You may think I’m crazy, but I’m not actually comparing this Arsenal side to that great Ajax team, more towards the entire Dutch culture towards football and it appears to relate to this new Arsenal side.

Naturally it is easy to look at past Dutch players at the club, when you had arguably the most influential player of his era in Dennis Bergkamp. He often said, ‘I guess I’m not interested in scoring ugly goals’, and this is clear to see nowadays with a number of flair players at the club, preferring to pass the ball to create an opening and scoring a ‘pure’ goal. It is this moral superiority of aesthetically better football, which causes defeats against inferior opposition. The Dutch have had a nemesis in the shape of the dreaded penalty shoot-out, and it is interesting to note that in 1998 World Cup Semi-final penalty shoot-out defeat against an inferior Brazil only Overmars and Bergkamp scored their respective spot-kicks, perhaps showing a different, perhaps English perspective towards this lottery. It is because of this moral high ground that perhaps the team have subconsciously not tried as much against teams in the lower half of the table, an argument clearly proven in the results against those very teams.

Moving on to the coach, Wenger is similar to the Romanian Stefan Kovacs, in his footballing philosophy. Both allowed their players freedom, in their style of play and used a closer man-management approach rather than the disciplinarians whom they succeeded in George Graham and Rinus Michels (excluding Bruce Rioch). It was in Kovacs’s years as coach, in which Ajax swept all aside in front of them, with a freedom to play and destroy. Both emphasised a team ethos and perhaps it is because the lack of a true leader that Arsenal failed. The most technically gifted players were the captains in Henry and Cruyff, and while one was tactically accomplished, and a leader, the other had a glaring, demotivating stare. While both left their respective teams, Cruyff, because he was voted out of the captaincy, and Henry, for personal reasons, they were both repressing the rest of their team-mates. It was rumoured that a number of the other Ajax players were disconcerted by Cruyff’s influence at the club, while the youngsters were intimidated by Henry’s glare and the enormity of his accomplishments.

While this Gunners team is nowhere near in the league of that great Ajax team, it can accomplish success through a style of football based on Michel’s idea, but with football now faster and more physical it would be impossible to create such a team. Ajax, like Arsenal in recent years did defeat big teams, such as Shankly’s Liverpool but could not bring home trophies due to a lack of experience, in similar fashion to Arsenal’s near misses in the Champions League and Carling Cup. Yet they eventually achieved greatness as Wenger can do so with this young, underrated team. Wenger even appears to be attempting to build such a side, with versatile players such as Hleb, Flamini and Sagna all a part of the Arsenal line up. He has even recently encouraged his defenders to burst forward, such as Toure’s run leading to a powerful penalty in the match against Fulham, and also Gallas’s forays forward against Ajax in preseason.

Naturally you wouldn’t expect to see van Persie as the furthest player back, as some sort of shape and discipline must be required to play in English football today. This comes through the reliable Gilberto and Fabregas axis, with allows the full backs to burst forward and overlap as they did effectively against Sparta in the Champions league qualifier recently. Arsenal’s tempo currently is too low to play such a brand of possession football as the extra few seconds allows the opposition to reshape their defence. Therefore there must be an option back in an attempt to retain the ball, this is why Gilberto must be open and cover any defensive position. It is this sort of decision making commonly seen in van Gaal’s Ajax of the nineties, where simplicity was used and triangles created on the pitch as is possible in the 4-5-1/4-3-3, which the Gunners are recently adopting. It is such simplicity, which Arsenal lack, for example, if the ten outfield players where on the edge of their box, Arsenal would try and pass through, when Cruyff would say, ‘pass around the majority’. The fluid attack gives Arsenal more options and a surprise in who will have the final shot on goal, but because of this style odd play, the team must become more efficient (another Dutch trait in which there is a lack of killer instinct) and defend as a unit.

