Alexis Sanchez, Arsenal Player

Enigma_87 said:
Every team has injuries, Arsenal as well. It's always the excuse. They haven't mounted a challenge for 9 years. Yes Sanchez is very good signing, but their defence and GK is still the same. In the last five seasons in all but one case they have conceded 40 or more goals in the league.

We hear every year that Arsenal will be contenders and their challenge usually falls short come February. Until there is something more substantial than signing one player I'm not so sure that they will be 1st or 2nd in May...
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I agree that it can be a tired excuse at times, but they really do suffer an inordinate amount of injuries - which stats back-up - and to key players also. I don't know what you are trying to imply in reference to the goalkeeper and defence. Szczesny was one of the better keepers in the division last season and Koscielny and Mertesacker have struck up a formidable partnership in defence, despite the goals they've leaked against the best sides.

For the record, I don't think they will win the league and how they fare next season is pure speculation, but with signings like Sanchez and reported signings like Khedira, Debuchy, etc, they are bringing the gap to City and Chelsea. I think they will last longer in the race next season anyway, they are on an upward trajectory and they've finally got that elusive cup win off their back. Something which should offer some positiveness and semblance of momentum ahead of the new season.

I'll go with third, but don't underestimate them.
 
alastair said:
That's good. How's your campaign to retain 7th coming along? You must be grateful Southampton have lost some players.
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We aren't campaigning to retain seventh. You were never very bright, but this is offensively stupid.
 
Revan said:
Arse supporters said the same when you signed Ozil last year. And you finished on fourth place again.

You're the permanent fourth best team of England.
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Having 2 world class players makes a huge difference, especially as they should theoretically compliment each other really well. We all love to laugh at them of course, but Ozil I think will have a much better season, or more like his first half last season when he had someone to supply consistently. Once Walcott got injured, they had nobody running in behind the defence, nobody with pace really or the ability to run at defenders. Sanchez is actually a world class player too, unlike Walcott, so it'll be a huge boost.

They're still 2 big signings away from seriously competing for the title IMO, a top striker and a top defensive midfielder, but they'll be up there.
 
alastair said:
Ozil was a start, and you forget that our transfer window last year was actually very poor. We missed out on a lot of targets and really cocked it all up. Gazidis appears to be correcting that this time around.

And position is really a poor indicator on last season. We finished 4th, but about 15 points closer to the title than the year before. That's what matters.
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No, it isn't. Titles are all that matters and we have won five since you have won the last one.

Liverpool finished 20+ closer to the title than the season before, but still they lost too. Winner wins, the other 19 teams lose.
 
Revan said:
No, it isn't. Titles are all that matters and we have won five since you have won the last one.
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Well that's not arguing properly.

When you're talking about winning a league title again, you have to make progress. I'm making the point that it's better to mark that on how close you are to the winners of the league as opposed to the notional value of finishing 2nd, 3rd or 4th.
 
alastair said:
Ozil was a start, and you forget that our transfer window last year was actually very poor. We missed out on a lot of targets and really cocked it all up. Gazidis appears to be correcting that this time around.

And position is really a poor indicator on last season. We finished 4th, but about 15 points closer to the title than the year before. That's what matters.
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You were also only 4 points off in 2008 and went another 6 seasons trophyless. The points gap mean feck all if you keep coming 3rd/4th.
 
alastair said:
Well that's not arguing properly.

When you're talking about winning a league title again, you have to make progress. I'm making the point that it's better to mark that on how close you are to the winners of the league as opposed to the notional value of finishing 2nd, 3rd or 4th.
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You were closer to the title, but don't be fooled, bot Chelsea and United will be much stronger than last. I would be very surprised if you'll get near the title.

peterstorey said:
No we didn't and we still need 3 or 4 more signings to compete this year. (And I don't mean a reserve RB like Manquillo)
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Do you think that you'll make another three or four good signings this season? On that case, things will obviously change, but currently both you and us are very far from the title.
 
