Well well well..Havertz is proving to be more decisive for us in 2024 and a key element of our squad on both defensive and attacking phases…Who would have thought I would write these words back in September 2023…? Trust Arteta and the process? Maybe it is a good idea…who knows?

Anyways, Havertz’ form, inputs and outputs have been good lately and now with Partey being close to return and ESR finally fit again, it begs the question…Do we bring back Partey as a starter? When will we give a chance to ESR to shine again? Keeping ESR out of the team is not going to help our cause in keeping him in our ranks this summer…

Of course, I don’t think we should rock the boat, especially in the EPL but Arteta now has some headaches with his team selection, not only for keeping the team at its best but also in keeping players happy…

What we know for now:

• Arteta prefers Raya to Ramsdale, which beats me but oh well…
• Ben White is our starter at RB with Tomy being a more than able back-up
• Saliba-Gabriel is our starting CB pair…I think we should get an upgrade on Gabs this summer…
• Zinchenko, Timber fight for the LB spot and Kiwior is a back-up (but he is getting too many minutes for my liking…I think he is at best a back-up CB…but I would not mind shipping him out)
• Rice and Odegaard are clear starters in midfield and the last spot is battled out between Havertz, Partey and Jorginho. We can even add Smith-Rowe here and let us not forget El Neny is still with us. It seems we are OK in midfield, although I wouldn’t mind a player like Musiala in there…
• Saka and Martinelli are the first two names usually for our front three
• But there is now a conundrum for the third name…shall we play G. Jesus or L. Trossard
  • G. Jesus has great movement, spirit, passing and works hard for the team but he is not always the most lethal in front of all
  • L. Trossard has been in great shape for us in 2024, he also has great movement, spirit, works hard for the team and has a very good shot on him and a decent ability to make assists.

So who is the third name as part of our front 3? Nketiah and R. Nelson are back-ups…

Do you play the Brazilian maestro or the Belgian wizard? Is Trossard better suited to unlock games as a sub given his pace and trickery? Is G. Jesus better at tiring the defenses and stretching the lines?

What do the stats say?

• G. Jesus: 4 goals, 3 assists, 1.4 key pass per game, 0.1 cross per game, 1.1 tackle per game, 0.4 interception per game…
• L. Trossard: 6 goals, 1 assist, 0.7 key pass per game, 0.4 cross per game, 0.7 tackle per game, 0.3 interception per game…

So based on stats only, I would still play G. Jesus up front as a starter and have L. Trossard be my supersub but based on form only, I would play Trossard up front at the moment.

What about you?

So we just beat Liverpool in a game that showcased our brilliant team defending (except for that silly own-goal). We kept Liverpool at bay and we managed to score on our chances, although we should have been up by at least 2 goals at half-time…

Our set-up was very solid with Havertz and Odegaard playign a crucial role in defensive phases and Martinelli and Saka playing a crucial role on offensive transitions. Ben White also had at an excellent game but the MOTM was clearly Jorginho who was able to dictate pace alongside signing-of-the-season D. Rice…

3-1 at home against Liverpool and now we are back in the title race while also giving an edge to Man City in the title race…

Now the most important thing is not to celebrate being back in the title race but to CAPITALIZE on this wonderful win by winning the next games and being consistent…We can only keep fighting for the title if we win games…and now losing or dropping points until the 31st of March is not an option at all…We gotta win against all teams until then…We could then face Man City with a chance to tilt the race in our favour…

West Ham (A), Burnley (H), Newcastle (H), Sheffield (A), Brentford (H), Chelsea (H) = 18 points…

Tomy is going to be back soon and hoping that we will be able to count on G. Jesus and Partey as well.

Keep calm, keep winning and carry on…If we have 67 points by March 30th, we will still in the race…Anything lower and we may be out of it by April 1st, no joke 😦

COYG!

Raya – 6

White – 8

Saliba – 6

Gabs – 6

Zinchenko – 6

Jorginho – 9

Rice – 8

Saka – 8

Ode – 8

Martinelli – 8

Havertz – 8

Trossard: 8