THIS ARSENAL SQUAD IS A VERY GOOD ONE by Uche
Hello folks. The transfer madness is over and we can finally focus on the squad we have and get our campaign off to a solid start. I will like to begin by saying that if you are the type that always sees the glass as half empty, don’t bother reading this article. You will only end up getting even more irritated, just like my last article pissed off a few because our defenders are not all world class. Mind you, we won the FA cup and beat the current EPL champions in the community shield with this same squad that many consider rubbish. I can imagine the envy some of us feel when they look at Manchester City’s squad but unlike them, we don’t have a blank cheque. But we still managed to spend a respectable 85 million pounds in this window. That is a lot of money and it is hard earned money. Just let that sink in for a second.
You see, growing up, I was that kid from a lower middle class family that was surrounded by friends with filthy rich parents. They always travelled overseas for the summer and had the best houses, toys and clothes. On the contrary, I had to make my own toys and never travelled to anywhere. It wasn’t easy, but I had an exciting childhood filled with adventure, hope, anxiety and ambition. Today I am nearly 40 years old. I look around at some of those friends of mine now and I cannot believe that they are not better than me, even with daddy’s money, thanks to hard work, talent and ambition. The reason I am telling you guys this personal story is because it is important to understand the mind set of an Arsenal fan. We need to be reminded of who we are and why we support arsenal. Personally, I look at Arsenal and I see myself. If you are an arsenal supporter, you are different. Do you know why? Because you identify with hard work, integrity and the joy of being self-made. That is Arsenal in a nutshell. That is why we cannot support Chelsea or Manchester City even though they have everything.
Again I must repeat that I am no Wengerite and the manager drives me crazy in many ways. For instance, I don’t understand why he refused to loan a striker in January this year. I believe that move cost us the league title. But my annoyance at the few things we have not managed to do well has not suppressed my appreciation of our current squad. Guys we have a really good squad. Surely it could be better. Any team in the world can always be improved on. Carvalho could have been a beast for us and Manolas and Socratis would have been more experienced backups for the central defensive pair of Koscielny and Per. We all know these things but what we have can still work for us. Take a look at this first team squad:
Szczesny
Debuchy Per Koscielny Gibbs
Chambers Ramsey
Walcot Ozil Sanchez
Welbeck
Sir Alex Ferguson will win a title with this squad. He has done it with a worse Man U squad. This Arsenal squad has everything: Pace, goals, passing, dribbling, experience, solidity and the mindset of champions. Notice that I have put Calum Chambers as that tall and hunky defensive midfielder we all yearn for.
The point I am trying to make is that our squad is nearly there. I mean, look at the players that didn’t even make this line up: Carzola, Ospina, Ox, Wilshere, Campbel, Flamini, Arteta, Podolski, Giroud, Diaby, Rosicky, Monreal, Sanogo, Zelalem, Bellerini, Hayden, Martinez etc. Our first team is so good that top players can’t even get games. Arsenal has a squad that we can be excited about. I saw Danny Welbeck playing yesterday for England and I was reminded of how good he is. We struck gold with this boy and unlike Giroud, he has pace, technical skill, aggression, dribbling and a fierce shot. He is a big game player and chases after the ball nonstop like Alexis Sanchez. He can also play on the wings. Surely this squad could be better but after spending 85 million pounds of hard earned money, I am proud of our club’s efforts and the players we have. Peace.
Uche
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