Orc said:
If a highly coveted player became available that was wanted by all of the biggest clubs in the world I still have a hard time believing Arsenal would be able to compete with Bayern/Barca/Madrid/United/Chelsea.
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Sure but I don't think that Bayern, Barca, United, or Chelsea can compete with Madrid when it comes to player recruitment. Every team has to take their place in the pecking order behind Franco's boys but Arsenal seem to be getting a larger bite of the quality grain than they did previously.

Clucking hell.
 
Glanville95 said:
I agree that it can be a tired excuse at times, but they really do suffer an inordinate amount of injuries - which stats back-up - and to key players also. I don't know what you are trying to imply in reference to the goalkeeper and defence. Szczesny was one of the better keepers in the division last season and Koscielny and Mertesacker have struck up a formidable partnership in defence, despite the goals they've leaked against the best sides.

For the record, I don't think they will win the league and how they fare next season is pure speculation, but with signings like Sanchez and reported signings like Khedira, Debuchy, etc, they are bringing the gap to City and Chelsea. I think they will last longer in the race next season anyway, they are on an upward trajectory and they've finally got that elusive cup win off their back. Something which should offer some positiveness and semblance of momentum ahead of the new season.

I'll go with third, but don't underestimate them.
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Good post.
 
charlenefan said:
------------------Szczesny------------------
Debuchy--Mertesacker--Koscielny--Gibbs
-------------------Arteta-------------------
----------Ramsey-------Wilshire----------
Sanchez---------Giroud---------Ozil

Subs: Fabiański, Vermaelen, Rosický, Cazorla, Chamberlain, Walcott, Podolski

If football was played on paper that team would win the Champions League
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I like Arteta but they need to upgrade him to win the CL, especially considering that Gibbs and Debuchy are nothing special defensively and that Mertesacker can be beaten for pace. If they don't get Schneiderlin, they should still address the position. Either a cheap veteran like De Jong or Tiago (seemingly going to Chelsea) or just sign a proper DM like Bender.

Also, the wingers are on the wrong sides. Ozil needs to be on the right if he's not in the middle.

But yeah, it's all there except the DM spot, although Giroud's finishing and lack of pace, Mertesacker's lack of pace and Ramsey's injuries could all lead to doom.

Still, wonderful signing from Wenger, and a justification for not signing Cesc, although they should still have signed him, since Wilshere and Ramsey's injuries mean there would be time for all 3.

If they sign a DM or a striker, I think they'll have a real shot to compete with Citeh and Chelsea for the title.
 
We're not winning the league with Arteta in our midfield in the big games. We're not with De Jong in there either. You need dynamism in that position.
 
mufcwarm92 said:
You were also only 4 points off in 2007 and went another 7 seasons trophyless. The points gap mean feck all if you keep coming 3rd/4th.
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It was 2008 actually.

08-09
09-10
10-11
11-12
12-13

That's 5 seasons.

Not even going to wade into this debate. Alastair mate you're fighting a losing battle here. No one is going to believe that we're a different team now or that things have changed for us. It will be the same old tired cliches rolled out post after post about how "Not what Arsenal need", "They need some steel in the middle" etc etc. No team is perfect and I could go and constantly point out the flaws in all of the other top 4 sides but that would get tiresome so I don't bother.

Arsenal sides of old (pre 2013) wouldn't have been able to come back from 2-0 down in a cup final.

Arsenal sides of old couldn't afford the likes of Ozil and Sanchez.

You (football world) asked us to a win a trophy and we have.

You asked us to sign world class players, we've brought in two.

Now ask us to win the premier league to prove that we're truly back among the world's elite.

Anyway back to Sanchez, great signing and hopefully the first of many more to come this summer.
 
alastair said:
A DM being worked on next, I'd imagine.

I'm just so glad that even if this forum will never bring themselves to accept it, we're back amongst the big-boys in the European elite and can now compete for the top players on the market.

