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Chelsea Preview: Dawn of the Theo-cracy

484 comments January 19th, 2013

The saga is over and Theo Walcott has signed a new contract with Arsenal Football Club.

It’s undoubtedly good news for Arsenal.  It stems the flow of talent away from the club, and shows a renewed willingness to flex our financial muscle.

It’s arguably even better news for Theo.  Having steadfastly refused to agree to the club’s initial offer of £75k p/week, he’ll now find himself picking up far more than that.  Depending on which red top you read, the weekly salary wages from between £90k to a mammoth £113k.  Either way, it seems he has escaped the binds of Arsene’s “socialist” pay structure, simultaneously superseding Lukas Podolski as the club’s highest paid player.

I never imagined that Theo Walcott would be the man for whom Arsenal would break their strict wage hierarchy.  Granted, he’s having a statistically outstanding season, but he remains far from perfect.  So many more talented players have sought the kind of sums Walcott was demanding, only to find themselves being shown the door to Barcelona or Manchester.

The truth is that Walcott is the lucky beneficiary of a perfect storm of circumstance.  Arsenal could not afford the PR disaster of losing another one of their perceived stars.  The club is also under more pressure than ever to show ambition in their expenditure.  Every time Walcott produced on the pitch, the likelihood of Arsenal caving to his demands increased significantly.

I’m still a little surprised he’s signed.  It’s rare that a player gets within six months of a Bosman move and is able to resist, and I went on record as saying that I didn’t think Arsenal and Theo would ever come to an agreement.  But Walcott knows that Arsenal is a set-up that suits him, and it’s not clear which (if any) elite clubs would be able to offer him the playing time he gets at the Emirates.

He enjoys playing with the likes of Kieran Gibbs, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, and Jack Wilshere.  At the risk of sounding jingoistic, I think the British core the club are building is important.  We are building a group of young players who seem eager to stick together and achieve something.  Keeping Walcott benefits the collective.

It’s now very much a case of “over to you, Theo”.  He’s got the money he wanted; now he has to justify it.  If he doesn’t, at least Arsenal can look to recoup a fee, rather than losing a valuable asset for nothing.

It’s “over to you, Arsene” too.  Having tied up the deal that was his priority for January, he now has a couple of weeks remaining to make an impact in the transfer market.  Talk of someone like Cavani is wildly unrealistic, although I still think it’s imperative that Arsenal bring in a striker.  If we select our first choice front three of Podolski, Giroud and Walcott, we would not have a single forward on the bench.  For a club of our size, that is unforgivable.

In a watershed week for Arsenal, I hope tomorrow’s game with Chelsea is a similarly significant landmark in our season.  It proved so last season, with a 5-3 victory restoring faith in a team that had spent the early months of the season on the ropes.  This fixture at Stamford Bridge could also be pivotal: if we could win there, then against West Ham in midweek, we’d find ourselves just two points behind a Chelsea side who had threatened to pull out of sight.  With Spurs facing of against United, this could be a critical week in the race for the Champions League.

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If you fancy a flutter on tomorrow’s game, check out my betting preview for Unibet, complete with predicted line-ups and top tips.  You can get 8.5 on Theo to celebrate his new contract with the first goal…

Transfer Update: Ba, Adrian, Djourou & No Theo Talks

677 comments January 3rd, 2013

If Arsenal do sign a forward in this transfer window, it won’t be Demba Ba.  The Senegalese striker is instead on the way to Chelsea, who have moved early in the transfer window to secure Ba by meeting the £7m release clause in his contract.

I made little secret of the fact that Ba was my preferred choice to solve Arsenal’s striker problems –  I was banging on about it as early as October.  He struck me as an affordable, athletic goalscorer – exactly what we need to help Olivier Giroud during his period of adaptation.

However, as soon as Chelsea became interested it became unlikely.  On Wednesday I received a piece of information which went some way towards explaining Arsenal’s unwillingness to get involved in the transfer: there are five agents involved in the deal, each demanding a fee of £1m.  If Chelsea meet their demands, that almost doubles the cost of the signing, and means Ba’s representatives will take home as much from the deal as Newcastle themselves (£2m of the £7m buyout goes straight in to Ba’s pocket).   Add that to Ba’s £80,000 p/week pay-packet and suddenly the gamble on his Swiss cheese cartilage seems a lot more expensive.