Speaking of a unit, there are many potentially brilliant players at the club, but there must not be too many individualistic players, which causes a friction in team spirit. The same can be said of Holland at international tournaments, where each player is seeking personal glory and cannot even utter a word of the national anthem. This was similar to the spirit at Colney in 2005/06, with a split of the ‘invincibles’ and the younger players. Greed and money is a common issue in football…just ask Ashley Cole, this is a Dutch characteristic which appears frequently and thankfully there appears to be no sign of such an unnecessary attribute in the Arsenal squad currently. It was obvious that having different style of player up front changes the perspective of the game, while, the rest of the team, play aesthetically superior football, which in reality appears have little end product, using an awkward figure point changes the attacking options. The Czech Republic team with Jan Koller had skilful players such as Nedved and Rosicky, but rather than a flat pass as a final ball, Koller provides aerial threat, and a physical style that mixes well with the flair players and their ‘tiki taka’, as Sid Lowe of the Guardian put it, style of play (pass and move).

In conclusion, this is why against gritty teams, which Arsenal feel superior to, should be up against a Bendtner style player, who won a number of headers against the huge (but average) Zat Knight, because Bendtner does not play that style of ‘Dutch’ football, but the more efficient ‘German’ style (if you forgive me for another stereotypical comparision). He is still young, thus his technique will improve as will his experience of top flight football. Therefore, Arsenal must strive to use a player, who will adapt to their playing style, but also bring one of his own, and that is difficult in today’s game.

Posted on August 18th, 2007 | No Comments »
Filed under: Arsenal, football, international, striker, tactics

After the departure of Arsenal legend Thierry Henry to Barcelona, fans across the globe were both shocked and excited. Who was Arsene Wenger lining up to replace the French genius? Names thrown into the hat included those of the likes of Huntelaar, Owen, Torres and even that of Samuel Eto’o. A week later, the striker that came to Arsenal was not one of those ‘big names’, but a relative nobody compared to those players. Eduardo da Silva, nicknamed ‘Dudu’ joined Arsenal on July 3rd, 2007 and here I try to inform Arsenal fans about what a player we have on our hands.

Most Arsenal fans would have had a vague recollection of the name when he signed with us, remembering that he featured against the Gunners in a two legged Champions League qualifier last year. Although he shone, is he the man capable of filling the giant-shaped hole in Arsenal’s squad left by Henry? Even though most would say no, judging from his past experiences there is nothing that says he will not be able to do so. Brazilian-born but a player for the Croatian national team, da Silva has starred for Dinamo Zagreb in the Croatian league. His tally of 73 goals in just a 104 appearances speaks for itself, as does the numerous accolades he has won while with them. Voted Croatian player of the year in 2004 and 2006, as well as being the league’s top scorer in 2006 and 2007, Eduardo’s performances and goals have been instrumental in Dinamo’s march to two Croatian league titles as well as two Croatian Cup triumphs. His 34 goals in just 32 appearances last season was a new Croatian league record, breaking the 29 goals scored by ex-Dinamo striker Goran Vlaovi?.

While da Silva is nothing short of brilliant on the domestic stage, he is a star player for the Croatian national team as well. His stellar performances on the international stage have been one of the main reasons for Croatia rising to the top of Group E in the European 2008 qualifiers, a group containing the likes of England, Russia and Israel. With a record of 8 goals in 14 appearances, his goals per game ratio is up there with the best and surely will only improve. He already knows how to score against the big names, the highlights of his time with Croatia including a looping header to beat England goalkeeper Paul Robinson on the way to a 2-0 win for Croatia as well as a hattrick against Israel to wrap up a 4-3 win away from home. His partnership with Luka Modric has blossomed both at club and international level, and as reports linking Modric to Arsenal grow stronger and stronger, we may be seeing both of them linking up in the red and white very soon.

Surely the biggest question about how da Silva will cope is whether he can make the step up from the weaker Croatian league to the unforgiving Premiership- if he does, Arsenal will have a terrifying player on their hands. The weather should not be a problem, as anyone that can play football in the freezing climate of Croatia should have no problem with the relatively pleasant weather of England. Whereas other players like ex-Liverpool striker Morientes and ex-Arsenal player Jose Reyes could not adapt to the physical side of the Premiership because of its extreme difference from La Liga, the Croatian league is hardly light, with a lack of skill made up for with bone-crunching tackles. Whether he will set the Premiership alight or not is a question yet to be answered of course, as we can never be fully sure when the likes of Baptista, a player who seemed perfect for the English game have failed. Dudu, however seems to have the abilities to succeed and the attitude to replace Henry’s place in the team as well.

