By 1970’s Gooner
It is slightly unfortunate that Arsenal are now entering the most important series of games in their calendar without their main striker in Robin Van Persie.
It is a period where this young team will have to show its credentials against the big boys of Liverpool and Manchester United. The latter following an away game in the Champions League to Slavia Prague.
It’s not your first team players that win you trophies but your squad. But just who can adequately replace Van Persie for these games has now assumed major importance following Eduardo’s very disappointing display against Bolton.
He has not yet adapted to the pace, tight marking from behind and in your face type of English football.
He could not hold the ball up front with the result that he couldn't connect with Adebayor nor bring other players into the game. He reminds me of similar performances put in by Adebayor in his first season in this League.
Eduardo was similarly ineffective on the last occasion he was given a start which was against Blackburn away.
All this poses serious selection dilemmas for Wenger who has other options of course.
His first is to play Hleb just behind Adebayor in 4 5 1 formation with Rosicky and Eboue/Walcott as the wide midfield men.
He reverted to this when he made the inspired match winning changes against Bolton. It was also the formation that served him well at the beginning of the season. It served Hleb as well.
The second option is to bring Bendtner on to partner Adebayor in a 4 4 2 formation.
I watched Bendtner perform very well for Denmark in the Euro qualifiers and his direct physical style is at the moment more effective than Eduardo’s ball to feet approach.
The more unexpected but interesting option is to reinstall Gilberto into a three man midfield, in a 4 3 3 formation along Fabregas and Flamini.
Adebayor could then be flanked by Hleb and Rosicky. Fabregas and Flamini pushing forward in support as and when the occasion demands.
Judging by Wenger’s actions in team selection so far he is likely to give Eduardo every chance to prove himself.
He will probably select him for the Champions League game in Prague and give him the chance to show what he can do and hope he can get a goal which will prop up his confidence level.
But these types of games cannot be compared to the pressure of facing the Liverpools and Man Utds of this world.
Arsene Wenger has some serious thinking to do.
Out of the walkway and onto the motorway. Can Eduardo propel Arsenal to the title starting today against Bolton?
Are you English or Goonerish?
Showing posts with label Eduardo Da Silva. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Eduardo Da Silva. Show all posts
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Monday, September 10, 2007
Eduardo Da Silva explodes for Croatia. Plus the goals on video
By 1970's Gooner
Croatia beat Estonia 2-0 at home on Saturday, courtesy of two excellent goals from Eduardo da Silva. Croatia are now top in Group E with Russia and England lying second and third respectively.
Eduardo showed what he is capable of doing in front of goal which is why Wenger after all paid 10m to buy him from Dinamo Zagreb over the summer.
He hasn’t produced this type of form yet for Arsenal but judging by these two goals he is quite capable of hitting double figures this season.
As his Croatia manager and ex West Ham player Bilic, intimated to Arsene Wenger, once he gets through the initial phase-in period he will “explode”
The striker scored with an overhead kick in the 39th minute from inside the box and again from a pass from Luka Modric, another reported target of Wenger’s, in first-half stoppage-time.
This was a spectacular left-foot shot into the top right corner from the edge of the penalty area proving he can score from outside the box too.
He has now scored eight goals for Croatia in this qualifying campaign. Let’s hope he continues this scoring spree in an Arsenal shirt.
You can watch the goals at the top of the page by clicking on the video window.
Would you welcome Dein back? Most of you would!
Bad news: Gallas is out, Gilberto is in
Croatia beat Estonia 2-0 at home on Saturday, courtesy of two excellent goals from Eduardo da Silva. Croatia are now top in Group E with Russia and England lying second and third respectively.
Eduardo showed what he is capable of doing in front of goal which is why Wenger after all paid 10m to buy him from Dinamo Zagreb over the summer.
He hasn’t produced this type of form yet for Arsenal but judging by these two goals he is quite capable of hitting double figures this season.
As his Croatia manager and ex West Ham player Bilic, intimated to Arsene Wenger, once he gets through the initial phase-in period he will “explode”
The striker scored with an overhead kick in the 39th minute from inside the box and again from a pass from Luka Modric, another reported target of Wenger’s, in first-half stoppage-time.
This was a spectacular left-foot shot into the top right corner from the edge of the penalty area proving he can score from outside the box too.
He has now scored eight goals for Croatia in this qualifying campaign. Let’s hope he continues this scoring spree in an Arsenal shirt.
You can watch the goals at the top of the page by clicking on the video window.
Would you welcome Dein back? Most of you would!
Bad news: Gallas is out, Gilberto is in
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Who should partner Robin Van Persie?
