It was nice to see Reyes notch his "Prem Primero" yesterday. He placed the ball very well on a first time touch. I like the energy he brings to the pitch. He seems to hustle a lot, I mean he should anyway he has young legs. What I have noticed though is that most of the time he seems to be on a different page than the rest of the team. Let me try to explain. I have seen few (none?) occasions where Reyes has possesion in midfield and he makes a pass anticipating another players run, that he puts the ball where the player goes. I don't mean to question his passing skills, but his reading of the defense and understanding his team mates. These situations seem to come up a handful of times per game and usually involve Henry, but also others. These are the same type of plays which often if Pires or Bergkamp has the ball they are able to spring Henry for a chance. Additionally, when role are reversed I tend to see the same thing. The times when Pires/Bergkamp/Henry has the ball moving through the midfield and Reyes is ahead making a run, I have never seen (that I remember) anyone make a connection with Reyes. Again they seem to regularly play the ball to a diferent area than Reyes runs to. These plays usually end with either Reyes or the passer pointing to the field as if to try to explain what they wanted from their teammate. I do not mean to slam Reyes, my intent is not to put him down. I also recognize that his time with his teammates is only months long, while the core of the other attacking players (Henry, Bergkamp, Pires, Ljungberg) has years of experience together. I guess I just wish I would see improvement in this over the 4 months Reyes has played and I have not noticed that improvement. I am curious if anyone else has noticed this and has any imput. Do you think this is simply an issue of understanding your teammates and time will sort it out? Do you think that Reyes might see the game diferently because he played in La Liga as opposed to the Prem? I also wonder if perhaps he is trying too hard, being too ambitious?? Obviously coming into a team like Arsenal and expecting to fit in play must produce some pressure.
I think this is the key! It's way too early to be dissecting his ability, but it is clearly considerable and hopefully time will iron out the kinks. He's still not used to the rough and tumble of the EPL and needs to work on his strength and ride more tackles, instead of going to ground so quickly. I read somewhere that Wenger is pretty much giving him his head to go out and play how he feels! I don't know if it's true, but, it would explain why he's been occupying the space Titi normally runs into and effectively keeping him out of the game! He likes to come central and take the ball with his back to the goal. This is not how we play and it's not a style that will work well in the Prem, because no one is going to give him the time to turn! Also when he makes a run I've noticed that he keeps looking over his shoulder for the ball. Making runs is about creating space, as well as getting the ball and what he's doing is slowling himself down! The great thing about the current Gooners is that they're proactive rather than reactive. Often JAR only clicks into action when the ball is at his feet, which is too late in the EPL! The lad will get it though. He's with the best team and the best coach, how can he not!! Come on you Reyes!!!
Did you guys see his blistering pace? He was running like a bullet in making those runs. This guy has got very fast feet. I expect him to score a solo goal either this season or next season...ala Henry.
Reyes scoring goals is a certainty! What I don't want to see is Reyes scoring goals at the expense of Titi's effectiveness? That won't add much to our 'goals for' total. Reyes' may have his own agenda, and his time will come, but, for now we just need him to enhance rather than diminish the best forward in the World!
I don't think this is a problem area. The Gypsy King's goals are different goals from different areas than Henry's usual strikes. Remember all of his goals, including yesterday's, except for one have been from central approach to goal shot to corner of the mouth. Henry's are quite unlike this. The issue of Reyes blocking the space is simply an adaptation. Remember, La Liga, unlike the FAPL, is a passing league where the area allowed is quite different. Arsenal have this sort of passing game, too, but it's a passing game within a long ball game; the passing tends to begin at midfield rather than from the defending third, like in La Liga or Latin American football. This concentration of players in the attacking third and mid doesn't give a runner the same sort of space. The times when Reyes *has* been given space he has been extremely dangerous--ask Chelsea. He simply has to learn to deal with British congestion. His goal against Pompey is exactly the kind of goal he needs to help him adjust: not on a running breakaway, where no one would question his ability, but in congestion and through a very crowded area. He has all summer to adjust. He'll do just fine, I think.
Yes, yes, and yes. Just look at a couple of examples from our uber-mensch. It took Henry 9 games before he scored, and in his first season, Pires went through pretty much the same thing that JAR is experiencing now - getting used to the pace and physical nature of the Prem after coming from a different league, being criticized for integrating in the team too slowly, and muffing chances when they came. I have faith in AW. I was encouraged by a small gesture from Henry that he remembers what it was like to be in JAR's position. Reyes was sitting on the deck, visibly down on himself after missing a great chance, when Titi placed his hands under his shoulders and hauled him back up.
I think this is the essence. It isn't only that Reyes doesn't understand Arsenal's game yet; Arsenal don't understand him yet, either. Again, he's still learning English, you know. And he is, after all, a winger being asked to play a striker so of course he's working much more centrally than he normally would--as a matter of overcompensation, I suspect. Reyes makes phenomenal runs, but someone has to feed him the damned ball, just as he has to take up more of a poaching position than he is used to in order to get out of Henry's way.
