I have spent the last season and a half bemoaning the boo boys, this week I was not alone as Arsenal fans rallied round our beleaguered manager and club in an attempt to rid us of the discontented.
But today as we prepare ourselves for our pilgrimage to the red half of North London it is time to consolidate, stand side by side and live alongside each other in harmony. So i have an olive branch for our disenchanted.
We need your boos, things need to change at the Emirates and you are the boys who can make it happen.
As well as spending the last six months bemoaning the negativity I have also been trying to encourage people to tear off the shackles of the new stadium and start creating some noise.
On Sunday I realised I’ve been guilty of cloudy thinking, the answer has been staring me in the face for months and I’ve ignored it.
Boos resonate within the ground, there is a theory that songs get carried out of time with the distance they travel round the ground, this is not true of the simple boo. You can pick it up at any point and you can even add some variation throwing in a whistle or two and some hissing, or some added variation of a few swear words. There is no requirement to know words, no embarrassment from singing on your own, or out of tune, and you can do it sitting down.
There is the added bonus of always being picked up by TV and Radio mics (some would suspect that they actually turn up the volume on the B of boo).
So far so simple, however here is the tricky bit, the animosity needs to be directed at the opposition…….I’ll just let that sink in…….I realise this is a revolutionary thought for you boo boys, but please bear with me.
Every time the opposition touch the ball we boo, if it helps just imagine that the opposition is ten Fat Bench Warmers, Almunia in goal, and Eboue set to come on as sub, that should help you reach your goal. The other tricky bit is to stop booing when we have the ball, you may even decide to cheer, but as your noise making potential appears to peak at the monodrone maybe you should leave the cheering to others in the crowd and save your voice for the next spell of opposition possession.
No more will we hear about the Library. We will create an atmosphere in which the opposition won’t think straight when in possession, it will also drown out any positive cheers and songs of encouragement from the away end.
So come on boo boys this is your opportunity to put your skills to work for the good of the team, and to change my perception of you.
Almost a year ago, in the Evening Standard of 20 January 2011, Arsene Wenger was quoted at saying:
We have a shared leadership in our team, but I believe Fabregas is an outstanding leader, especially when you consider he is 23 years old, with personality and character and Van Persie as well….I believe what is important in the way we want to play football is that everyone takes responsibility.
Back then, it was looking okay for Arsenal, as we had everything to fight for and the following six weeks, all the way to March, were the best of the season, cumulating in that emphatic win over Barcelona at home. We all know what came next: three months of weak and unforgivably lack-lustre football in which we almost lost everything. The only reason we finished fourth, so important for the CL, was the fact that the season ended just in time: had it lasted another four games, Arsenal would not have made it, so bloody poor had we become.
Where was the ‘shared leadership’ then, who was taking responsibility and where was the personality and character to see us through all of that?
Wenger has never openly shared the fans’ concerns regarding leadership during the Henry and Fabregas captaincy eras. He always seemed to downplay the importance of having a strong individual leader/captain on the pitch, and to stress the importance of having leadership throughout the team. Well, I think he was both right and wrong with those views on leadership, and looking at the ‘New Arsenal’ of 2011-2012 it looks like Wenger himself came to a similar conclusion over the summer, and subsequently made the necessary changes.
For many seasons, ever since Vieira left, a great number of Gooners have been saying that Arsenal lacked real leadership on the pitch. Many of us were longing for the powerful, outspoken, ‘heart on the sleeve’ leadership during the years of Adams and Vieira. Henry and Fabregas were brilliant at leading by example but most of us felt something was missing: they were not naturally born leaders and as a result were struggling with some vital aspects of leadership we were craving for.
When Arsene announced that Robin van Persie would become our new captain over the summer, not everyone was convinced it was a good idea. The main reason for this appeared to be the fact that he is a striker, and therefore not positioned centrally enough in the team to be able to lead it adequately. TH14 captaincy is generally seen as not a very successful one, and understandably, many fans drew a comparison between his previous captaincy and RvP’s anticipated stint at it.
