WTF? Pires to Barca http://www.sport.es/default.asp?idp...&idnoticia_PK=208499&idseccio_PK=700&h=050507
kolo does remind me of, dare i say it, henchoz. it might be a niche but wheneva toure does an important piece of work he huffs and sweats(shows little composure) in the same manner that henchoz does. what killed henchoz in the end was a lack of speed, added to his lack of composure. the former is not a problem for toure. jcgooner u go a little overboard in your assessment but i do agree toure lacking the composure of sol and big phil.
big tone always had this one way of dealing with a quick change of pace from a striker. he would get his frame in front of the attacker when they knocked the ball past him and fall to ground making it appear that he is the victim. senderos has this down pat its almost scary. kolo will rely on his pace or dive in with a tackle.
Lets face it the kolo is good enough to play for Arsenal, so much so that,Sol has been left on the bench, I think Kolo on this board has been turned somewhat to a La Gilberto of last year.
Kolo gets alot of blame for the nervous performances he turns in evertime he plays with Cygan. But he's a good player and still learning his position, what is this his second year of playing CB in the EPL? He's doing fine.
Kolo's got a different style to Senderos/Campbell. I agree that he looks less composed/ more nervous, but he keeps doing the job at present. His specialist area is speed and the ablility to hassle strikers off the ball. He's not going to win every header like Senderos might, but he keep up with a striker running with the ball, and wriggle in front, and nick the ball. It's probably a good combination of him and Senderos. Yes he was poor alongside Cygan, but he was great alongside Campbell, and is looking good alongside senderos too... I'd be happy with those 3 as my central defenders with a.n.other as cover...
I absolutely agree. I am interested to see how Senderos and Campbell do together though, i wonder if they will blend well? They both partner well with Kolo but how will they do together? The next two matches may be our opportunity to find out. And i hope that Wenger sends Cygan packing over the summer, i never want to see him play for Arsenal again, he is a jinx.
Hello all. Newby here. My $.02 is that Gilberto has made the biggest difference in the defense since his return. In the Feb ManU game we rarely controlled the ball in the midfield. Maybe I'm wrong, but I think our defense shines or stinks from the midfield.
"Arsenal are believed to be monitoring Liberian international Jimmy Dixon." http://skysports.planetfootball.com...le=Gunners+check+on+Dixon&channel=Premiership He's a centre back.
Perfect example of what you're describing was yesterday when Kolo outpaced Kewell (despite the bugger being in front of him at first) and then muscled him off the ball.
‘ARSENAL WANT LESCOTT’ http://www.football365.com/news/transfer_gossip/index.shtml He's 24 plays for Wolves, missed all last year through injury but is supposedly having a great year this year. Blurb says he is a center half , maybe Edu's replacement? Anyone know more about this guy?
I dunno, you could always run away from him, he'd never catch u! Or is that not what you meant by nervous
Just throwing this out there-is anyone concerned that we are not looking for "homegrown" players considering the targets that keep getting press? Anyone?
Obviously it would be nice to have more than just the two English players in the first-team squad, but there aren't too many "homegrown" players that are so good that they would improve our side and are available too. I have a personal preference for Michael Owen if he is to come back from Real Madrid as I reckon we could get a proven striker who pretty much guarantees you 25+ goals for about £10m. Other than that, Shaun Wright-Phillips would be good business at around the £15m mark, especially as Pires comes towards the end of his career. Apart from those two, there's not many British players who might fit into the squad.
I was just wondering from the aspect of if we have to have a certain % of "homegrown" players in the squad for certain competitions-wasn't that what the FA was proposing? If I am off base or remembering incorrectly, please let me know! But Shaun Wright-Phillips would be great if his price was not to inflated. I think with his pace and obvious skill he would mesh instantly. I was saddened watching part of the Birmingham City match over the weekend about what Jermaine Pennant forced us to do. He also has incredible pace and a great cross from the wing.......sick that he can't play by the rules. He could have been developed with a bit more time. Are we getting Bentley back from loan?
The homegrown thing is a bit of a misnomer. They don't have to be English. They just have to be brought up through our youth system, or at least spent a certain period of time here. SWP looked great, as did Pennant. In one way I'm pleased he's fulfilling his potential, shame it's not in red and white...
Yeah, under the proposed UEFA rules, players like Cesc would be classed as "homegrown" as they have been trained from an early age by the club. If we were to buy a player who had been brought over at an early age by another club and trained in England, they would qualify as "trained by another club in this country's association" bit of the rules. I still can't believe no-one is going to challenge these rules under employment law though.
Then I am going to stop worrying that we are looking at the next great player from Constantinople then and just worry that we get him at like age 14 or whatever! Thanks this is something that has been bugging me for a while. PS: Bentley?
I've liked the way he's played since coming back from injury. I really hope that he gets a shot with us next year.
We're apparently watching young Swedish striker Markus Rosenborg, a striker in the deep-lying "Bergkamp" mould who's available for about £5m. http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/sport/football/articles/18574291?source=Evening Standard# How many of this type of player can we possibly need with Henry, Reyes, Van Persie and Bentley all able to do it?
QUOTE[How many of this type of player can we possibly need with Henry, Reyes, Van Persie and Bentley all able to do it?] Apparently at least 1 more! Any word or speculation on if Wenger has any keeper prospects? Or do we dare tempt the fates with Almunia........have to say that Lehmann made a couple of brilliant saves in the 'Pool match though!