By 1970’s Gooner
For regular visitors to this site my views have been made clear. Robin Van Persie is not really a centre forward in the sense that he is not a strong physical front target man.
He is better deployed behind or next to a strong centre forward and not as a lone
striker.
I also believe that Wenger needs to sign another experienced forward. This is for both football and practical reasons.
Football reasons
The current squad consists of four forward players. Eduardo may be a goal scorer but he is not a front target man.
In a way his style of play is more like Robin’s. Playing them together will not necessarily offer them the environment they seek to score their goals.
Adebayor is a target man and so is Bendtner. Adebayor will do a good job but goals do not come that easily to him and Bendtner is not yet trusted by Wenger to start games.
Another aspect to take into account is the relative lack of experience in this area.
Robin Van Persie and Adebayor are only 23 and 22 respectively. The addition of Eduardo to the squad (aged 24) does not of course do much to increase the average age.
The practical reasons are equally important
Account has also to be taken of injury, suspensions, loss of form and the Africa Cup of Nations.
Remember what happened last season when injuries to Henry and Van Persie in particular deprived the team of its two most lethal forwards? RVP was also close to getting a second yellow card against Blackburn.
Taking into account that Adebayor will be away at the Africa Cup of Nations for about a month then it becomes obvious that the squad will lose serious depth.
Now if a premiership experienced forward with goal scoring ability was recruited (there is talk of Anelka again) then it suddenly gives a very attractive outlook indeed to this Arsenal team.
But assuming that Wenger does not recruit anyone else who should partner RVP?
To my mind it’s a straight race between Adebayor and Bendtner. Barring availability constraints I would opt for Bendtner because he is stronger and more physical than Adebayor.
In this way he provides a different option to Arsenal’s intricate but often predictable style of play. But this is my own biased view if you like!
As you may be aware, for the last week we run a poll on this site on this very question: Who should partner RVP?
In total 734 votes were cast. They would have been many more because the number of visits to the site during that period reached new heights but Google’s new poll facility kept breaking down!
The results are interesting. The player who played most in that position so far, Hleb, received the least votes with only 11%.
Obviously most of you do not think that he will be able to hold on to that position when other players get fit, as indeed was the case for the game against Blackburn.
Most votes went to Eduardo with 45%. Obviously a lot of Arsenal fans are pinning their hopes on the new recruit, trusting Wenger in his judgment.
This is so even if Eduardo did not really feature much during the pre-season and the early stages of the campaign.
The more surprising result is the close number of votes between Adebayor (23%) and Bendtner (21%). It seems that there is a lot more trust being placed on the young lad by the fans than Wenger is prepared to show.
If Wenger does not get the cheque book out then he may well find himself having to trust young Bendtner sooner than he thinks.
Who should partner RVP? Poll results:
Eduardo Da Silva 45%
Emmanuel Adebayor 23%
Nicklas Bendtner 21%
Alexander Hleb 11%
Total votes cast: 734
Thanks for your support, comments and votes!
Lehmann’s clanger hides Wenger’s and Arsenal’s sins
Bendtner should start every game. It makes more tactical sense
For regular visitors to this site my views have been made clear. Robin Van Persie is not really a centre forward in the sense that he is not a strong physical front target man.
He is better deployed behind or next to a strong centre forward and not as a lone
striker.
I also believe that Wenger needs to sign another experienced forward. This is for both football and practical reasons.
Football reasons
The current squad consists of four forward players. Eduardo may be a goal scorer but he is not a front target man.
In a way his style of play is more like Robin’s. Playing them together will not necessarily offer them the environment they seek to score their goals.
Adebayor is a target man and so is Bendtner. Adebayor will do a good job but goals do not come that easily to him and Bendtner is not yet trusted by Wenger to start games. Another aspect to take into account is the relative lack of experience in this area.
Robin Van Persie and Adebayor are only 23 and 22 respectively. The addition of Eduardo to the squad (aged 24) does not of course do much to increase the average age.
The practical reasons are equally important
Account has also to be taken of injury, suspensions, loss of form and the Africa Cup of Nations.
Remember what happened last season when injuries to Henry and Van Persie in particular deprived the team of its two most lethal forwards? RVP was also close to getting a second yellow card against Blackburn.
Taking into account that Adebayor will be away at the Africa Cup of Nations for about a month then it becomes obvious that the squad will lose serious depth.
Now if a premiership experienced forward with goal scoring ability was recruited (there is talk of Anelka again) then it suddenly gives a very attractive outlook indeed to this Arsenal team.
But assuming that Wenger does not recruit anyone else who should partner RVP?