For me Fabregas, was not an effective leader. I see him as a specialist, somebody who really wants to be part of a team and play an important but TECHNICAL role within it. Often, people who are technically very good at what they do, are promoted into a leadership role without proper consideration whether they are actually suitable for it (within sport as well as in business). The main reasons are: a desire to reward people for their contributions to the team/organisation and a fear of losing a particular player/member of staff if they are not promoted instantly. The consequences can be very dire. Fabregas led by example, but he is naturally quite introvert and combined with an injury-strewn season and his anticipated move to Barcelona, he was not able to lead the team through those horrible last three months. Moreover, there was hardly any shared leadership and taking of responsibility by the rest of the team with the exception of Van Persie, Wilshire, Koscielny Song and Sagna. It was time for a chance.
Robin van Persie: the perfect captain
What a difference a season makes. Robin van Persie has turned out to be the excellent leader we have all been craving for:
RvP leads by example: not just with his incredible scoring record, but also with his high energy-levels. He never spares himself, always gives everything and plays with his heart on his sleeve. He will also stand up for his players and let nobody be bullied by the opposition;
RvP is blessed with a high level of social-emotional intelligence: he understands what is going on inside other players, and is able to support them accordingly, on and off the pitch;
RvP is extrovert: he is not a constant shouter, but he likes to talk to this fellow players and make himself known when things are not going right;
RvP is a great communicator: with the crowd/fans – an ambassador for the club. When, for example, he scored the winner against Sunderland with a brilliant free-kick, he took off his shirt which resulted in a yellow card being issued to him, but this was his way of showing the crowd how much Arsenal (winning) meant to him, and the crowd responded to it in equal measures. He interviews well, always smiles and is able to focus on the positives: he always represents the club professionally and with real passion – a true ambassador;
RvP is a great communicator: ‘liaison-manager’ between the players and the management. He has got the respect of Wenger and the players and seems to be able to translate messages, up and down, and down and up, effectively;
RvP can combine with ease his own ‘specialism’: scoring goals a plenty and creating chances for others, with his responsibility of leading the team;
RvP is team player/ team builder: he always wants to celebrate his goals with others in the team and he will always praise, on and off the pitch, contributions made by others.
As the saying goes there is no ‘I’ in team – but there is every bit of ‘PERSIE’ in leadership!
So, there you have it: RvP is the perfect captain. But, there is more! And this is why I am so extra-excited about the near future for our beloved Arsenal.
The ‘New Arsenal’ is brimming with leadership
We now have real ‘shared leadership’ throughout the spine of the team, and for Wenger to have achieved this in such a short period of time, is simply astonishing. From Szczesny to Vermaelen, Mertesaker and Koscielny, to Song and Arteta, to Ramsey and Van Persie, we now have a core in the team who give their all and take responsibility when things go wrong. Mertesacker was like the devil –possessed in his attempts to break down the Wolves wall on Boxing Day, as he was earlier in the season at Blackburn away. Vermaelen’s ‘Terminator-like’, beastly hunger to score an equaliser against Man City is another great example of our players taking responsibility and wanting to make things happen for Arsenal. Szczesny attempts to organise his defence, with his verbal and physical dominance, are so different of what we have seen from Almunia and co, and the joint desire by the defence to fight for clean sheets is also very encouraging. This, as yet, is not always leading to the desired outcomes, but it’s only a matter of time before we will pick the fruits of this shift in mentality.
Arteta, Ramsey and Song, all wear their hearts on the sleeve. The ARS of the team works phenomenally hard and is the engine of it. I feel Arteta and Song are more of the introvert type, who stick to a task well and will never let the team down. Ramsey is probably more likely to become a future leader, but he is focussing on improving his technical performances first, at this stage of his career.
Theo, The Gerv, Jenkinson, Gibbs and Santos are also good team players who work hard and give their all for the team, and there are now plenty of good players on our bench who care for the club and will fight for it. This really is a new Arsenal, with a new mindset, and as Arsene likes to call it, bags full of ‘mental strength’.
Jack Wilshere – the final link
For me, the final, missing leadership-link in the spine of our team is Jack Wilshere. Wilshere is a born leader who just gives that extra-10% to our midfield with his hunger, extrovert leadership skills and unbelievable ability to command the midfield. For me, he instantly turned into a man when we beat Barcelona at home last season: what he showed during that game was simply astonishing. Future Arsenal and England teams will be build around him, and as soon as he returns into our team we will make a big jump forward.
