Retaining the FA cup trophy was fantastic for Arsenal. It gave us fans something to celebrate and the performance proved that the players have got rid of that building pressure to win a trophy that nearly saw us throw away another chance against Hull City at Wembley a year ago.
But I think it tells you everything that many Arsenal stars including Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey and the club captain Mikel Arteta almost immediately began to talk about the quest for the Premier League title next season. That is the one we really want.
We can argue until we are blue in the face that the injury problems Arsene Wenger has had to deal with in the last two years were the main reason for the Gunners falling short, but until we actually lift that trophy that we have not had in north London since the invincibles won it, those claims will sound like excuses.
Jose Mourinho agreed in his own way by making a joke about us wanting the season to run from January and his Chelsea side will probably be the team to beat again next time, so we need to get a good start. What better way than beating the Blues in the Community Shield?
That will be the next real game of any meaning for Arsenal and although it does not affect the Premier League as such, I think the mental boost and belief it would give our players to win should not be underestimated. Plus I think it is vital for Wenger to end that run of games without a victory over his arch enemy, preferably before we meet them in the league. Could this be the most important Community Shield game ever?
We.need to spend big….3 or 4 signings.and we will be good….the spine is badly needed
Now that the season is officially done for us on a high at that. I now find myself pondering on the possible recruitments. I’ve noticed the most consistent thing fans cry out for is acquiring a new spine as in a new GK, CB, DM, and ST. Here’s my view on that now the season is officially at an end, I think we’re actually good in the GK department but if Wenger sees fit to add a 3rd then I wouldn’t be against it as that would only better us for the coming seasons. CB, we just bought Gabriel in January and Chambers last summer to add to Per and Kossielny. Yes the latter 2 are aging but with the 4 we have at present we can afford to go another season with them, also we’ve seen Nacho and Debuchy play there as well. DM is a yes but not to replace Coquelin but to compete and rotate. To me that player either has to be younger or older where he could learn even more from a true battler and yes Vidal comes to mind. Lastly for the ST, I think Wengers plan as he said from his own mouth is to slot Theo there and he has the last 2 games and look what happened there. So with that I’ve noticed a more need at the RW as we’ve been playing countless amount of our central midfielders there ie Ramsey, Wishere, Rosicky, Ozil and Cazorla. Now here’s the kicker we should just go and get Bale and not just because of his priceless tweet to Theo and Ramsey but because he would complete our attacking front 3. There you have it lol…
Kos and Per are ageing…we neeed more players to rotate and compete in every position….not just Coq position
Same as last thread, I agree on the DM and RW positions totally but would go for it differently.
First you can discard Bale: too expensive and he won’t want to leave Madrid where the rumour is that Benitez is keen to use him as much as possible.
Pedro won’t leave in this window due to the current sanctions on Barcelona but Isco could be approachable. Once Modric is back he won’t get as much play time and having seen him on the wing he looks solid there. He could fill our gap for a few years before taking over from Santi as I think he is the best natural replacement.
Another interesting player is Goetze, he seems out of favour at the moment and could do with a new challenge. He can also play on the wing and like Isco he is the type of player Wenger likes.
Of course Sterling has to be mentioned but the clubs who need to bolster their ranks with British players (Chelski and City) will outbid us big time.
The DM position is more straightforward. Schneiderlin, Vidal and Kongdogbia are all very capable to cover this spot but will they play second fiddle to Coquelin? I doubt it. We have Bielik who looks promising so I would go for a more experienced player like Vidal. Alternating with FC and playing less games could extend his career and he is versatile enough to fill other gaps if needed.
My wet dream? Theo through the middle flanked by Alexis and Isco. Vidal to come and help Coquelin to mature to perfection.
Not all the Spine
We are good with CBs and CAM
Even GK, Ospina is a quality GK, not WC but very good.
We really need two positions: DM and Striker
And if possible a top GK like Cech.
Are we sure Cech is still World Class? Casillas was world class, 1/2 seasons of irregular football made him an error prone GK. Their ages are also similar. It can happen to Cech too.
Please, could anybody here help with the definition of “world-class”? It’s been so overly used here that I’m now very sure I don’t know what it means.
@kickass fan
I believe Worldclass meant consistency. Like the player has proven himself at top level over time. U think of henry Eto’o drogba Pirlo totti gerrad lampard etc.
harry kane for example had a great season but you cannot call him worldclass because he needs to do it say for another 2-3 seasons then you can rate his consistency.
sanchez for example has done it in Italy where he was contesting for player of the year. he had a fantastic spell at barcelona and now has got another fantastic spell in England. You can call sanchez worldclass because for the last 5 years both for club and country he has demonstrated a high degree of consistency.
