The Next Theirry Henry or Jermaine Jenas?
I am thinking the latter. One good pass does not a good player or a good game make. I have actually seen Jermaine Jenas score a good goal on occasion, but it doesn't change the fact that the rest of his game is basically crap. And that's what we got from Theo Walcott against Sparta Prague: one good cutback that Tomas Rosicky buried -- then nothing.
The rest of the game saw Theo bullied off the ball, saw him driving crosses way too deep or into the stands, making pissy little challenges, and basically out-Jenasing Jermaine. It is a sorry statement on Theo's game that he is third choice Right Midfielder behind Hleb and Eboue (who just found himself moved up the pitch). I am not impressed. And the fact that this boy, whom Wenger dubbed the "next-Henry," only has one fucking goal (albeit against Chelski) in his entire Arsenal career is truly shabby. I don't see great things. I see five year deals and us foolishly hanging onto him in the hope that he'll come good. But, hey, he gives us an Englishman in the side for Champion's League, so that's gotta be good. Right?
Pissing on Theo aside...there some bright spots against Sparta Prague: 1. v Persie is looking more and more like an angry Dutch version of Alan Shearer (I just hope the refs start ignoring his thuggery like they did Al's. Sorry Gio, I know you hated old Al, but I love having a player with his passion and aggression on my team) 2. Fabregas continues to get better and better in the midfield, and the absence of Henry is turning him into a goal scorer (if le Scowl had been around Cesc would have passed and never scored that goal) 3. Eduardo scored a beautiful flying to poke...and he worked his ass off all night. He's going to be the real thing I think. Way better signing than Baptista (whom I still love in spite of myself).
P.S. I am not one of those fools who will try to convince you that Hleb is a great footballer, but he is our new Cygan, and it is awfully hard not to love the guy. He may blow at times, but I can always tell he's giving it his all. Plus, you gotta love his greasy hair. You just know he's listening to Duran Duran and wearing cut-off jean shorts while watching his woman wax his car on the weekend.
posted by bananas @ 8:22 AM
2 comments
2 Comments:
Personally I still rate Walcott ahead of Eboue in the midfield. I think Eboue is poorly suited for the role. He is capable of making runs, but he struggles to provide useful balls or quality shots. Those weaknesses aren't a problem when you're a defender providing a little extra in the attack, but more is expected from the midfielders. Walcott needs to develop more confidence to actually shoot the ball. Right now he is always looking to swing in the crosses, which limits him. If he starts to work the ball in towards the center of the pitch to open up his own shots he would give the defenders something more to think about. Right now they all know that he is looking to go down the sidelines and they happily keep him out there.
And there is something to be said for his nationality. While it shouldn't be the case that players are kept in the squad because they are English, it does help quiet some of the complaints about Arsenal ruining the league.
I must say I never was a fan of Cygan, but I don't mind Hleb. He provides those occasional moments of brilliance that are fun to watch. He'll never be the equal of Pires or Ljungberg when they were in their prime, but he is still an above average midfielder.
One final point: we got a nice draw in the Champions League. Sevilla/AEK, Steaua Bucharest and Slavia Prague. Sevilla should provide a challenge, but Steaua and Slavia shouldn't be too tough. Of course, Ajax probably thought the same before Slavia Prague eliminated them.
i am with you on rating walcott ahead of eboue in the midfield (although if walcott's not careful it won't be long before i change my opinion. eboue seems a fast learner), but it didn't look like arsene saw it our way as the season kicked off. lucky for theo he got hurt.
we definitely hit it in the draw. is should be us and sevilla. i feel bad for slavia and steaua, but then you just never know.
i sure hope that i am wrong about my feelings with theo. i really like the kid, a lot actually, and i'd rather seem him turn out a star than wind up like jenas. i have some fear though, cause he is as old as cesc was now when cesc really started to get play time, and he just doesn't seem to be pushing into the side like cesc did, or even denilson. lots of time though, no doubt about that.
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