Where will Eduardo play? His best position is up front, although he is capable of playing on the wing as well. With him and Van Persie as our strikers, we would have two players that are left footed- an unusual strike partnership to say the least. If he were to be played out wide, his left foot could offer us something different as none of our other wide players are left footed. Although he is a decent player, the bonus about this Wenger signing is that he is not good enough to be guaranteed a place in the starting eleven- meaning he will have to fight for his place and thus, hopefully put in good performances week in, week out. Even the fans that had never heard of Dudu must have been gripped with excitement when they saw this player sign for us, because with players and signings, the phrase “Wenger knows” has rarely been proven wrong.

Posted on August 1st, 2007 | No Comments »
Filed under: Arsenal, da silva, striker

Summers are known for two things in the football world- the scarcity of the sport that everyone loves to watch and the inevitable rumours of players leaving Arsenal. Who will it be this year, Vieira to Real? Pires to Inter? Henry to Barca? Ashley Cole to Chelsea? These are many of the questions that have troubled Gooners across the world. Coming into this week, Vieira had gone to Inter Milan via Juventus two years earlier, Pires had gone to Villareal, Ashley Cole had gone to Chelsea in a part swap for William Gallas yet one person remained- Thierry Henry. For the past eight years, Henry hasawed not just Arsenal fans with his pace, vision and skill but the whole of the Premiership. Defenders knew not where to turn when the Frenchman ran at them, knowing committing themselves could leave them grasping at a red and white shirt that had just slipped the ball through their legs, or even worse left them flat on their backsides as Henry has done to too many defenders these past years at Arsenal. But when Barca came calling, instability at his beloved Arsenal as well as a desire to win things led him to the only other club he said ‘played the Arsenal way’. Here I compare and contrast the likely replacements for Henry. Now he’s gone- who best to fill his place? This is no doubt a question thousands of Arsenal fans across the globe are asking themselves.

- Darren Bent

The Charlton forward guarantees one thing- goals. The man regularly has featured in the top ten in terms of goals scored rankings, and would take a move to jump up a division with open arms considering his team Charlton were just relegated. Bent being a lifelong Arsenal fan, the club would have one of its own playing up front and surely he would not desire to leave us, even to go to the likes of Real Madrid or Barcelona; however, being English he will undoubtedly cost far more than he is worth : he has been valued at around £18m pounds by his club , and they look unlikely to sell for anything else. Also, according to reports, he has nearly sealed a move to Tottenham, and even though he would probably opt for us and Champions League football if we went in for him- I doubt we should get into a bidding war for a player that has never set the world alight.

- Nicholas Anelka

The ex-Arsenal man name has surprisingly cropped up, as Wenger seems to want to finally have Anelka realise his potential at Arsenal Football Club. Although he left the club in acrimonious circumstances when his brothers forced a move, he seems to have matured as both a footballer and a person. He offers a quick fix- he will stay for 2-3 years while the likes of Bendtner, Vela and Adebayor develop as better players, as they have promised to do ever since they were brought to Arsenal as youth players. He should score goals as he knows how to play the Arsenal way. Anelka comes cheap, seemingly available for around £9 million pounds- causing many Arsenal fans across the globe to call for his signature. All throughout Anelka’s career, he has never reached the heights he did at Arsenal- only hitting more than 20 goals once in the last six years. Also, his desire to leave Bolton, a club that just a year ago took a gamble of nearly £9 million pounds to lure him from Fenerbahce to the Premiership could prove troublesome for Arsenal in the future. Who’s to say that he will not leave Arsenal in a year’s time if say AC Milan, Real Madrid, Barcelona or Inter come in for him?

- Klaas Jan Huntelaar

Klaas Jan Huntelaar is an intriguing player. Even more of a goal poacher than Darren Bent, he has scored for fun since he started his professional football career. How many times this season and last have we seen an Arsenal player pass to another despite being in a good shooting position? Having hit 72 goals in the past two seasons, yet not having a single assist to his name shows that he is capable of putting the ball in the back of the net and perhaps has the one thing most Arsenal forwards do not- selfishness. How many times this season and last have we seen an Arsenal player pass to another despite being in a good shooting position? What goes against Huntelaar, however, is that his goals have mainly been scored in the Dutch Eredivisie, a weaker league than the Premiership. Comparisons to one Mateja Kezman, who flopped at Chelsea despite scoring a boatload in the Dutch league have been made- I feel a comparison to Ruud Van Nistelrooy suits Huntelaar better as he seems to have all the tools to succeed in the Premiership. Also, his partnership with Robin Van Persie has flourished in the few games they have played together on the International stage, and Arsenal could only reap the benefits of them playing together all the time. Although not cheap at £15 million pounds, he is certainly not unaffordable , and a £15 million pound investment for someone that will score goals for the next 5-10 years is not one too extravagant to make.

