. That encouragement may not come from Wenger`s words of wisdom but from the inspiration Sanchez has brought with him. Others like Walcott, Chambers, Ox-Chamberlain, even Ramsey and Wilshere only need to play in his company for a while to become world class. That my friends is what Arsenal has been needing for over a decade.

  13. Just watched highlights on YouTube

    I like how Sanchez and Walcott hug after the 3rd goal. I hope to see them two hug a lot from now on.

  14. Apart from the three points highlights forbme today were: chambers getting a goal and his overall performance. The team actually celbratingbwith sanxhez when he scored the first goal. Sanchez looking to Walcott after the third goal went in, I think Sanchez sees a quality partner in crime with pace to burn in Walcott. Glad sanchez looked happier today. Now we just need players to stay fit Ramsey to find his form, cazorla to get on the score sheet and kos and monreal to soon pair up, (per to warm the bench). Ps santa to deliver schneiderlin, wanyamma, diame or kondogbia for christmas 🙂

  15. Motd pol. Which one player would you have in your team sanchez or hazard, 64% said sanchez! At least we beat chelsea in one competition 🙂

  16. PODOLSKI wouldn’t last 90 mins week in week out. He doesn’t move enough but if he gets the ball anywhere near the box then its pretty much curtains.. I think arsenes doing what he can do with his players at the moment, however i do wish he’d pay more attention to tactics sometimes

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