Adrián López seems much more like an Arsene Wenger signing.  I can’t vouch for the veracity of the links with the Spanish forward, but he has all the attributes Arsene tends to look for: he’s young, quick, technically capable and extremely versatile.  He could play in any of the front three positions, which would give Wenger plenty of options and effectively replace Gervinho – during his African Nations exile and hopefully beyond.  Some reports have dubbed him “the next David Villa”, but after a difficult season this time round Arsenal fans could be forgiven for hoping for the real thing instead.

Room will have to be made in the squad, and one of the players who has been deemed dispensable is Johan Djourou.  The Swiss defender is already in talks with a Ligue 1 club about a permanent move, and when you add that to declared interest from Hannover the signs suggest he could end January anywhere but North London.

I have to say I’m sorry to see him go.  I think he’s far better than public perception would have you believe.  Don’t forget, it was a back-line of Djourou and Koscielny that played in our 2-1 victory over Barcelona at the Emirates.  At that time, almost two years ago, he looked like an Arsenal first-teamer for years to come.  Since then, however, he’s failed to get a run of games together, and it saddens me that the last memory many Gooners will have of him is of a few halting performances playing out-of-position at full-back.

Should Djourou go, I don’t necessarily expect Arsenal to sign a replacement.  Ignasi Miquel is 20 now and extremely well thought of.  This could be his opportunity to become part of the first team squad, especially with the news that Sebastien Squillaci could also be off – although I’d be staggered if he could find a club prepared to match his Arsenal wages.

Finally, you may have read yesterday that Theo Walcott was due to spend the afternoon in talks with Arsenal over a new contract.  Well, I wouldn’t expect an announcement any time soon: my information is that no such talks took place.  I’m sure there’ll be contact between Arsenal and Theo this month, but that summit has not taken place yet.

Look at that.  The window is only a few days already and we’re already up to our neck in transfer chat.  It could be a long month.  I can only guarantee you that all information I give you is in good faith, and absolutely authentic.  Follow me on Twitter @gunnerblog for transfer tidbits and window wailings.  It’s rarely fun.

Arsenal 7 – 3 Newcastle: Why I’m struggling to enjoy Theo’s excellence

1,066 comments December 30th, 2012

Arsenal 7 – 3 Newcastle
Match Report | Highlights | Arsene’s reaction

I ought to be revelling in this victory.  Instead, it’s strangely bittersweet.

Make no mistake, this was Theo Walcott’s game.  Although his first half performance was patchy, he went on to complete a scintillating hattrick and pick up a couple of assists along the way.  This was probably his finest performance in an Arsenal shirt, and a convincing audition to be the long-term occupent of the central striking berth.

The first goal will invite comparisons with Thierry Henry, coming as it did after an intelligently bent run, matched by an equally intelligent bent shot inside the far post.  The second was a wonderful finish, clipped with little backlift past a wall of Newcastle defenders and in to the top corner.  The hattrick goal was the best of the bunch: after collecting the ball from a short free-kick on the left, Walcott scooted between two challenges, tumbled to the ground, sprung to his feet a la Stamford Bridge last year, and lifted the ball beautifully over the goalkeeper.  It was a goal worthy of a hattrick, worthy of the crowd’s acclaim, and worthy of Sunday morning’s headlines.

It was not, however, a goal worthy of a £100,000 p/week salary.  Not in the mind of Arsenal’s board, who are still locked in stalemate with Theo Walcott’s representatives.  And so, whilst I should have been lost in ecstasy over Walcott’s outstanding display, I was instead consumed with the thought that Theo Walcott might finally be about to explode in to the player he’s long threatened to be, just six months before he walks out of the club on a Bosman free.

Yesterday, there was one man who took more delight in Walcott’s performance than Arsene Wenger, the Arsenal fans, or even Theo himself: his agent.  He will have been rubbing his hands together, as his negotiating position was enormously strengthened by this hattrick display.  The pressure upon Arsenal to meet his client’s demands has never been greater.  Equally, any potential suitors’ interest will have been piqued.  Theo holds all the cards.

I’ve long insisted that if he was going to sign, he would have done so by now.  We are just two days away from Walcott being able to formally discuss a contract with a new club.  It’s hard to question his commitment on the field; equally hard to ascertain his commitment off it.

Arsenal, of course, can’t afford to freeze him out.  In the past Arsene Wenger has had a squad so replete with options that he’s been able to leave the likes of Edu and Sylvain Wiltord out of the first-team squad once it became clear their futures lay elsewhere.  Not so this season.  The competition for fourth place is so fierce, and the squad so bear that an in-form Walcott is a guaranteed starter.