- Fernando Torres

Fernando Torres is one of the still remaining stars of the Spanish league that has not moved on to a bigger club. Now the captain of Athletico Madrid, it is his time to go on if a suitable offer came in for him since his club have not qualified for Europe and do not look like qualifying for the Champions League for another five years at the very least, with Real, Barca, Sevilla, Valencia all possessing better players and more money than them. Perhaps his price tag has put off potential investors- a reported £28 million pounds is required to break his contract, although a supposed £15 million pounds & Reyes deal is all that is being mentioned for Arsenal at the moment. Could he do well in the rough hustle and bustle of the English Premiership? The answer to this question would determine whether he would turn out to be a massive success or a huge flop. Comparisons with Thierry Henry have been mooted, with the Spaniard being able to score with either foot or his head equally well. Also, he forms a reward-reaping partnership with Arsenal midfield maestro Cesc Fabregas on the international stage and would surely only enhance that partnership with the Gunners. The disadvantage of Torres is that he would take a year or two to bed in; with Tottenham & Newcastle heavily strengthening along with the rest of the top four, Arsenal cannot afford to be left behind. Also, are funds present to finance a move for both Torres and the winger to solve the width problem so evident on the pitch at Ashburton Grove?

- Ryan Babel

Ryan Babel has been linked with Arsenal almost since the start of the new millenium. Equally adept at playing on the wing or up front, he has already been compared to Thierry Henry by Dutch coach Marco Van Basten and will only improve with time. Available for a mere £6 million pounds due to a buyout clause in his contract, he could fill Arsenal’s need of a new striker and new winger in one swoop while still leaving plenty of money in the transfer budget for other players. As with Huntelaar, he has played with Van Persie on the International stage and he recently shone in the European U21 Championships with the victorious Dutch team. He has repeatedly come out in the press speaking of his desire to play for Arsenal and under Wenger. However, Babel has never really impressed me- his poor first touch means he would find it difficult to thrive in the Premiership. I consider Babel a slight upgrade on the ever improving Walcott, but Arsenal would be best suited letting the Englishman have his time in the first team rather than buying the Dutch player. A somewhat headless chicken on the wing and someone that has never been prolific up front, he would take at least 2-3 years to reach his pomp- time that we cannot afford. Could Babel come in and replace the 30 goals a season that Henry used to give us? He is hardly someone to put your hopes and dreams on, and in the 2-3 years that Babel will take to adjust and reach his full potential we will have Walcott ready to terrorize defenses across the continent. One for the future, and Arsenal have enough of those players- someone is needed to come in and make an immediate impact.

All of these players have aspects to their game that have made them much vaunted across the football world. The pace of Babel, the intelligence of Anelka, the guile of Darren Bent or the selfishness of Huntelaar could help us in our quest for honours. The best man for Arsenal out of all those players is Huntelaar. He will be able to come in and make an impact on both the domestic and the European stage, something that we need a striker to do greatly. He possesses the selfishness and skill needed to succeed in the unforgiving Premiership and would no doubt placate fans who have wanted a big name player at Arsenal. This player is just hitting his peak and remember- he was the first man to net at the newly opened Emirates stadium, a sentimental thought to hold in the hearts of Arsenal fans. Those that have seen him play will know he was born score goals and he would only blossom under the tutelage of the wise Arsene Wenger. Although he will be able to make a mark now, he will also be there for the future and would complement either Adebayor or Van Persie equally well. Also, we will have a player that we know can do the business, in case of injuries and when Adebayor travels to the African Cup of Nations. One for the present and the future, Klaas Jan Huntelaar could become the ’super, super class’ of player Wenger wanted at Arsenal.

Posted on June 26th, 2007 | No Comments »
Filed under: Arsenal, Barcelona, Gunners, Henry, La Liga, football, money, soccer, striker, top four