Arsenal need: A quick start – No injuries – And consistency!

The Arsenal vice-captain Per Mertesacker believes that his team can win the title next year but for that, the team needs to hit the ground running immediately. The Gunners have begun their pre-season campaign in Singapore where they won the Barclays Asia Trophy by beating Everton in the final. Next up for Arsene Wenger and his squad is the Emirates Cup this weekend in London.

The German international has seen Petr Cech arrive at the club in the only big transfer signing so far, but that hasn’t dampened the spirits at the club. On the contrary, Cech’s arrival has seen a growing belief among the players and the fans alike that Arsenal can now mount a serious challenge for the Premier League title.

Cech has integrated really well with the squad and even showcased in the pre-season tournament at Singapore what is in store. With his experience and skill, Cech will aid the Premier League challenge. But, for that to come to reality, Mertesacker knows that Arsenal cannot afford to make as bad a start as last season.

Arsene Wenger saw his side start slow and win only two of the opening eight Premier League matches. Though the side recovered later and finished the season strongly with a third place finish, a better start would have served them really well. And the German vice-captain knows very well that unless they start well, there’s no way they can add a Premier League title to their back-to-back FA Cup wins in the last couple of years.

“We have a good structure and a good base,” he said on Arsenal.com. “We’ll try to build on that. We have a good squad, we won’t lose key players, so that’s good consistency.
“The squad will be in a good mood and in good fitness. We have to be because there are plenty of competitors for the title.
“We need to be at our best. We’ve shown in the cup that we can be consistent for six games. We want to extend that and show that we are real title contenders from the start, not only in the second half of the season.
“We want to be ready right from the start and not getting as many injuries as last season would be lovely and good for us.
“The belief is still there – we always had a certain belief in ourselves – and to win trophies back to back is something special, but let’s add that little extra to be a competitor for the whole season.”

Mertesacker wants to show the title rivals that they are genuine contenders from the start and not just in the second half of the season. He thinks that the belief in the team is always there but it is all about taking it to the next level. And, he thinks that Wenger has assembled a squad that is now capable of going all the way against defending Champions Chelsea and the two Manchester rivals.

Arsenal start their season with the FA Community Shield at Wembley on August 2nd where they take on Chelsea. It would be a reunion of sorts for Cech against his old side but it would also be a chance for Wenger to start the season in signature style. That would serve as a precursor to the season opener against West Ham. Wenger would hate to see another slow start dampening his title charge for yet another year…

Sridhar

Tags Cech Mertesacker Wenger

45 Comments

  1. Agree plus one more top forward and a DM that is either better or as good as Coquelin because if he gets an injury….well, I’d rather not think about it.

    But yes, a great start, consistency and nothing more than minor injuries is what helped Chelsea win the PL ( as well as Costa, Matic, Fabregas, hazard et al)

    Actually, Chelsea continued consistency even when Costa was banned because they had Remy and Drogba. I don’t see Welbeck having the same impact if Giroud missed loads of matches.

    In other words, Mr Wenger please obtain another top forward and DM. Thanks

  2. man utd £750m new kit deal is double any Club kit Deal in the world,they can buy messi and ronaldo if available with that.Wenger complains they want to buy success,Yes the league is always bought wenger youth policy will never work,Wenger should focus on the needs of team and stop being jealous when other teams spash the cash.

      1. Atletico and Dortmund won the league is so special, because it is so rare so difficult. Both have not be able to really challenge after. Dortmund may not spend much, but Atletico does spend lots

        1. exactly. they were both surprises elements.
          aleti continued to be up ven with no silverware but dormund droped dramatically,

      2. Yes 3rd richest club in Spain wins La Liga once in 19 years. Amazing. Dortmund 2nd richest club in Germany 3 titles in 19 years. Stunning. Exceptions rather than rules – never a good idea to base a theory on it. Let us see them repeat it on a regular basis before we deify them. Wenger achieved more than these two in his 1st 8 years. Klopp loses his best players. plummets down the league – and ready made excuses handed out. Wenger loses his best players and stays near the top and he is hung out to dry.

        1. 2nd richest club in Germany yeas how much have they spent when they defeated Madrid their entire squad didn’t cost as much Madrid paid for Ronaldo or isco + benz

        2. One of the more knowledgeable people on this site. Jones with the clear cut truth and nothing but, always nice to read into his insight.