To my mind it’s a straight race between Adebayor and Bendtner. Barring availability constraints I would opt for Bendtner because he is stronger and more physical than Adebayor.
In this way he provides a different option to Arsenal’s intricate but often predictable style of play. But this is my own biased view if you like!As you may be aware, for the last week we run a poll on this site on this very question: Who should partner RVP?
In total 734 votes were cast. They would have been many more because the number of visits to the site during that period reached new heights but Google’s new poll facility kept breaking down!
The results are interesting. The player who played most in that position so far, Hleb, received the least votes with only 11%.
Obviously most of you do not think that he will be able to hold on to that position when other players get fit, as indeed was the case for the game against Blackburn.
Most votes went to Eduardo with 45%. Obviously a lot of Arsenal fans are pinning their hopes on the new recruit, trusting Wenger in his judgment.
This is so even if Eduardo did not really feature much during the pre-season and the early stages of the campaign.
The more surprising result is the close number of votes between Adebayor (23%) and Bendtner (21%). It seems that there is a lot more trust being placed on the young lad by the fans than Wenger is prepared to show.
If Wenger does not get the cheque book out then he may well find himself having to trust young Bendtner sooner than he thinks.
Who should partner RVP? Poll results:
Eduardo Da Silva 45%
Emmanuel Adebayor 23%
Nicklas Bendtner 21%
Alexander Hleb 11%
Total votes cast: 734
Thanks for your support, comments and votes!
Lehmann’s clanger hides Wenger’s and Arsenal’s sins
Bendtner should start every game. It makes more tactical sense
Monday, August 20, 2007
Lehmann’s clanger hides Wenger’s and Arsenal’s sins
By 1970’s Gooner
Everybody would of course blame “poor” Jens Lehmann for dropping a clanger and gifting Blackburn a very fortuitous equalizer. And it certainly looked that, despite Blackburn’s resurgence in the second half, Arsenal were going to hold out for a very scrappy but morale boosting away win.
But having watched the encounter live I formed the opinion that it need not have turned out such a close and scrappy game.
Arsenal strangely enough were outfought in midfield and could not dictate play as we know they can. The result was that Fabregas was subdued and the supply to the two front men was not as often or as good as it usually is.
There are two major reasons for this.
The first has to do with the fact that due to the physical nature of the opponents, the Arsenal players, in their desire to show to everybody that they can mix it too, forgot how to play football.
Blackburn’s physical approach (especially from that prat Savage) was intended to intimidate them and put them out of their stride.
It did not succeed in intimidating them but it shifted the Arsenal’s players focus and minds away from playing the beautiful game to dishing it out themselves.
This is exactly what happened in the away game at Sparta Prague, a game I also watched live. Except on that occasion Lehmann and the post saved Arsenal.
There is another equally important reason for the loss of midfield control and it has to do with Wenger’s selection to start with Eduardo. This is because Eduardo was returning from injury and had not played in the Premiership yet.
As often happens in football, due to its zero sum characteristic and reliance on team coordination, if one or more of its parts or players is not functioning well the whole of the team suffers.
Giving him his debut in such a tough away fixture was to my mind a gamble. In fact it was a gamble Wenger need not have taken because by doing so he not only weakened the side but had to change a thus far winning formula by switching the formation from 4 4 1 1 to a straight 4 4 2.
In addition, this deprived the midfield area of the extra player it needed on various occasions which would have come from the deeper lying forward. Hleb in other words.
Loss of midfield control deprived Arsenal the usual dominance it enjoys against such teams and resulted in a scrappy and physical game which invariably suited the less technical side.
Blackburn Vs Arsenal. Predictions and betting suggestions
Walcott and Clichy should be the wide players against Blackburn
Everybody would of course blame “poor” Jens Lehmann for dropping a clanger and gifting Blackburn a very fortuitous equalizer. And it certainly looked that, despite Blackburn’s resurgence in the second half, Arsenal were going to hold out for a very scrappy but morale boosting away win.
But having watched the encounter live I formed the opinion that it need not have turned out such a close and scrappy game.
Arsenal strangely enough were outfought in midfield and could not dictate play as we know they can. The result was that Fabregas was subdued and the supply to the two front men was not as often or as good as it usually is.
There are two major reasons for this.
The first has to do with the fact that due to the physical nature of the opponents, the Arsenal players, in their desire to show to everybody that they can mix it too, forgot how to play football.
Blackburn’s physical approach (especially from that prat Savage) was intended to intimidate them and put them out of their stride. It did not succeed in intimidating them but it shifted the Arsenal’s players focus and minds away from playing the beautiful game to dishing it out themselves.
