regrettable next morning, but thats it. these guys want some law and order type of stuff where millionaire professional athletes should not be allowed outside of their bedrooms. Guardiola was pissed that he played a 90 minute friendly. HE got injured in that match. Thats a big reason why I see no chance in hell Guardiola wants Sanchez.
I think Guardiola doesn't want Sanchez because of his habit of freelancing. I think the false nine role is perfect for Alexis though, though you need someone as intelligent as Ozil to make that work.
Santi may have surgery on his Achilles according to IBTimes UK http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/arsenal-st...ndergo-surgery-achilles-tendon-injury-1594374 Can we be honest with ourselves here, Wenger is a midfield killer. He gives midfielders too much freedom, and with that freedom comes overuse. Overuse leads to injuries.
Confirmed, he's having surgery. Hard to see where his career goes from here. Hate to say it but despite all our perceived depth going into the season it looks like we may need another midfielder.
I was thinking the same. Santi is just so good at his job and the team is so much better with him in it. Cazorla is only under contract until June, so I'm hoping this is grounds to get his replacement is January (unless that is Xhaka, which I hope not).
Not weird. I miss him too. And not because he was injured so much that every return seemed like a new signing.
Xhaka ... Doesn't have the same ability to control and possess the ball An invaluable skill Santi offers
Xhaka isn't the replacement for Santi. Sant is Modric, Xhaka is Kroos for comparison in terms of the roles they play
Santi's achilles surgery will keep him out 2-3 months... maybe more? So it was the main topic in Wenger's pre-match presser today, with quite a bit of scrutiny. http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/20161202/wenger-my-conversation-with-sad-santi I sensed his natural defensiveness coming out again, and his "story" wasn't always consistent. Wenger was asked about how 10 days ago he was optimistic about his recovery and now he's having surgery, what's going wrong? (i.e. with your medical/assessment process) AW: "He has an inflammation... nobody knows really where it comes from" AW: "Accidental injuries you can't do anything about. Santi's is purely accidental, it's a kick at the start, at the back of his foot" Really? I seem to recall Santi being dogged by achilles issues since last season... in fact his blown-out knee was rehabbed OK but his achilles prevented him from returning last spring. I find it a bit far-fetched that his problem began when he was kicked in October. The moment that happened I said to myself "ooh, that's his chronically injured muscle that just got tweaked... better get him out of the game soon to minimize further damage". Or course they kept playing him, even after a halftime break IIRC. Wenger was asked if he had any regrets about how things were handled with Santi? AW: "No, for me it's a bit difficult to see step-by-step what happened... there's always a conflict between the medical staff inside the club and the freedom of the player to go where he wants to be treated. We always liaised with his people" Really? It's that difficult?? And is he trying to pawn this off on Santi's own Spanish medical advisors? Is that fair? And shouldn't Wenger & Arsenal take ownership of this... be more in control of his medical assessment & treatment? After all we pay his salary. I hope I'm not being too harsh, but in the end this is one of those interviews where I found AW to be a bit too disingenuous for my liking.
Why is it invaluable? You have to play differently with your team. dont think Xhaka is Kroos either He is Xabi Alonso of this new generation.
because a midfielder who is able to hold a ball for a couple of seconds and wait while the team regroups is invaluable... it's called controlling tempo