re: Arsenal Football Club 2011-2012 Season Thread

Can someone figure out how many games we have played with our starting 11? I know Wilshere never played this season, but I remember the past 2 seasons we hardly had our full squad out there since Cesc, Vermaelen, Nasri, and RVP were often injured.

How many matches have we played this season with:

Szczesny, Sagna, Kos, Verm, Gibbs, Walcott, Arteta, Song, Rosicky, Gervinho, RVP?

Interestingly enough Jackie boy just tweeted his injuries were a result of him playing "to (sic) much too young." Doubt Wenger will like that as it is primarily his fault.

Nah hendo. Still three points clear in third and luckily playing teams that won't be relegated and aren't laying for any sort of European spots. Arsenal SHOULD maintain third, especially with the huge GD over Newcastle. Who still have to play Chelsea and Man City.

I think the difference is that we are playing teams that don't really have anything to play for.

We will see, but with Sagna, Kos, TV5 and Gibbs healthy I see us atleast playing well defensively.

Thought Gervinho looked good Saturday. Diaby wasn't bad either.

he last scored in december, i just expected a lil more. Diaby could be good if he can stay healthy. I liked diaby way more than song earlier in their careers. But now song obviously has his spot locked up and he deserves it.

He's an AM, not a DLP or a box-to-box guy. He needs to be in that advanced role to succeed (at least at this point in his development). The problem there being that Rosicky is most comfortable in the advanced role as well and his form is currently better.

If Diaby can hold up for about 60 minutes, I think our midfield would have better balance with Rosicky/Diaby/Song. At that point, if we're tied or trailing, bring on Ramsey. If we're up, bring on Coquelin.

Really interesting article. Cox has a point that Arsenal and Barca are often compared, but the source of that comparison is the fact that both teams insist on playing it on the ground. At Arsenal, we are obsessed with moving the ball vertically as quickly as possible. Hence the runs are diagonal or vertical. Barca are more interested in how to exploit space horizontally, which is why they are amazing at breaking down teams who play ten behind the ball and Arsenal are terrible at it. Wenger made Fabregas an amazing attacking player, but at the expense of any tactical nous, since the team was built around Fab. That is the biggest adjustment Fab has to make, since he's never had any real positional or defensive responsibilities since he's moved forward. Sometimes I wonder if Fabregas would have been better off remaining deeper and playing as a pivot player, as this would have accommodated a variety of AM's who've come through and have been forced out wide. Maybe this highlights a problem with Wenger's philosophy, as he's not interested in the shape of the team when not in possession of the ball as much as he should be.

quote:

---

I have high hopes for a system that can accommodate both Jack and Aaron, as a pair they would be extremely dynamic.

---

I agree 100%.

The biggest problem is that Wenger takes advice from no one. Martin Keown would be an amazing number 2, as he understands the importance of defensive shape. I also believe that he would stress attacking football with strong defensive principles. It's fortunate that many of our former defensive players are also coaches at the club. I'd love to have Keown as a replacement for Rice.