Pretty simple really, rank your top 10 performers from this year. Mine are: 1. RVP: Obvious. 2. Arteta: the most consistent player on the team. An absolute lynchpin in the midfield for us, has done all of the difficult things. He just makes the players around him better, which is quite a rare and wonderful skill to have. 3. Koscielny: Considering his rise from non-league football just two years ago, you have to say he hasn't yet reached his full potential. And that is a tantalizing prospect, especially because as of now he rivals Vidic and Kompany as the best CB in the Prem. 4. Sagna: In my mind the best defensive RB in the world. When he played this year, he also added a lot to his game offensively. Had some nice crosses, and his goal against Tottenham was the turning point of our entire season. The fact that he is so high up this list and only played half the season is a sign of how inconsistent the performances were after him on this list. 5. Sczcesny: Udinese penalty save. Enough said. But apart from that, he's been very solid. His communication and leadership are something we've lacked with Almunia/Fabianski. Has had some good saves but I think he is still a ways away from being world-class at his position. 6. Rosicky: Career-reviving season. Looks much better suited to playing in the middle, and brings great harrying energy to to our defense; is always looking to get the ball back. Great in possession and intelligent in space, but he needs to be better in the final third (providing and scoring) to be able to keep his place what with JFW hopefully coming back next year. 7. Song: In the absence of any real creative possibilities in the middle, Song stepped up and added a good number of assists. Had some truly wonderful final balls, and in general his passing is good. He isn't higher on this list because in my opinion he has been much worse defensively this year than he was last year--caught out of position and too high up the pitch frequently, and has made some costly mistakes, especially when he's feeling himself a little too much and goes for the killer ball instead of the smart, simple play. 8. Walcott: Despite all the haranguing he's received from fans and press, his numbers are pretty decent this year. Obviously it helps that he gets to pass to RVP, but his final ball is vastly improved from years before and his assist numbers have concurrently increased. Unfortunately, he still spends most of matches looking like he's on roller skates. His decision making in the middle of the pitch is still suspect, and his finishing could be better. But I feel good up about him and am excited to see what he does at the Euros. 9. Coquelin: When he was asked to play, he played everywhere, and he played exceptionally well. He has many facets to his game, as his assist to RVP against Blackburn showed (where he cut to the byline like a winger and cut back an inch-perfect ball to Robin's feet). He seems determined and mentally strong. He reminds me in a lot of ways of a more athletic, potentially more talented Flamini. 10. Chamberlain: Lots of hype, and he delivered to begin with. But he's young and it showed later on. Already seems to be smarter on the ball than Theo, and has a better shot. He provided some electrifying performances to start the New Year when the team looked a bit jaded. Very excited about his potential come next season. Right, that's my list.
1 - Robin 2- Arteta 3 - Szcezny 4 - Koscielny 5 - Song 6 - Chamberlain 7 - Sagna 8 - Rosicky 9 - Benayoun 10 - Vermaelan
The toughest call for me was Coquelin or Benayoun...Probably Benayoun was a better performer, in all honesty.
1.RVP 2.Arteta 3.Szczesny 4.Song 5.Koscielny 6.Sagna 7.Rosicky 8.Verm 9.OX 10.Thierry Henry (His loan spell probably being the highlight of the season, so I think he deserves a mention) HONORABLE MENTION- Marton Fulop
1. Perry Groves 2. Perry Groves 3. Perry Groves 4. Perry Groves 5. Perry Groves 6. Perry Groves 7. Liam Brady 8. Perry Groves 9. Perry Groves 10.Perry Groves 11.Perry Groves Oops sorry...thought it was all time Top 10. http://fanchants.co.uk/football-songs/arsenal-chants/a-perry-groves-world/
1. RVP 2. Koscielny 3. Arteta 4. Song 5. Rosicky 6. Walcott 7. Vermaelen 8. Ox 9. Sagna 10. Szczesny What do you guys think of this stat? Opta Sports @OptaJoe 5 - Lowest 5 Prem Lge Save % 1. Robinson 57.2%, 2. Jaaskelainen 62.6%, 3. Szczesny 63,2%, 4. Kenny 64.2%, 5. Al-Habsi 65.7%. Strugglers.
Our defense leaves him in horrible situations quite often. Our defenders positioning on average this season is the worst I can remember for Arsenal.
from http://www.barriesview.com/2012/05/201112-premier-league-goalkeeper-stats At the other end of the table, Paul Robinson (57.49%) had the lowest save percentage amongst regular Premier League goalkeepers. Jussi Jääskeläinen, who played less than half of the season for Bolton between the sticks was next with 63%, whilst Arsenal’s Wojciech Szczesny didn’t fair much better, saving 63.16% of shots faced this season. The Polish goalkeeper also made 7 errors; a league high. Is there anything the stats are missing? I seem to think that Szczesny wasn't as bad as these stats.
I'm a stat head, but I haven't taken the time to apply these stats to what I've seen on the ground so i don't know if they are a good reflector of anything. Having said that, I do think we over-rate Szczesny a bit around here. He's still young, and he was such a dramatic improvement over the previous two netminders that being merely average is a huge upgrade. I think young Wojcheich is a fine keeper and will manning the goal for Arsenal for as long as he wants.
Stats in a sport like football are at best weak indicators. Szczensy was left out to dry an awful lot this season. I played keeper when I was younger. My best game ever was a game where we got trounced 6-1. Of course it was a shooting gallery so despite the fact that I made numerous big saves the stats would have shown me to have a poor match. The nature of our team is one in which our keeper is going to get exposed in highly unfavorable situation. Unlike teams that tend to bunker and play defense first we are a team that plays with a very attack oriented style and a very high line. Sneezy has some mediocre matches. But there were relatively few times that I laid the fault for a goal at his feet.
stats never tell the whole picture, they are about 50% of it imo, u look at bergkamps goal record compared to someone like van nistelrooy, who is the better player? there is no stat for controlling the tempo of a match apart from a good pass%
I don't know if this is old news, but I just read that Szczesny had been playing the last month or so of the season with a shoulder injury. Makes a lot of sense to me actually, as he seemed to let in a few softies that I would have expected him to save. What I like about him is that I can't see his confidence being damaged by some mistakes and unflattering stats--he's brought a new, tough mentality to the position, and he's the kind of guy who will only improve. Plus, he's way more intimidating than anybody since Lehmann.