Pre-season Football 2011/2012 Season

Anyhow ignoring the incessant Utd talk:p...glad to see our new signing Gervinho score a goal yesterday and setup another one in our 2-1 win against FC Koln...hopefully he can bag us a few goals this season, taking the pressure off Chamakh and RVP to score goals.
 
Yeah not a bad game, scored 2 within 15 minutes and taken off after 30 minutes although knowing Arsenal the 'minor knock' will turn out to be a season-long injury :p
 
Yeah, overall though, the first goal in the 6th minute or so was apparently his first touch of the ball, which playing from the wing, is pretty worrying, I missed the first 4 mins or so, so didn't know. LIkewise his goals were well taken but his passing around the rest of the pitch was pretty attrocious, some very easy passes missed.

If he plays ahead of RVP in a 4-4-2, a natural finisher would go down well, if he plays wide left of a 4-3-3, then his passing, crossing, dribbling, defending, positioning will all be very important and none of that was on show.

This tends to be Wengers issue though, buy players who are good at one thing, and ask them to do another. Walcott did smeg all outside the box again, same with Gervinho, and that cost us in so many games last year, harder games where you couldn't just play in Walcott inside the box, where you need hard working, quality wingers and those are the games RVP ended up playing almost in central midfield because he got absolutely no service upfront on his own.

ULtimately we need wingers who can take the ball from the half way line, to the final third, not more tap in artists. Gervinho could turn great, he could be an Henry, judging by going off after 30 minutes I'd guess his preseason has been non existant, hard to judge on one game alone, but on two correct touches, from a position he's unlikely to ever play for Arsenal isn't as promising as a brace sounds.

Grrr, why on earth wasn't Gervinho's deal sorted on the first day of the transfer window, so he starts preseason with everyone else and is match fit when everyone else is.

Defensively, Verm looked a beast in one on ones, but our back four was broken SO many times by the cb/s and wingbacks being out of position. Vermaelen looked superb in his first season because either Toure or Gallas are superb CB's and they formed a great partnership, Squillaci, Djourou and Kos are SO all over the place, one great CB alongside an idiot just doesn't work, we HAVE to get a truly quality CB to partner Vermaelen and preferably have Wenger actually tell our wingbacks to get back in line as quickly as possible. They both run forwards and jog/walk back hoping nothing bad happens then end up chasing people into the box rather than just running, getting back in line and getting ready for an attack.
 
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drunkenmaster said:
Yeah, overall though, the first goal in the 6th minute or so was apparently his first touch of the ball, which playing from the wing, is pretty worrying, I missed the first 4 mins or so, so didn't know.
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Commentator was talking out his arse, he'd had a run down the left prior to that that didn't come to anything.
 
Why do all the elite teams play against really really weak teams no one knows? Thank god for Man Utd vs Barca. Might actually get a decent game in this pre-season.

Expect a win as Barca don't really care about games that mean nothing.
 
Robert1986 said:
Why do all the elite teams play against really really weak teams no one knows? Thank god for Man Utd vs Barca. Might actually get a decent game in this pre-season.

Expect a win as Barca don't really care about games that mean nothing.
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Monies. Touring these countries is more about commercial revenues than getting the team prepared.
 
1. No-one knows? By that you mean you don't know.

2. Commercial

3. A lot of these teams are in the middle of their season so it provides a good fitness test.
 
Rich_L said:
Only DM can turn 2 goals by a new signing into a negative and/or Wenger's fault :p
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Seriously, if he played a new CB as a striker in a preseason game, and he got 52 goals, would it mean anything if he was going to start as a CB all season, if he gets starts?

They were tap ins, I didn't say ANYTHING negative about it, but be realistic, we bought Chamakh, people had a go when I said it was a completely insane buy, it doesn't matter how good he is, when RVP is fit HE WON'T PLAY.

Whats happening now, we've got a 4mil a season player who barely played a game after RVP was fit. A complete waste, rather than buying a player for 4mil a year who WILL ACTUALLY PLAY. Gervinho is not going to displace RVP, so will he play upfront, no, if Nasri goes he might start wide left, if he starts wide left I consider the abilities of a wide left player far more than tapping the ball in, mostly because as a wide left player, much deeper than RVP he won't be running in behind or getting tap ins.

I've specifically stated that, he didn't look fit, anything can happen, but to blindly decide we've got a new star striker off two easy goals, when that isn't even a position he'll play this season, is completely nuts.

IF RVP was being sold, and Gervinho actually had a shot at starting, I'd be far more excited by two simple but tidy finishes, and I said great movement to be in the place to get two simple finishes, but he won't play there, thats the problem.

Theo is great at tap ins, most people are, most people with a bit of speed can run in behind off a great pass and will frequently score, how does that work out for Theo on the wing, crap.

Again, why spend 10mil on Gervinho and I'd say minimum 2.5m a year on wages, maybe 3, when you can take Theo off the wing, play him upfront, and BUY A DAMN WINGER.

IF we bought Gervinho, and Tevez, and Higuain, Henry, RVN, Villa and Torres, and played them all in preseason, and they all scored hattricks....... can you see how I'd be less than enthusiastic because, while all great strikers, they simply won't all play?

Hell, if we'd lined up ina 4-4-2 for even 2 minutes in preseason I'd be enthusiastic about RVP + another striker, I've been begging for that for 3 years, sure a waste to buy Gervinho with 48 strikers at the club who can't get a game, but who cares, a great striker is a great striker, but we haven't played 4 seconds of 4-4-2, and importantly, we haven't played RVP out wide, a role he's played before multiple times(though much much less in the past few seasons), if we'd tried RVP wide in a couple preseason games it MIGHT indicate a chance we'll move him wide and Gervinho upfront, but there is no hint of that yet. So with RVP starting, I don't care how good Gervinho, or Sagna, or Djourou are upfront, because they will not play there this season, how was he on the wing, where he might play...... hopeless, thats what I'm focusing on.

EDIT:- I'll just add one thing, Reyes, Wiltord, Theo, Bendtner, Vela, Eduardo, Chamakh, thats just without putting in any effort, these are all strikers, mostly with very good scoring rates starting upfront for Arsenal, none of whom could get starts upfront, ended up being average to poor wingers. So am I excited about spending another 10mil on another striker, who will play on the wing, and in his first game was crap on the wing? No, I really am not, why on earth would anyone else be. For about 8 years now our "buy a striker and turn him into a winger, because it worked once, with Henry" has failed miserably time and time and time and time again, so shock horror, another one doesn't make me enthusiastic AT ALL.

Hell Vela scored two goals, both better/harder finishes than Gervinho in preseason, do I expect him to get ANY starts upfront for Arsenal this year, nope, why would anyone think Gervinho will.
 
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Shamikebab said:
By that do you mean English people? Seattle have had full attendance every match since they started or something :eek:
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Personally thought it was a fair comment - its not like the US teams are littered with players on the up, - a few teams have players nearing retirement but otherwise most is like lower than Championship quality

American owners, huge american sponsors (shirt and kit sponsors to name two) and not to mention a relatively untapped market - compared to other areas of the world. Its not that surprising why Utd go there


For some reason I thought the Sounders had a stadium the size of Anfield, but its actually much bigger at around 67,000 which surprised me - no wonder Utd want to go to a stadium that size thats always full of regular supporters
 
Shamikebab said:
By that do you mean English people? Seattle have had full attendance every match since they started or something :eek:
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Not sure how you work that out; 67,000 seater stadium and an average attendance of 36,000. They have the highest average attendance in the MLS by far though.
 
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