We're only going up now. No more agonising over whether we can fund a £4m bid for Mark Schwartzer.
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:lol:
 
Arruda said:
Ozil is a number 10 Pogue. He's been shit on the flanks, and most of the performances that earned him a name were with him playing centrally. He's naturally central, and can make other positions to a much smaller effect.

And a great player, with a terrible last year.
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Ozil is a really good right winger. Play him there for a full season with Sanchez at left-wing and with another striker to push Giroud, as well as the late runs of Ramsey, and he'll probably lead the Prem in Assists.
 
peterstorey said:
Coming to grass near you very soon...

------------------Szczesny------------------

Debuchy--Mertesacker--Koscielny--Gibbs

----------Ramsey-------Bender----------

Walcott---------Ozil---------Sanchez

---------------Giroud-----------------

Subs: ANother, Vermaelen, Rosický, Cazorla, Chamberlain, Remy.
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1. Walcott really needs to be a sub or used as a pace merchant against teams with a high line.
2. While I personally think Giroud will continue to improve (target men peak later, he has all the tools), it's certainly not a sure bet. I actually picked him to lead the Prem in goals last year, as a starting 9 with no competition playing in front of Ozil. He wasn't good enough.
3. Sagna is a better defender than Debuchy. I don't love that right side, defensively, at all, unless you play deep enough to let Mertesacker off the hook. Look at how fecking awful he looked against Algeria. If Neuer hadn't saved him, we'd all have Islam Slimani tattoos and be speaking Arabic right now.
4. Ramsey's health cannot be assumed.
 
alastair said:
We're not winning the league with Arteta in our midfield in the big games. We're not with De Jong in there either. You need dynamism in that position.
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You could win the league with De Jong there against big teams and against smaller teams, Ramsey-Wilshere with Ozil in front of them, Sanchez on one wing and one of Walcott, Cazorla or Chamberlain playing at full potential, with Giroud up top.

But you do need another player, yeah.
 
alastair said:
We're not winning the league with Arteta in our midfield in the big games. We're not with De Jong in there either. You need dynamism in that position.
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Agreed. You need someone a little more COMPETENT In midfield. Fecking competent?, I'll never forgive you for that comment in the van Gaal thread. I'm sure you're not bothered. I agree with you though. You won't win the league.
 
Glanville95 said:
I agree that it can be a tired excuse at times, but they really do suffer an inordinate amount of injuries - which stats back-up - and to key players also. I don't know what you are trying to imply in reference to the goalkeeper and defence. Szczesny was one of the better keepers in the division last season and Koscielny and Mertesacker have struck up a formidable partnership in defence, despite the goals they've leaked against the best sides.

For the record, I don't think they will win the league and how they fare next season is pure speculation, but with signings like Sanchez and reported signings like Khedira, Debuchy, etc, they are bringing the gap to City and Chelsea. I think they will last longer in the race next season anyway, they are on an upward trajectory and they've finally got that elusive cup win off their back. Something which should offer some positiveness and semblance of momentum ahead of the new season.

I'll go with third, but don't underestimate them.
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It's not enough to put 11 players on the pitch that look good on paper. Look at Athletico team in comparison to Barca. Has anyone thought that they can win La Liga with Barca and Real? It's not enough just to sign couple of top class players to be in the mix. Ozil hasn't worked as he was supposed has he?

They have injuries, so all other teams, it's not like we hadn't played Carrick in defence numerous times and still managed to win it all.

Arsenal record against sides that have won the title in the last 9 years and since City takeover:

Against Chelsea:
4 wins, 4 draws, 14 losses.

Against United:
4 wins, 5 draws, 13 losses.

Against City after takeover:

3 wins 4 draws 7 losses

18% win percentage.

Just saying...
 
JSArsenal said:
It was 2008 actually.

08-09
09-10
10-11
11-12
12-13

That's 5 seasons.