The question I keep coming back to is: if he hasn’t signed thus far, why would he sign now?  He doesn’t even have the threat of being omitted from the team hanging over him.  He can continue to play games, score goals, and let the offers from other clubs roll in.  By the end of the season he’ll have deals on the table that significantly surpass the £100k he is demanding from Arsenal – never mind the £75k or so they’re currently offering.

It’s why I was so gutted when Olivier Giroud volleyed that late opportunity against the bar.  I would have loved to have seen a hattrick scored by a player I am confident will be with us beyond May.  On the subject of Giroud, his introduction saw Theo moved out to the right.  In that position he still managed to score one and assist another inside fifteen minutes.  He’s doing well in the centre, but I’ve not seen much yet that I don’t think he could do coming in off the line from a wide starting position.  His form is not depending on his position.

Regardless of where he plays, it looks like he’ll have a tremendous goalscoring season.  Arsenal will benefit in the short-term, but as long as that contract remains unsigned, each goal will be accompanied by a familiar feeling of gloom as we achingly cheer the name of a player all but certain to desert the club come the summer.  It’s a bit like Robin van Persie last year, all over again.

Before I go I ought to give some praise to Newcastle United, who were excellent up around the 70th minute, at which point they collapsed.  It’s worth remembering that whilst our players had their feet up on Boxing Day, Newcastle were playing out a draining 4-3 at Old Trafford.  It showed, and the ludicrous scoreline in yesterday’s game can be attributed to the fact they completely ran out of gas.

They have some superb players, though.  I was impressed by two young midfielders who aren’t even regular starters for them.  First off, Sylvain Marveaux continued his impressive adaptation to English football, providing one particularly sumptuous cross for their third goal.  Then there was Gael Bigirimana, a 19 year old who last season was playing for Coventry City, who moved the ball intelligently and accurately all afternoon.

As for Demba Ba, if we don’t try to sign him for £7m then it is tantamount to mismanagement.  I made a point of watching him carefully from behind the goal, and his power, movement and finishing is outstanding.  Walcott and Giroud’s goals were heartening, but we’re still in need of more attacking options, and with Premier League experience and an affordable price tag, Ba fits the bill.

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Further reading: Player Ratings for Bleacher Report

Newcastle Preview, Theo Thoughts & SKREAMER competition

147 comments December 29th, 2012

Arsenal host Newcastle United today in our final match of 2012.  It’s been an up-and-down year – more on that next week – but victory today would enable us to end it with four consecutive Premier League wins.

The team news is worryingly good.  Worrying in that anything unfamiliar is unsettling, but also because a clean bill of health might encourage Arsene to keep his cheque-book closed in January.  The return from illness of Olivier Giroud gives Arsene his major selection headache: whether or not to reintroduce the Frenchman or persist with Theo Walcott in the central striking berth.

Much of Arsene’s press conference focused on Walcott’s hypothesised evolution in to a centre-forward:

“I like the signs that I have seen.  If you look at my statements, I always said that one day he would play through the middle and it grew in his brain.

He is now 23. I decided to play Thierry Henry at 23 through the middle because you have to learn a lot before. The fact that you play in other positions as well helps your technique.  On the wing you need a shorter technique against the line. Once you [then] play in the middle you can go on both sides.

From [the ages of] 19 to 23, Theo has learnt a lot. Now we will sometimes play him on the flanks and sometimes through the middle. I like what I have seen through the middle.”

I have to say I’m not convinced by this switch.  It seems odd that having resisted playing Walcott through the middle for so long, Arsene has suddenly introduced such a radical shift halfway through the season.  It looks, to me at least, like something of a desperate move, with as many as four possible motivating factors.  The first is his lack of options: Arsenal are patently lacking in quality strikers.  The second is a desire to convince Theo to sign a new deal and remain at Arsenal.  The third is to save a bit of money in January by turning Walcott in to a striker instead of bringing one in.  And the last, and arguably most worrying, is that Arsene might have been influenced by the huge consensus among the media that Walcott deserves a chance through the middle.

I don’t foresee it being a long-term solution.  Firstly, because I’m not certain that Walcott is more suited to the central role than one on the wing, but also because I don’t think Theo will be here come next season.  Arsenal still need a forward, and while Arsene insists he is preparing to be ‘busy’ in January, I am concerned he is mainly going to be busy making excuses about ‘super super quality’ and lack of value.

