The time is fast approaching when our much loved Chilean returns, once at full fitness of course he will reclaim his position on the left in Arsenal’s starting line-up, with Cazorla unable to return for at least 8 weeks, you would assume Ramsey will keep his favoured position in the middle. This leaves just the right wing position up for grabs and today I will discuss my pick for the right.
Theo Walcott. TW14 is undoubtedly our most senior right winger, at 26 he should now be hitting the peak of his already long career. His pace is, of course, his key attribute and while both other wingers do have great pace, they cannot match up to Theo. Also as I have mentioned he is our most experienced winger with 192 premier league and champions league appearances for the club, he is also the longest serving member of our squad having been at Arsenal for fast approaching a decade.
Some reservations about Theo Walcott mainly come down to his inconsistency, especially in the finishing department. He can score wonderful goals, at times he will get through and you just know he is going to score, but then there are games where no matter how many chances he gets he looks like he will never score. Theo has 5 goals and 3 assists this year, however only one goal has come when playing on the wing and he is yet to register an assist from out wide.
I am of the opinion Theo should return to the bench upon Sanchez’s return and continue to interchange with Giroud.
I don’t want to criticize Oxlade-Chamberlain too much so I won’t write too much about him. I am of the opinion that he needs a loan move away from the club until he can prove he can perform in this league. Plenty of teams would love to take him on and it would give him a platform of consistent first team football, something he seems incapable of earning with us. He is yet to score more than 2 in any premier league campaign, yet to register at all this season so perhaps he needs a chance at a “smaller” club to produce consistently, or even at all.
Joel Campbell is my choice for right wing and I feel most fans will also agree. He has come from being on the verge of departing in the summer to well and truly taking his chance when injuries struck. AW has just said his rise this year has mirrored that of Coquelin last year. He has got himself among the goals, has an eye for a pass, he is very skillful and of course works like a trooper. He is very close to Alexis Sanchez when it comes to work rate, and I feel having that work rate on both sides of the pitch will prove very beneficial. He has two league goals already, and he seems to be growing in confidence. I also think he and Bellerín have a better understanding on that side than the other two.
I would like to see JC taking a few more chances when in possession though, there are times you feel that he could take on his man but decides to play it safe. This can be taken as both a weakness and a strength, whilst it means he may miss the odd opportunity to create a chance it also means that his game has very few errors in it. At 23 Joel Campbell has a long way to go yet, he has many years of improvement ahead of him and I believe he has earned the opportunity to prove he can be a mainstay in our front three.
What do guys think, do you agree with my assessments? Who do you think should play on the right? Or am I too harsh on the Ox? Let me know in the comments.
By JonnHirons
firstly I think that Campbell has MORE energy than Sanchez. yes Sanchez is world class of not one of the best in the world right now but Campbell does not NEARLY exceed him for energy and pace, but beats him. I think he has learnt a lot from Sanchez though. ox will come right, relax peeps.
Hahaha………. I’m having a Laugh right now.
Campbell has more energy than sanchez????
PLs ask urself one question……Where does the word “duracell bunny” come from
the ox playing style is similar to hazard and sanchez.Plenty of pace and dribbling.
Though his future should lie in deep midfield where he can see more of the ball
move it across 4 different positions where he is best suited at.
Pass the ball and play one two with his teammates.
Joel campbell should keep it up.
He is like van persie in almost every aspect of play.Though i hope he is not injury prone.Needs to be more light but he is doing well.
And i repeat keep it up shad forsythe
Injuries have become less
Giroud
Alexis-Ozil-Campbell
Ramsey-Flamini
Monreal-Kos-Mert-Bellerin
Cech
This is our best lineup once Alexis returns. Mertesacker still stays in for me, but Gabriel is certainly pushing for a starting position as well. Campbell has been a revelation for us. Is completely outshining Ox this season. And Theo doesn’t do enough some games, but he’s a great option to have off the bench still.
My personal lineup and the one that woul win the title for the Gunners
OG
AS….MO…JC
KRYCHOWIAK…AR
NM….LK…GB…HB
PC
One can dream right?
No……..u are not allowed to dream certain dreams!
L()L
@bigVal
Santi for Aaron and we’re flyin…
NY,
How in the world can you remotely consider benching the $50 million soon to be Barcelona man.
