It’s been as quiet as the day following a matchday usually is, with all the talking points of the previous game spoken to death and the press quotes picked apart. It’s lead to various previous discussions being dredged up, most notably the near-constant goalkeeping debate.
Wojciech-yourself
Our stick-guarding Pole made a rather poor show of Andreas Weimann’s effort for Villa’s equaliser yesterday, letting a hopeful shot slip under him. He’s come under scrutiny numerous times since becoming the Number 1, and the criticism has bubbled back up.
Long shots have always been a weakness for him, and the re-emergence of this has lead to calls for him to be dropped, and then replaced in the summer. Names like Sunderland’s Simon Mignolet and Stoke’s Asimir Begovic have been linked repeatedly, and there’s no question he’d benefit from decent competition. The real question is whether replacing him is really needed, or viable.
Having a player who can come in and do a job is a great idea, as the likes of Vito Mannone are simply hapless, but dropping and replacing Sczceszny seems like a bit of a knee-jerk reaction. He’s only 22 and is learning on the job, so to speak. Some may say this isn’t good enough but David de Gea is doing the same at United. To be at the level he is already is impressive, and most goalkeepers aren’t seen as complete players until their late twenties, so it’s fair to keep him in the lineup, unless he starts Almunia-ing.
(Almunia-ing has a range of definitions, from buggering up a simple corner to losing your club a Champions League final)
Could have been us (losing to Swansea)
Swansea beat Bradford 5-0 today to win the League Cup, causing much wailing and gnashing of teeth among Gooners. It doesn’t get any better remembering we were knocked out by a League 2 side, especially one that looked so very out of place at Wembley. Swansea have impressed this season and are worthy winners, but you can’t help have wondered what might have happened if Arsenal had decided to turn up at Valley Parade.
Calls to bring in the likes of Williams, Michu and even Laudrup may be a tad premature however. Michu and his coach are both having excellent first seasons, but it’s perhaps best to see if they can produce consistent top-level excellence before making the call. Ashley Williams is a fine centre-back, but Swansea are well-drilled, and Arsenal less so. Our issue is more coaching than personnel.
Besides, there is a good reason Swansea are upper mid-table, and Arsenal are pushing for the top 3. Winning a cup doesn’t change that.
Transfer talk-again
Today, we want to sign Yohan Cabaye in the summer, according to the Express. The Frenchman is certainly tenacious, and could offer a more creative presence in the midfield as an alternative to Mikel Arteta perhaps, but he isn’t the physical box-to-box runner many think is needed at Arsenal. That doesn’t mean the interest isn’t genuine-Arsenal did enquire about him in the summer, but as has been said before, all transfer speculation is just distracting at the moment, unless it materialises as a Podolski-style early announcement.
Other than that it’s quiet, apart from Arjen Robben suggesting Jack Wilshere could leave Arsenal unless we start winning things again. We’ll doubtless cross that bridge in a couple of years time, and for now that’s all it shall remain-an unpleasant future possibility.
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