Today, Walcott is guaranteed to start, and my hunch is that despite all the noise from Arsene it’ll be on the wing.  Rotation is important at this time of year, and Giroud should be fairly well rested and raring to go.  Other than that, the team will surely be as we expect, with Podolski on the left flank, Cazorla joining Wilshere and Arteta in midfield, and Vermaelen and Mertesacker flanked by Gibbs and Sagna.  It’s possible that one of the centre-backs will be rested in the next couple of games, but I don’t think Arsene will take that chance today against the dangerous duo of Ba and Cisse – the former of which he has denied an interest in.  Again, a little worrying.

The fact that Arsenal had a rest of Boxing Day while Newcastle suffered a morale and energy-sapping last-minute 4-3 defeat at Old Trafford means we really have no excuses today: we ought to win.If you fancy a flutter on today’s match, then you can check out my predicted team and betting tips over at Unibet.

In other news today, I’ve got a bit of a competition for you lot.  The guys at Warrior Football have given me a pair of their new SKREAMER football boots to give away.

They’re a really lovely bit of kit.  I wore a pair myself in my final Sunday League game of 2012, and whilst the bright colours probably attracted an extra few kicks on the ankle, they feel great on the pitch.  They’re apparently packed full of scientific advances, much like the Predator was all those years ago, so fair play to Warrior for attempting to do something genuinely innovative.  You can read more about them here.

And if you fancy, you can nab yourselves a pair.  I’ll be running a competition – entry is via Twitter only, I’m afraid, so make sure you’re following me @Gunnerblog.  As we all know, a ‘Skreamer’ in football terminology is a rocket shot – a goal from distance that flies past a helpless goalkeeper.  My question is simple:

Which Arsenal player scored the most goals from outside the box last season?

Tweet me and tag your answer with #SKREAMER to go in to the hat.   You’ve got until Monday to enter.

Good luck to you, and good luck to Arsenal today.  Three points required to end 2012 on a relative high.  And three cheers for Pat Rice, who has been awarded a richly-deserved MBE.  Congratulations to him.

Everton 1 – 1 Arsenal: A good point to follow a bad one

786 comments November 30th, 2012

Seeing as this was a six-pointer, can we have two points for the draw?
To be honest, both sides will feel a singular point is a small return for what was an incredibly hard-fought game.  Our team looked a little leggy going in to it – God knows what they must feel like now.  Our early goal gave us a platform in the game, but you have to credit Everton for the way they fought back to dominate.  We had a few good chances on the counter, but Everton had a decent shout for a penalty, and overall you’d have to call 1-1 a fair result.  A draw at Goodison Park is never a bad result – it’s just a shame we didn’t go in the game with the cushion of three points at Villa Park.

Theo Walcott’s stats continue to impress…
His goal tally is now in to double figures for the season – he’s on a great run and it’s manifesting in his vastly improved finishing.  It’s been pointed out that he isn’t contributing hugely to our build-up play, but for me that simply underlines the fact that although he is deployed wide, he essentially plays as a striker.  His game is more about movement off the ball than intricate passing on it, and the fundamental flaws in his technique make that unlikely to change anytime soon.  Nevertheless, it’s hard to argue with the efficiency of his game.  He’s probably our most in-form player, and has abandoned his usual humility to talk himself up now.  That’s no bad thing – I like a bit of confidence – but I can’t help but feel he’s probably advertising himself to potential suitors as well as attempting to convince Arsenal to up their offer.

Defensively, this was our best performance for some time…
The early injury to Laurent Koscielny might have disrupted us, but aside from one aberration on the Everton goal, we were very solid indeed.  Kieran Gibbs’ injury doesn’t seem to have disrupted his good early season form, whilst Per Mertesacker continues to be remarkably consistent.  Credit is due, however, to two players who’ve been criticised in recent months: Thomas Vermaelen and Wojciech Szczesny.  The pair probably had their best games of the season to help keep the Blue tide at bay.  With Koscielny out for the next three weeks, let’s hope this performance marks the start of a better run of form for the skipper.

The period between now and Janaury will be crucial…
In that time we play six league games, four of which are at home.  The two away games are at Reading and Wigan.  The home games are against Swansea, WBA, West Ham and Newcastle.  It is no exaggeration or disrespect to the teams involved to say that we should be looking to win every single one of those games.  We’ve come through a tricky-looking November relatively unscathed, and are actually unbeaten since losing to Manchester United at the start of the month.  Now it’s time to ramp up the momentum with some wins.