There have been a lot of confussion with the Word worldclass of recent because of price tags . People turn to judge players more often base on how much they are worth than on their actual quality. Cazorla in my opinion is every bit as good Ozil or Mata or kross or Silva or fabregers for example. But people will not call Cazorla worldclass because we bought him for 13 million. If Cazorla came for £40 million people will be saying that is money well spent on a worldclass player.
Wenger justify my claim by the comments he made today on cazorla and Coquelin. “I want a good rapport between price and quality,” he added. “Santi Cazorla was voted man of the match in the FA Cup final. I don’t think he cost £150m. Francis Coquelin was one of the best players on the pitch.
I want another DM. But not really to bench Coquelin but to rotate. Some people still don’t rate Coquelin because we bought him for £0 since he is from the academy. But you will hear them say we need to buy a worlclass defensive midfielder . But are they really better than Coquelin??? I don’t think so.
For some people if you don’t go out there and pay £30 million for Imbula or Vidal or Schiniderlin or pogba or wanyama or Bender etc Then you have not gone for a worldclass player.
I define worldclass as a good player who has shown outsatnding consistency over a period of time say about 5 years. I genuinly think that in our team Alexis Sanchez is absolutely worldclass for example.
I believe a world class player must be better than good they must be outstanding in their position,and be able to produce that quality consistently against the best opposition(other wc players),i believe Alexis,Cazorla and Ozil are proven world class players(Rosicky was b4 the injury problems),Kosielny has the ability of a wc defender but he must cut out the mistakes.But other than that i see the rest as potentials
It’s an opinionated tag really. In feel we have 4 world class players in the form of: Alexis, Ozil, Santi & Koscielny. My description of world class tends to be a player has that cutting edge to make you think wow, this guy can damage the opposition, and on a consistent basis too at the top level. Whilst Ozil has been up and down, he does possess that ability, and is starting to show that consistency that heralded him as the best number 10 in the world not too long ago.
If You look at worldclass only from the market value point of view then it got to be rambo and Alexis. I think this are the two players that we could sell for £50 million + . But I agree with your definition.
Boss
Sanchez
santi
Rambo and
Ozil.
I think this 5 are good enough to play for most teams in the world
A quality striker / reus or lacazette DM / schneiderlin / kondogbia / keeper / petr vech
One reason we won’t get any of those guys is becuz we (the fans) really like and want them. Customarily, fans at Arsenal never get the actual players they fantasize about.
Ok, so some here think Jack over did it, right??? But actually, what do we really think of Tottenham? Lol!!!
FFS, just imagine we had lost to Aston Villa!!!!
There is nothing wrong in what jack did. Is a banter from a local lad. if people cannot understand that then they can’t understand the rivalry. If we lost today then Spurs fan would have created a forum just to make fun of us. Its a good banter. And some people need to chill and stop taking life too serious. Its a game of football . Its not war.
Then again what do I think of Tottenham? Shittttttttttttt
What do i think of Shittttttttt? Tottenham
agree
apparently theo is our other option up to to OG. so we need a winger, a dm and a goalie.
winger/striker and dm is a must tho
ACC to SUN Walcott has agreed to sign new deal.
That’s why I said someone like Bale or Griezmann for the RW because Walcott “WILL” now move centrally. Wenger said it and look at our last 2 matches. Theo scored 4 in 2 as our ST in an attacking front 3…
Im so pump up that im already thinking of whipping chelski’s butt in the community sheild! Coyg!
why not dani alves? he want out of barca? he is a motor that is always running
he would be 32yo…ageing pensioner
he doesnt play like a 32 yr old now, just the kind of tough winner we could use
Slap in the face to Bellerin and Debuchy.
How many RB’s do u need? Bellerin, Jenkinson, Debuchy and Chambers. Why dont we sign a
quality striker and CDM? Giroud and Welbeck are average. Poldi, Campbell and Sanogo suck.
Bingo. RB is Arsenal’s deepest position.
Just to give some reality via some actual facts…….
Poldi was the best finisher in the EPL each full season with Arsenal (goals scored per appearance, goals scored per shots on goal, you name it). And finishing is just a little bit important in football.