Shame on you for being an objective, intelligent Arsenal fan.
@BigVal
My bad…
We are going to find ourselves in a Dilemma which player engine to use when everyone is back…..cuz they’ll be too good to choose from
Its a good thing!!
i see JC is more effective in the middle. he can tackle, vision, accuracy and hard working. but he can’t play for 90 minutes.
You are right there. The only thing is that Giroud needs to be dropped in some games for Walcott. True, Walcott doesn’t do much, but to get the best out of Giroud he needs competition. Ox should be last in the pecking order now for that rw position.
Giroud needs his teammates to trust to put in crosses and when he puts up his hand try to hit him with a pass.
Higuain and Moussa Sissoko can hugely improve our team if we sign them. Moussa Sissoko can now play on the wings as well, very powerful physically and accurate dribbler. When you next see another Newcastle game or highlights, you will see he is their most creative player. Higuains goalscoring speaks for itself. He is doing much much better than Benzema in a league where it’s harder to score and for a team that is less attacking than Real Madrid. I’ve wanted Arsenal to sign him for a few seasons now.
HA559,
Sadly the hopeless majority on this board remain a united front in proclaiming that Sissoko isnt Arsenal quality and blindly beat there chests extolling the greatness of Ox and Theo
Every single time Arsenal plays Newcastle the Frenchman dominates the ball and reaks havoc on tbe flanks, something Theo and Ox rarely do.
He would walk from Newcastle to the Emirates for a chance to compete for EPL and Champions League silverware.
Sissoko is a solid player, but he is in Newcastle for a reason. Theo is a 20 goal per season winger, something Sissoko will never be.
Here’s something i noticed………. Campbell could be a master in the art of Free-kicks!
Did u Lot see the one he took?….soLid!
If only it had been converted!
Seriously why do Premier League officials suck so bad?
Two critical penalty decisions predictably butchered that enabled one London club to avoid
a deserved exit from the competition, another to survive a lower league upset bid.
Transparently attrocious
@BigVal
RealTalk…
Spurs were gettin done over just now. Rose had been tryin that fake “handball” ish all night and finally got away with it.
Madley or whatever his name is deserves to be fined and suspended for that abomination of a call and that muppet, Spuds supporter Friedel can eat a fat D.
Disgraceful
Cech
Bellerin…Koscielny…Mertsacker…Monreal
Flamini…..Ramsey
Walcott…..Ozil……Alexis
Giroud
Until Cazorla and Coquelin come back and Elneny proves himself, this is our best 11
Campbell is good but Not better than Walcott
@Davros
Joel is not “faster” than Theo…Otherwise…
Theo has repeatedly shown his reluctance to play on the wings and his lack of positional sense places an incredible burden on Hector.
He may chip in an occassional wonder goal but his finishing consistently sucks something rotten and his football IQ is borderline non existent. He wants to be a striker, rotate him with OG.
I (and many others) thought Theo has become a defensive beast. He works tremendously hard and provides a great cover. I would still prefer him playing through the middle, I think rotating in the middle would be perfect to keep both Giroud and Walcott fit and firing.
And to add to that – Theo definitely has football brain, and a sharp one at that. He proved that throughout this season, just look at that pass for Campbell for the first goal. And he is a solid dribler as well. Gone are the times when someone could say he is limited, because ha has become a good all-round player (albeit speed is still his main strenght).
Are you guys forgetting El Daddy is pretty much signed, just pending clearence? Hence no flamini in any line up going forward. Ramsay will play alongside El Daddy, campbell will stay in that line up and walcott will be a sub for giroud.
I think Elneny will have a bedding in period with occasional FA cup start, and I believe that we will see a lot of Ramsey/Arteta combination from now on, maybe already in Stoke on Sunday.
If Giroud is playing as a striker
1. Walcott
2. Welbeck
3. Joel Campbell
4. Oxlade-Chamberlain
If Walcott is playing as a striker
1. Welbeck
2. Joel Campbell
3. Oxlade-Chamberlain
4. Ozil
@Twig now I get you – You rate Arsenal as a second rate ManU. Welbeck? Ferguson understood his limitations.
You probably rate Welbeck ONLY on goals. I look at his work rate, his aerial ability and his pace. His finishing is improving as well. I rate him very highly.