Ox reveals pain holding him back but Arsenal WILL see his best soon!

The Arsenal and England international star Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was one of the many Gunners hit by the injury curse last season. It was especially galling for the dynamic young player because he had already bagged an assist and was looking very good when he picked up the long term knee injury in the opening game.

Chamberlain looked good again after coming back but his bad luck struck again and he missed the end of the season, costing him a place in the FA cup final and the group games with England in the World Cup finals. So it has been really good to see the Ox playing regularly for the Gunners this season and he does seem to have improved.

The 21-year old has clearly added some things to his game and has impressed in a range of positions this season. But although Chamberlain’s 21 starts is the most he has managed since signing for Arsenal from Southampton, the young player has revealed in an Evening Standard report that he has still been playing through the pain barrier. He also feels that his performances would have been even better without these little niggling problems.

But he also believes that getting older and growing into his body has helped him and, with the extra attributes that he has added to game by training under Arsene Wenger at Arsenal since 2011, the Ox promises Arsenal fans that there is a lot more to come from him in the near future, although the north London derby with the spuds seems just a bit too soon.

Chamberlain said, “I think a lot of that is to do with the physicality, just growing up and becoming stronger definitely helps. It is not necessarily gym work, it is just games and generally maturing. I don’t think that until you get to around 24 or 25 that you are fully at your peak in terms of physicality, so I am not there yet.

“Since my long-term knee injury, I have had quite a lot of injuries this year, with a few niggles and groin problems, but I’ve played through all of it and even when I’ve been in discomfort for most of the games, I have been able to manage it. I feel that is holding me back at the moment.

“When I can get to grips with that and try to get over that, there’s a lot more to come from me in terms of my physicality, especially in my position. It is about running with the ball and trying to affect the game going forward.

“This year, for the first time in my Arsenal career, when I do get the ball I have the belief that I can run past anyone on my day and that really does help you. I only feel like that because of the way I have grown and how I’ve developed in terms of running with the ball.”

But the Ox admits that he needs to add more goals and assists to his game and he thinks that there are some key areas that he could work on to help with that. And he reckons that another former Southampton styar, Theo Walcott, is the ideal role model for those areas.

Chamberlain went on, “I think I’m better running with it than I am without. When I look at Theo [Walcott] and the runs he makes off the ball, I think I’ve got to improve a bit because Theo does it so well. That’s where my game has mostly developed. Defending, positioning and stuff like that you learn through experience.

“I think I have come on in that sense. There’s more to come from me, more improving that I can do and hopefully will do.

“I feel I’ve come on this season in terms of my general performances, contributions and impact on the games. In that sense I’ve been fairly happy but I know there is a lot more to come from me. It is all about end product — goals and assists — so I know I have got to improve there.”

Well I for one am looking forward to seeing our Ox get better and better, for Arsenal and England. Just how good could he become?

Tags Chamberlain Walcott

15 Comments

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  2. I dont think its his knee as much , but more a groin issue, and its something really uncomfortable to play with, i hope he recovers soon, while walcott is a goal threat i think the ox offers more in regards to the team’s formAtion.

    I think he is one of the most improved player at arsenal, and have all the weapons to become a even more dangerous player against the opposition

    1. I think Walcott and Ox should be on the field at the same time. They are completely different players and Ox’s directness mixed with Walcott’s runs make for a long day for defenders. The questions for me are more about whether Sanchez can play reliably through the middle. If not, then who plays there and which one between Walcott and Ox compliments Sanchez better.

      (Just FYI I have been campaigning for Walcott to play through the middle for several years. I think he is the better fit there between Walcott, Sanchez, and Welbeck, but any of those three playing through the middle requires a change in philosophy for the team with little reliance on holding the ball. So, go tell Arsene to adjust the play style a bit when someone other than Giroud plays there would you?)

      1. Personally I wish we could clone them and produce a Wal-Ox. If Ox had Walcott’s scoring ability (or Walcott had Ox’s technical ability) we would have a £40M+ player in our midst. Ridiculously easy to forget how young Ox still is, seems like he has been around for ever. But I fear they will both be forever chasing greatness. Not suggesting neither can be very good for us but I had hoped for just that tiny bit more.

  3. To be honest in the summer I
    said sell Walcott Wilshere Ox
    Podolski Ozil Diaby Flamini Ryo
    Sanogo Rosicky Jenkinson Vermaelen and Coquelin
    and don’t buy Debuchi Chambers or Wellbeck prefering to retain Sagna.
    Sanchez I agreed with and believed Campbell should be given a chance.
    I said buy two CB’s a top DM a quality left side player and another
    Remy type striker. Already one or two of those I said should go have proven me wrong.
    Coquelin and Chambers being solid if not great investments. Walcott and Ozil have started off well after long lay offs. By the same token others have not yet justified their promise Wilshere Ox Sanogo and still more like Podolski and Campbell in Limbo whille Diaby the non playing B2B remains well non playing and Ryo like Park remains a token Asian.
    The injury record remains the worst in the league.
    The win at City was a huge result. Top 4 we expect last 16 ECL we have achieved and soft draws in the FA cup again see us 1/4 final bound. The side looks to be in an almost identical position as this time last season, no better no worse but having Alex Sanchez on board.
    Any thing “could” happen. But time will tell.

    1. i would sell the entire team and only keep Kos and Sanchez and rebuild the whole team from scratch…

      players you mention are either on the subs bench or in the reserves…makes no diff to keep them

    2. You sort of drift along with occasional moments of lucidity but then it all goes haywire with frequent bouts of “reality detachment”. I am sure you just look for attention so I feel bad responding.

  4. Chuba akpom looked very good against aston villa over the weekend, i hope he gets some game time against spurs, and scores a goal or two! Coyg!

    1. it will be tough for him to get game time when Welbeck returns….

      Considering the same 11 that plays against Villa

      Subs:

      Sheez, Gibbs, Chambers, Flamini, Rosicky, Sanchez, Welbeck

      and if Oxie returns it will get worst….

  5. OX is one of the most improved players for us this season. With him and Walcott our right wing is secured for many many years. There is no point in discussing how to accommodate both as we have many players in that list. Both performing well is a good thing as it will keep booth of them on their toes every time.
    Arsenal are gradually becoming one of the best team in Europe. We can now expect to fight for all the four competition till the end for every season. Meaning more number of matches every season. So we need two world class players in every position. Each can play minimum 25 to 30 games each season. And if you consider the injury problem assosiated with Arsenal, then there is no way players can complain of game time if they have the Arsenal quality.

    Walcott is ahead and gives us the edge with his scoring and assist.

    OX is right, he needs to improve his scoring and assists records. He is strong enough to win the challenge of defenders, has super speed. In terms of dribbling, yes he can almost certainly beat any one. He is just 21 and in two to 3 years can reach world class level

    1. “So we need two world class players in every position”. Come on, by my maths and other peoples general reckoning this means we are only 19-20 world class players short at the moment. Chelsea and Man City have one world class player between them in their B teams (Petr Cech). Real Madrid have a few, Bayern and Barca none. Depends as ever what you mean by “world class” though.

  6. For me the biggest question with the OX is not whether he’ll become a great player for Arsenal it’s what is best position. It’s come up a lot and even Wenger said he sees him as a central midfielder in the future. He’s played on the wings and as a B2B this season and in my opinion his more impressive and frustrating performances have come through the middle. His pace on the ball is even more evident as a B2B but his decision making while on those runs is not the best or just too late. His defensive work is fine but the decision making is where he will grow most over the next few seasons. I think he should be groomed to play in the middle but we have so many great players in that roll already it’s hard to see how he would fit.

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