Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Wenger is always right... right?!

There's a fine line between brilliance and madness, and sometimes Mr. Wenger just makes you wonder doesn't he? Well fear not fellow gooners, the man is sane and I'm here to prove it!

The past few days have been filled with what some might call 'dodgy' decisions by Arsene. Obviously the captaincy issue is the one that's been picked on by the press, but don't let their creative storylines get to you. Reading whats been said in today's news you'd think Gilberto is about to walk out on the club, but haven't we gotten used to constant press exaggeration by now?! Sure the guy might be annoyed - I'd be if I found out I've been ignored as captain by reading it online - but these aren't kids in the playground fighting over who gets to be captain, we're talking about professionals. Still, you can't help but feel for the guy, he took on the role of captain impressively when Thierry was out last season and he just oozes class, professionalism and loyalty. Now you might all be wondering what on earth led Arsene to choose Gallas of all people. Well, in order to find that out let's take a look at some of the things the manager said:

1- Arsene said he needs someone with plenty of experience to lead the team. Lets assume he looks at individuals at a reasonable age (someone over 25) and number of years played in the premiership (the more the better). He'd end up with the following in ascending order according to experience:
i. Gallas: Age 29 / Exp. 6 seasons
ii. Toure: Age 26/ Exp. 5 seasons (plus 3 months as we signed him in February of 2002)
iii. Gilberto: Age 30/ Exp. 5 seasons
Look familiar? Yep, these three individuals are the ones Arsene elected as captain and vice-captains. Okay, this reason alone is obviously not enough to base your decision on so let's keep going.

2- Arsene claims the main reason he chose Gallas is that defenders are best suited to be captains as they have the best view of the pitch. Now, I must say I'm not completely sold on that reason, I mean I agree with that argument but take a look at his past 2 captains (Henry & Vieira) they weren't defenders! If he really believes that, why didn't the captain's armband ever go to Sol Campbell when he was around?

3- The reason I (and many others) believe Gallas was ultimately preferred is another one of Arsene's clever tactics to avoid unrest in the squad. Not more than a month ago, it was Gallas who complained to the press regarding the club's lack of ambitions. Two seasons ago it was Henry who came out saying something along the same lines, and what did Wenger do to keep our ex-hero happy then? Yep, he made him captain! Should we be worried? Not at all! This work of genius by our manager is already paying off (take a look at some of Gallas's interviews on Arsenal.com), the guy is suddenly 100% committed and he truly believes in this squad!

Another issue thats been brought up by many is that of Djourou leaving to Birmingham on loan. Yes, that leaves us with Senderos as the only natural back up should anything happen to Gallas or Toure. And yes, Kolo is leaving in January along with Eboue to the African Nations Cup. To answer your next question, no, Arsene is not that short sighted. Djourou's loan spell ends on the first day of this coming January meaning he'll be back in time to cover for Kolo with plenty of valuable experience he'd hopefully have accumulated by then, and don't forget in the meantime we've got Alex Song or Gilberto who've both deputized in the back previously (not the most reassuring two, I know!). Of course that's only in the unlikely case of two defenders getting injured - we're not that unlucky are we?

Before signing off, just a quick update on the transfers front with news of Blackburn's Morten Gamst Pedersen being linked with Arsenal. He was tracked by Man U before Blackburn snatched him and he's been quite exceptional for them. Pluses: He can play on both flanks (areas where we do need cover), the stats seem to favor him when compared with Hleb and Rosicky last season - he not only scored more but had more assists than our pair- and he often comes up with that spectacular goal from time to time. Let's not get too excited before anything materializes though..

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