Not even going to wade into this debate. Alastair mate you're fighting a losing battle here. No one is going to believe that we're a different team now or that things have changed for us. It will be the same old tired cliches rolled out post after post about how "Not what Arsenal need", "They need some steel in the middle" etc etc. No team is perfect and I could go and constantly point out the flaws in all of the other top 4 sides but that would get tiresome so I don't bother.

Arsenal sides of old (pre 2013) wouldn't have been able to come back from 2-0 down in a cup final.

Arsenal sides of old couldn't afford the likes of Ozil and Sanchez.

You (football world) asked us to a win a trophy and we have.

You asked us to sign world class players, we've brought in two.

Now ask us to win the premier league to prove that we're truly back among the world's elite.

Anyway back to Sanchez, great signing and hopefully the first of many more to come this summer.
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Well you won the same trophy that Wigan and Portsmouth won since you last won anything. And you played Hull. It's a trophy, yeah, but if you think that's a sign of turning the corner then that's a little daft.

A lot of clichés fly around about Arsenal, granted, and the trophy drought was funny, but the real issue is that Arsenal haven't genuinely competed for major honours for a long time.

Personally I quite fancy Arsenal to do well next season. Sanchez is a great signing and Özil will probably improve significantly. But a fluctuating points gap, an FA Cup win and a couple of big name signings really aren't good barometers for improvement. Time will tell if you've got enough to win the title.
 
Arsenal could also do with some back up defenders I think. An injury to any one of the back four and the replacements are average imo.
 
mufcwarm92 said:
Well you won the same trophy that Wigan and Portsmouth won since you last won anything. And you played Hull. It's a trophy, yeah, but if you think that's a sign of turning the corner then that's a little daft.

A lot of clichés fly around about Arsenal, granted, and the trophy drought was funny, but the real issue is that Arsenal haven't genuinely competed for major honours for a long time.

Personally I quite fancy Arsenal to do well next season. Sanchez is a great signing and Özil will probably improve significantly. But a fluctuating points gap, an FA Cup win and a couple of big name signings really aren't good barometers for improvement. Time will tell if you've got enough to win the title.
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Are you really comparing us to the likes of Wigan and Porstmouth?

I'm not even going to touch that or even attempt to point out the differences between us and those two clubs on a financial or trophy winning scale. I'll just say this, on the flip side we won the same trophy that Chelsea and Man City have won.

We haven't genuinely competed? This trophy drought is clouding people's memories. We haven't been languishing in midtable these past 9 years.

2006- Cl final
2007- CC final
2008- 4 points off the league
2009- CL and Fa cup semifinals
2011- CC final and we were up to March in for the league
2012-abysmal
2013-poor
2014- Fa cup winners

Out of the period 2006-2010 we went to a cup final in 3 of those years, competed for the league in another year and made the semis of both cup competitions another year. So two years out of 9 where we really failed to compete. Care to try that one again or is making a final/semifinal and finishing 4 points off the top not competing for major honours in your book?

If those aren't good barometers then tell me what are? What are we supposed to do? Win nothing and don't sign any big name players? We have to start somewhere and improve the squad by buying quality players.

EDIT:

No intention on my part to come across as hostile/antagonistic, just trying to point out that comparing us to the likes of Wigan/Portsmouth isn't a fair one because of the vast difference between us and them and that we have competed for trophies. If the phrase "haven't won any" had been used in place of "competed for" then that would have been much more suitable.
 
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Don't forget that last year's FA Cup was contested just between Arsenal and Hull in May. None of the rest of the tournament took place last year.
 
Looks like a bargain considering what we paid for Herrera. Perfect signing for Arsenal, imo.
 
dumbo said:
Sure but I don't think that Bayern, Barca, United, or Chelsea can compete with Madrid when it comes to player recruitment. Every team has to take their place in the pecking order behind Franco's boys but Arsenal seem to be getting a larger bite of the quality grain than they did previously.

Clucking hell.
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I think we've struck when the iron is hot twice now, the timing has been brilliant. Maybe from here we can take a bigger bite as you put it... Two world class players signing from the two biggest teams in the world, well that's something!
 