Henry fluffed two clear chances yesterday. The one where he hit it straight at the keeper and other one where he hit the crossbar. Reyes fluffed a golden opportunity too...the boot over the cross bar. They both create so many chances...its just that they both need to finish them off in the same match.
I don't see Reyes necessarily diminishing Henry's goals total, the reason if it happens will be that Bergkamp doesn't play as much next season and eventually retires. The man can put chances on a plate, ask Patrick Vieira! We'll not be able to replace him with a player as good, we can only hope to up the goal output by having someone who scores more than Bergkamp whose goal return has been going down steadily over the past few seasons. That's not to say that the great man shouldn't play, I'm always disappointed when the team is announced and he's not in it. It will be a sad day when he finally hangs up his boots, I'd go to watch him in a kickabout in the park. As for Reyes himself, you can see that he has quality. Good touch, dribbling ability, good strong shot and he's a hard worker, an absolute necessity for the Premiership. I'm not too sure about the central role, he's looked happier to me the few times he's played on hte left wing. Maybe he'll do better as a long-term replacement for Pires or Ljungberg with Van Persie or Bentley taking on the withdrawn striker position.
Yeah, I think I would like to see him play more on the right next year. Leave the withdrawn striker role to Van Persie and Bergy, and allow him to use his speed and dribbling ability to create scoring opportunities from the right that aren't being created right now (sorry Freddie). His strong foot doesn't need to be on the outside since conventional crosses aren't a part of Arsenal's attack. Putting him on the right also means you wouldn't have to sit or move Pires to get him in there.
Think playing him wide some too will get him used to being out on the right even pushed up as a striker giving Henry more space to operate as he is used to. I think as I noted even here the ideal(as others have reported Wenger sees it) would be for Reyes to service Henry and the support runners every bit as much from the right as Henry does from the left. Maybe the best way to make this vision reality is as to play Reyes on the wing a bit and isolate him from the left and get him comfortable playing as he does on the right alone, rather than running in Henry's space and playing balls meant for Henry. Because if you can do that we immediately become twice as potent an attacking threat...
Bergkamp is just too fking talented. Once a defender converted to a striker...what a move done in his younger years. Man, was he incredible in our 98 double winning season or not? He didn't play the last 10 games because of injury where he would've scored more than 30, but ended up with 25. The goals he scored during that season were simply the best that I have ever seen. All those curlers, 360 turn, juggle touches...simply irrestible. He went on to carry his form in the World Cup where he scored a truly mangnificient goal against Argentina (the three touch masterclass goal). Although the 98 season, he became a nutter...with those red cards, and the step on the Yugoslavian player in the World Cup...he was simply the best player in the world. He was even 3rd in Fifa World Player of the Year. We'll never find anyone that can replace him, even if Bentley becomes just as good...because Bergie will always be the original and only The Dutch Master.
I agree with every word, Martin. The other thing I would like about playing Reyes out wide is it would allow the club to sell Ljungberg either this summer or next, and not have to spend the money from his sale on his replacement.
It still surprises me to see people ready to dismiss Reyes so quickly. I still believe he just needs some time to get used to EPL play and some time to mesh with the team. I think he has great potential in the near future. Besides with the great job Arsene Wenger has done, I'm certainly not ready to start second guessing his decisions.
The most pleasing aspect of today's match was that we actually won! No seriously, that IS true, but Reyes seemed to stay more on the right and Henry did try to provide him some servie there both in the box and further up the pitch. You did not see Henry and Reyes getting in each other's way nearly so often. To be honest, this wasn't exactly a classic display of our attacking style, still it was promising as I noted above Reyes has to cede the left to Henry and take the right side for this to really work and today showed that is beginning to happen....
I don't understand how people can be doubting Reyes at all. Frankly, his goal ratio isn't bad at all after the last few games (around 1 for every 4 games) considering his getting accustomed to a new country and he's so young at all. He's ten times the player Wiltord is, and if Wenger plans to use him as a striker then put him there. I don't buy into the concept that the best way to ween him as a center forward is to put him on the opposite wing. Henry should realize that he's now with a player that has the potential to become as good as he is, might as well get the partnership started. My question has to do with Van Persie, and the assurances he got from Wenger that he'll play as a forward, not a winger. Maybe we'll go 4-3-3.
First off, the idea of playing him wide right would get him used to playing on the right as he all-too-often shows up on the left while Henry is there. It would also partially address the concern about who will provide the threat from the right. Second off, today was the first time I saw Reyes conciously focus to any extent on actually playing on the right and leaving the left to Henry, and when we did bother to attack looked much more balanced and showed a hint of the danger this creates in Wenger's vision. Do agree on the 4-3-3 although I see more of a 4-3-1-2 allowing Bergkamp or VanPersie to provide through balls to Henry on the left and Reyes the right-also VanPersie getting his head to the odd cross when the left or right back make the deep runs...