This is exactly what happened in the away game at Sparta Prague, a game I also watched live. Except on that occasion Lehmann and the post saved Arsenal.
There is another equally important reason for the loss of midfield control and it has to do with Wenger’s selection to start with Eduardo. This is because Eduardo was returning from injury and had not played in the Premiership yet.
As often happens in football, due to its zero sum characteristic and reliance on team coordination, if one or more of its parts or players is not functioning well the whole of the team suffers.
Giving him his debut in such a tough away fixture was to my mind a gamble. In fact it was a gamble Wenger need not have taken because by doing so he not only weakened the side but had to change a thus far winning formula by switching the formation from 4 4 1 1 to a straight 4 4 2.
In addition, this deprived the midfield area of the extra player it needed on various occasions which would have come from the deeper lying forward. Hleb in other words.
Loss of midfield control deprived Arsenal the usual dominance it enjoys against such teams and resulted in a scrappy and physical game which invariably suited the less technical side.
Blackburn Vs Arsenal. Predictions and betting suggestions
Walcott and Clichy should be the wide players against Blackburn
Saturday, August 04, 2007
Ajax Vs Arsenal. Interesting choices for Wenger’s team selection
By 1970's Gooner
With only days remaining for the opening game of the new season and no more friendlies scheduled I would expect that Wenger will field what his starting eleven will be for the Fulham game tonight (against Ajax in the Amsterdam Tournament).
This will give them a last outing before the curtain opener and the opportunity to jell together under the pressure of an important game in front of a large crowd and very capable opponents.
Eboue has impressed with his performances in both tournaments and he seems to me to have done more than enough to be starting tonight. This means that Wenger has to make a decision for the right back position between Hoyte and Sagna.
Sagna’s performances have impressed me. After only two appearances he settled in very well and formed a very effective pairing with Eboue when they played together. I think he will get the nod over Hoyte.
Assuming Clichy plays at left back then for the other wide midfield position there are two possibilities. Rosicky and Hleb. I would go for Hleb as he has looked much sharper recently albeit in a different position.
Wenger could of course play Hleb just behind Van Persie where he was very effective in his last game. And Eduardo could be tried on the left wing which would be an interesting choice.
As far as the attack is concerned the question is who Wenger would pick to partner Robin Van Persie. He will most probably go for Eduardo. He did after all score a goal in the last game and you don’t put your new 8.5m signing on the bench do you?
But to me Bendtner’s performances so far have impressed me. And his linking with Van Persie was very good; much better than Eduardo’s.
In addition Van Persie is much more effective playing off a strong front man rather than leading the line. And this was very evident last season when Henry was around and now with Bendtner in the friendlies. When Adebayor returns he will most probably be the front man so where would Eduardo play then?
The rest of the team picks itself I would think, with Lehman in goal and Toure with Gallas in central defence. In the absence of Gilberto Silva a central midfield pairing of Fabregas and the excellent Diaby looks very likely.
With only days remaining for the opening game of the new season and no more friendlies scheduled I would expect that Wenger will field what his starting eleven will be for the Fulham game tonight (against Ajax in the Amsterdam Tournament).
This will give them a last outing before the curtain opener and the opportunity to jell together under the pressure of an important game in front of a large crowd and very capable opponents.
Eboue has impressed with his performances in both tournaments and he seems to me to have done more than enough to be starting tonight. This means that Wenger has to make a decision for the right back position between Hoyte and Sagna.
Sagna’s performances have impressed me. After only two appearances he settled in very well and formed a very effective pairing with Eboue when they played together. I think he will get the nod over Hoyte.
Assuming Clichy plays at left back then for the other wide midfield position there are two possibilities. Rosicky and Hleb. I would go for Hleb as he has looked much sharper recently albeit in a different position.
Wenger could of course play Hleb just behind Van Persie where he was very effective in his last game. And Eduardo could be tried on the left wing which would be an interesting choice.
As far as the attack is concerned the question is who Wenger would pick to partner Robin Van Persie. He will most probably go for Eduardo. He did after all score a goal in the last game and you don’t put your new 8.5m signing on the bench do you?
But to me Bendtner’s performances so far have impressed me. And his linking with Van Persie was very good; much better than Eduardo’s.
In addition Van Persie is much more effective playing off a strong front man rather than leading the line. And this was very evident last season when Henry was around and now with Bendtner in the friendlies. When Adebayor returns he will most probably be the front man so where would Eduardo play then?
The rest of the team picks itself I would think, with Lehman in goal and Toure with Gallas in central defence. In the absence of Gilberto Silva a central midfield pairing of Fabregas and the excellent Diaby looks very likely.
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