Poldi was scoring bunches of goals (2nd in the club) and LEADING THE LEAGUE IN ASSISTS his first season until Wenger decided to bench him after which Arsenal goal production dropped significantly – not surprising.
Just does not sound like someone who “sucks.” Wenger has no room for Poldi in his plans therefore he should move on. But don’t confuse that with lack of ability/quality.
Facts are stubborn things.
I don’t like him. He is good but he is sucio….a cheater…
But if he wears the shirt and fight for arsenal wtf….I can put my dislike on hold
Wenger on sky sports said fans should not expect big name signings this season.
Believe that if you want…
Sadly some of the Arsenal fans might feel we dont need any signings.
Ospina and Szcesny are good keepers
Coquelin is the best cdm in the world
Walcott is the best striker in the world.
ESPN player ratings fr the FA, 8 for every player except Szcz (7) and a 9 for Ozil, nice to see the respect. I see adding very little, who comes out of the line up? we are two deep at each position, maybe sign a striker,
If I could choose 5 players of my choice to get they would be:
1. Cech (experienced and still WC)**
2. Vidal (excellent defensively and offensively)*
3. Milner (versatile handy player)**
4. Reus (again versatile can play 4 positions)**
5. Lacazette (young goal scoring machine)*
*Need
**Luxury
Alternatively, Kondogbia, Schneiderlin for DM and Martinez or Benzema for striker.
We don’t need a winger really as we have Alexis, Walcott, Oxlade, Welbeck, Ozil, so Reus is just a luxury.
Getting a DM and Striker are most important
-Guys, if i was a betting man i would bet we are not getting a new GK
-We’re also not getting a RB
-I believe we’ll buy schneiderlin or another CDM
-I believe we’ll get a ST
We won’t get a GK/CB-I think wenger will go with KOS/BFG and when gabriel is ready he’ll be the next guy to step in. so there you have it, we’ll buy 2 high quality players this summer
Worst case scenario for RW would be to put Bellerin there and call Jenko back to partner Debuchy at RB. Not my preferred option though.
The only way the Comm Shield is important is for the media to create all kinds of controversy pitting Mourinho vs. Wenger. Otherwise, nobody really cares.
Do you ever anybody bragging about how many times they have won the CC?? No. Do you think back about the TWO trophies won by Arsenal last season? No. Just the one. Just the FA Cup.
Arsenal won the CC vs. City and frankly it WAS NOT a big deal. City obviously did not care about that game as they let Nastasic start at CB. He was worse than terrible in that game. One announcer/analyst described it as the worst CB performance ever in the history of Wembley – and he was RIGHT.
Forget the “importance” nonsense about the CC. That is media B.S. The real contest starts with MEANINGFUL league games next August.
if we win,it will be a big psychological shift for Wenger in his encounters with Mourinho,it will represent his first win over him,an be the best way 2 start the season,tho
Podolski out
Bale in
Flamini out
Vidal in
All the pundits are saying we’re still miles off Chelsea but it’s just not true. We need signings, but we are already very strong.
Defensively we conceded just 3 more goals than Chelsea all season, the third best in the league despite not even having Koscielny for a long time, not having Coquelin before Christmas and having to play youngsters at RB with Debuchy out, who have since matured nicely I might add. Chelsea have had no such problems. Plus we play a far more attacking style than Chelsea, so only conceding three less with all that against us, not bad.
Our current midfield is the strongest in the league. I don’t care what Chelsea or Man City have, ours is head and shoulders above. If everyone is fit that is, but if Coquelin is injured we quickly fall down the list. We have to bring in another dm this summer. Not just a backup either, someone top quality that we aren’t afraid of seeing on our team sheet. Other than that, not worried about our midfield at all.
Attacking wise we don’t hit the levels of Chelsea or Man City. We only scored 2 less than Chelsea this season, but we all know we need better. If Walcott had played more would we have scored more? Probably, yes. But is that enough? Possibly, but it’s a gamble. We need to strengthen just to be sure, we’re still a distance off Man City let’s not forget.
But for all the stats I can give, I mean statistically Arsenal were the best team in the Premier League this year according to whoscored, but the table is where it counts, and 12 points is a big margin. It’s not how many you score or concede, it’s about when they’re scored and who they’re against, whether they determine the result or not. We can do it, the stats show it, whether we can make it count or not is going to be the difference.
Agreed. Big game.
Win it….no biggie.
Lose it…chelsea are miles away and jose has arsenes measure in his pocket.
Yeah….better win it.