The effects a player can have!
I have always wondered why sometimes all it takes is one player or one manager to come in and the dynamics and performances of a team change to something better!
But the question I ask is why does that happen? Why can’t it just change on its own without changes and additions coming in?
When Arteta came in, things changed immediately and when Frank Lampard was sacked from Chelsea Tuchel came in and is so far doing an amazing job.
Where players are concerned for Arsenal, the arrival of Partey was supposed to do that but for me the biggest impact has come from the likes of Emile Smith-Rowe and Martin Odegaard.
While all the hype was on Partey, his arrival and what he would do, although there is no doubt he is a talented player, for me he has not affected the team as much as Odegaard and Smith-Rowe have. And I know he has had injuries but he needs more time to prove himself and hopefully next season he will be able to do that.
Whereas the likes of Smith-Rowe, coming from our academy just like Saka did, has done amazingly well so far but what we do worry about is burnout for him. Being called up to the national team, although is a proud moment is not the most ideal scenario right now. But Martin Odergaard is another one who has come in and has blown things wide open. He is the player we had missed from the return on lockdown, he is the player who is ticking over our midfield and has even chipped in with a few goals so far.
One thing we were lacking was creativity and Odegaard and Smith-Rowe coming in has changed that but I go back to why? Why has it taken two young players to come in and impact a team that is so full of talent and experience it is exploding at the seams? And the answer I find is that, the players who are constantly in the team, be it old or young, got so used to a system and a style of play and mind-set that they couldn’t see beyond what they were in. But when something fresh appears it makes you see things differently, albeit for a short period of time.
Like when Ceballos came in the first time, things changed and worked for the better, though that soon fizzled out.
Well let’s hope that is not the case for these two and that the impact they have on the team continues and works out for the best, otherwise it will be back to the drawing board! Gooners?
Shenel Osman
One other thing that seems to have helped this season is that we haven’t had our usual winter injury jinx run through many of the squad.
Odegaard has done very well and the goals have made a real difference as we rely far to much on strikers to score. Xhaka, Partey, Elneny, Ceballos, Willian and ESR do not score and that’s far too many players without a taste for the end product. ESR has at times shown especially his understanding with Saka but of late his energy and movement have been noted but not definitive hence why MA substitutes him. Maybe he should play more centrally but he can’t displace Odegaard right now.
That seems to be a problem with this team we tend to react instead of being proactive! players react to new arrivals we wait to go 1 or 3 nil down before having a real go at our opponents..i see a pattern!