Keep your Three Lions – We’ve Got The Ox (Free Wallpaper)
273 comments June 11th, 2012
When Arsenal signed Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, they knew they were getting a technical player. A graduate of Southampton’s esteemed academy system, he was plainly versatile, two-footed, and blessed with the one of those coveted ‘football brains’. What they couldn’t have known was the sheer power they’d be unleashing.
Aged 14, Oxlade-Chamberlain’s slight build saw his future in Southampton in doubt. At 15, he was told he had three months to win a contact. With hindsight, the idea seems ludicrous. Now 18, he has the upper-body build of a middle-weight boxer. His raw physicality and squat frame is reminiscent of one Julio ‘The Beast’ Baptista. Except this isn’t any generic beast. This is The Ox.
In the long-term, many see Oxlade-Chamberlain converting in to a central midfielder. In the meantime, there is no sight more enthralling than him barrelling down either wing, going to shoulder-to-shoulder with defenders almost twice his age. The Ox, you see, pays no heed to seniority, or reputation. He hurdles those challenges like the tackles that snap at his ankles, vaulting onward towards the goal.
Today he may face his greatest challenge yet: the International stage and Euro 2012. If he is called upon to face France, there won’t be any nerves. For him, an opportunity like that is something to be savoured. A red rag to a bull-dozer of a player. He’ll do what he always does: bewilder them with skill, then frighten them with raw pace and strength. If the French defence haven’t heard of him before he game, they chances are they’ll know him after: The Ox – Arsenal’s Power Forward.
Graphic by North Internet
To have your desktop, iPhone or iPad adorned by Arsenal’s very own Power Forward than simply click on the image and follow the instructions to download your own free goodypack. Â The wallpaper features by a graphic by North Internet, and a quick glance at the Gunnerblog Store will tell you it’ll soon be finding its way on to a rather fetching t-shirt and strictly limited run sweater – but more of that later this week…
Elsewhere, it’s been an inauspicious start to the Euros for the Arsenal contingent. Â Wojciech Szczesny managed to endure a calamitous tournament debut, failing to capture a cross that led to a Greek equaliser, before conceding a penalty for a clumsy trip and getting sent off in the process. Â He’ll sit out the next game with a suspension, and will have to hope his Polish comrades do enough to ensure he plays more of a part later in the tournament.
Things didn’t go much better for Tomas Rosicky, whose Czech side were hammered 4-1 by a fluent and exciting Russia. Â Meanwhile, Robin van Persie endured something of a personal nightmare against Denmark, missing a couple of presentable opportunities that we would expect him to bury in red and white.
So far the major winners have been players who, whilst technically belonging to Arsenal, have spent recent months plying their trade elsewhere. Â Nicklas Bendtner was ploddingly effective for the Danes, whilst a revitalised Andrey Arshavin was quite outstanding for Russia. Â It was a glimpse of the Arshavin we saw in his first six months at the club: direct, incisive, and about half a stone lighter. Â It seems the damage is done and neither of these players will be returning to the club, but these performances may well have put a few quid on their price tag.
Today, England face France, where Theo Walcott, Laurent Koscielny and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain are all likely to begin on the bench. Â If you were to bet on one man to make an impact, it might just be the teenage tyro with the body of a boxer and a predisposition for fearlessness. Â History is there to be made. Â Go On The Ox.