    1. We are not even buying the best youths anymore. I personally do not see us winning the league with giroud and meertesacker

  3. A quick start,no injuries and consistency I see.All these things cannot be guaranteed and for arsenal i am sure we experience the opposite of these things a lot.I Like the positivity of Mertesacker(the vice captain) and also the rest of the other arsenal players but i will say it and say it again once you ignore position in the team that needs strengthening then you are preparing yourself for the inevitable that is failure and also once the coach and players do not learn from their mistakes and keep making the same mistakes after every season failure will apply.If we think we can be ignorant and go into this season unprepared then we will be ashamed.We need to act like we want to succeed by solving the problems in our team.Its up to Wenger to see the mistakes and address them or else the prepared teams will dominate again.

    1. consistency no injuries and good start cannot be guaranteed. Indeed.

      but are you saying that by buying the players of the positions we NEED strengthening does guarantee it?

      1. dont get me wrong, i am ALL for buying those two players a DM and CF but it does not guarantee anything,

        1. sooner or later, buying good players guarantee trophies…. manchester, chelsea, etc
          even arsene said that some years ago

  4. Alexis Sanchez has described his first season at Arsenal as “bittersweet” no pl trophy this season & I am sure sanchez & ozil will leave

    then we will see whether it’s climax or anti climax

    1. bittersweet (adj) “arousing pleasure tinged with sadness or pain”. Almost a perfect and understandable description of how he felt but to you that means he is off. And you can tell from his body language that he was really unhappy. Lol.

      And yeah, they lived in a cave for 10 years and left Barca and Real Madrid because they knew silverware was guaranteed at Arsenal.

  5. le genius has made a sh*t load of mistakes. Not spending when he should have & also playing players out of position for starters diaby/santos/park/arshavin/squallaci/Silvestre
    his 30+ policy surely pires/viera/gilberto could have played for us more & allowing cashley to leave .developing kids like fiberglass/ca$hri for others etc

    we need a striker & cdm if not we won’t win anything this season with giroudless up front

    1. Well, at least he won few titles with all these mistakes. What did you do (except licking your balls) in this period?

    2. Leo with all respect due you are glass half empty type in this instance. A team is more than a collection of talented individuals.

    3. You should stick to what you know best – re-hashing transfer rumours from around the web.

  6. Merti had a fair share in the failing at the start of the season. I dont even know why this guy always have to come up and say something.

    I hope that this guy never plays striker again like he sometimes did, and doesn not get overpowered and overun so often by oppesite players.

    1. Merti? Failing? Striker? Overpowered?

      OK. I will bite. Is there a connection between these things??

      1. hahaha typical of people around here…thumbs down for saying what is real…
        what..? we re gonna buy Agüero from City?? I wish!!!!!
        hahaahahaha

    1. If we are to be honest yes he should be 3rd choice though many will deny.But we cant afford so we have to live with having him.How i wish!

    2. Sencond or third choice is not important, you need to use him against the right type of opponents. I agree OG is a good impact sub, he usually plays really well coming from the bench…he could be our Dzeko.

  7. I want to do well for the club and, as well, when I leave one day, leave the club in a position where the club can go on and on. That is why I always fought for the financial fair play – that is vital so the guy who comes in has top quality players, a strong financial situation and can work with his ideas. That, for me, is very, very important.
    –Arsene Wenger

    Preparing the ground for someone else, the successor. How many managers did that? I can’t remember any name.

    1. You get into that poz by winning trophys. Financial fair play is simple a fraud. 2008 was rrlly our year but we failed. Same like in the cl finale.

      1. exactly. FFP is already failing and City and PSG and Chelsea are about to be able to go back to spending their hearts out. It was a waste of time abiding by it. Wenger is still stuck in another world though and acts as the clubs accountant. It’s NOT his job. If the club gives Wenger money to spend he should be spending it. Only getting Cech this summer would be a massive failure.

    2. Arsene Wenger is the selfless manager in history. A decade ago he agreed to stay with us whilst we paid off the stadium that one day would allow us to compete financially, he agreed this knowing that he had to somehow sell his best players whilst simultaniously getting top 4.
      He proved his loyalty to the cause by turning down the job at real madrid and his home nation of france more than once.
      Wenger knew he could not compete for the league, he has since admitted this.
      He has put his legacy on the line so the man who replaces him has the best possible platform to succeed. Even now where he could be selfish with his transfers he is building a squad not only for him but his successor.

      1. Good points, well said.
        Sure he could have left, but I’m not bowing or kissing his a$$ for staying. He got very good salary, complete control, no true fear over being sacked, and the board agrees with his plans or remains quiet if he doesn’t have one. (Paraphrasing that board member).

        I’m grateful for his achievements in the lean times, but I would prefer a bit more ambition than 1 top player per year. 1 or 2 is realistic and affordable.

    1. Yes it is the transfer season. And for Arsenal fans this is always the sloooooooow season. Not much to write about.

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