IceDevil said:
Looks like a bargain considering what we paid for Herrera. Perfect signing for Arsenal, imo.
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It's all relative though. Herrera was their best player or at least best midfielder, and a vital cog in their side - Sanchez was deemed surplus top requirements.
 
JSArsenal said:
Are you really comparing us to the likes of Wigan and Porstmouth?

I'm not even going to touch that or even attempt to point out the differences between us and those two clubs on a financial or trophy winning scale. I'll just say this, on the flip side we won the same trophy that Chelsea and Man City have won.

We haven't genuinely competed? This trophy drought is clouding people's memories. We haven't been languishing in midtable these past 9 years.

2006- Cl final
2007- CC final
2008- 4 points off the league
2009- CL and Fa cup semifinals
2011- CC final and we were up to March in for the league
2012-abysmal
2013-poor
2014- Fa cup winners

Out of the period 2006-2010 we went to a cup in 3 of those years, competed for the league in another year and made the semis of both cup competitions another year. So two years out of 9 where we really failed to compete. Care to try that one again or is making a final/semifinal and finishing 4 points off the top not competing for major honours in your book?

If those aren't good barometers then tell me what are? What are we supposed to do? Win nothing and don't sign any big name players? We have to start somewhere and improve the squad by buying quality players.
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You haven't looked like winning a league title for a decade. You've not remotely competed in the CL since you last won a trophy. You got to one semi final and were humiliated by another English club. The fact you've listed almost winning the League Cup as an achievement is laughable. The only seasons you looked remotely like challenging for a title were 2008 and 2014, yet you couldn't even finish as runners up in either. You haven't genuinely challenged for the CL or the league since 2006. Hardly a surprise no one thinks you're going to do so next season.
 
mufcwarm92 said:
You haven't looked like winning a league title for a decade. You've not remotely competed in the CL since you last won a trophy. You got to one semi final and were humiliated by another English club. The fact you've listed almost winning the League Cup as an achievement is laughable. The only seasons you looked remotely like challenging for a title were 2008 and 2014, yet you couldn't even finish as runners up in either. You haven't genuinely challenged for the CL or the league since 2006. Hardly a surprise no one thinks you're going to do so next season.
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Well it's only been 3 months.

But jokes aside, we made a final and a semi in the last 10 years. We've remotely competed.
 
Still surprised they pulled it off.

Amazing signing for Arsenal. Absoutely wonderful work from Wenger and co to convince him to join them over a good number of clubs that were interested.

He has the arrogance with swagger that Arsenal has been missing post Henry. That might prove to be the game changing signing that Arsenal were craving for these past few years.

Gutted absolutely gutted we weren't even linked with him propelry, but PL has got a really great player. Hope he takes the points away from our rivals and Arsenal continue to choke against us.
 
JSArsenal said:
2006- Cl final
2007- CC final
2008- 4 points off the league
2009- CL and Fa cup semifinals
2011- CC final and we were up to March in for the league
2012-abysmal
2013-poor
2014- Fa cup winners
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You missed 2010 but it was same like 2013 so let's call it poor.

So from CL final, CC final, 4 points off the top, CL and FA cup SF's in 2006 - 2009, to poor, CC final, poor, abysmal, FA cup and 5 points off top at best in 2010-2014.

Progress!!

Becknaldolencia said:
I thought Man Utd made a huge statement of intent when they signed an 18 years old fullback for near 30m. No?
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Didn't Chelsea just sign Fabregas, Diego Costa and Zouma and in the same time Courtois and Marin are back from loan? I know that he didn't mentioned Chelsea, but United, Chelsea, Liverpool have spent a lot so far and the latter two have still way to go, considering Pool also sold Suarez. City have a big squad and the best in the league I don't think they need to spent all that lot this Summer...
 
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gun__1405032189_sanchez.jpg


Ooooh suits yooou, sir!
 
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