As said in previous posts, this is a transitional year for Arsenal. I believe that all the ingredients are there for a long period of success and dominance in the PL, and possibly in Europe. No team can do without great leadership throughout the team: it is one of the key pillars of sustained success. I have little doubt that the ‘narrow’ spine of Szczesny – Vermaelen – Song – Wilshere – RvP will be the strongest in the country for years to come, and with RvP we have the best leader of them all.
Of all the things that disconcert me about the Emirates experience one of the most boring and unnecessary is the crowd shouting shoot when a player is anywhere inside the opposition half.
I mainly sit in the lower tier when I can get a ticket and behind one of the goals. At the Wolves game a number of build up passes would be greeted with growing cries of shoot, no problem you would think, but the perspective from the lower tier is such that when the ball is up the other end there is no way you can judge how far the ball carrier is out from goal or otherwise. I tried to encourage those around me to look for the only lines visible to us the 18 yard box vertical markings (the vertical ones if you are looking from the goal..the ones that are 18yards long….shall I draw a diagram?). Using them as a guide you suddenly become aware of how far out players are when the cries of shoot begin.
During the match when the chance fell to Rosicky I felt certain he would score, he was surely on the penalty spot or closer. We all held our head in frustration some berating him for missing an open goal. Then the replay showed the ball had broken to him on the edge of the D and whilst he dragged his shot somewhat it was a much harder chance than it had first appeared.
But these are not the reasons why I want the crowd to stop the “shooooooooooot” stuff. As has been recently pointed out we have scored 1.6 goals per game at home yet 2 per game away. Is there a psychological reason for this?
Well perhaps there is and perhaps it is Arsene Wenger…recently when asked about Frimpong he said the following:
Football is made about what the game wants not what the fans in the stands want. Good players always respond to the game situation and make the right decision taking all the emotional part out of it.
It’s a question of experience. When you are young you think you have a strong shot and people say: ‘come on have a go.’ You are tempted to do it even though you have a pass to make.
At 24 you think: ‘come on, I have that pass to make’.
Clearly Wenger discusses this with players doing what you want not what the fans want you to do, so if you take this further even if it is the right choice to shoot perhaps they will not do it as it will appear to the boss that they are following the crowds wishes rather than their own decision.
I know some will think that Wenger’s comments are exactly the problem as he talks about looking for another pass rather than shoot, maybe thats the case but statistically in the Premier League you are more likely to score from within the 18 yard box than outside it.
I borrowed the following image from Prozone and they have helpfully been analysing goalscoring trends over the last few years. It shows 2010-11 scoring positions.
So you see what is evident is that it is not merely shooting that will get goals, its a shame they couldn’t produce a shot chart to to show how many fruitless efforts there are in a similar form. As has often been said we were second top of the shooters charts last season (to Chelsea) here are the charts for the current season up to Christmas Day.
So we are bottom of the shooting charts behind everyone this year (level with United) but as you can see from United and City its the conversion rates that we are way behind in comparison.
Anyway the numbers are a side issue my main point is given that Wenger has openly criticised a player for following the will of the crowd rather than recognising there are better options available, I think the more we shout shoooooooot like a bunch of speech impeded cows the less likely it is that players will shoot from outside of the area.
We are still a few days away from the Leeds game and I don’t want to step on what will surely be another (auto paste here) splendid pre match from the master himself. But without wishing to step on toes I want to get some thoughts off my chest.
Having spent most of Christmas and New Year struggling to find the back of net I have started to change my mind about the importance of this game and who should be playing. Up until Monday I had reasonably assumed (and accepted the fact) that we would probably be giving opportunities to youngsters and squad players to get some game time.
But after 5 games in which we have only mustered 5 goals, the drought is concerning and could cause the green shoots of recovery seen since 1 September to wilt away again. Actually goals have dried up before this recent spell, since Wigan away we have only scored two goals on one occasion.
After Leeds we face a trip to Swansea who have the joint best home defence of all Premier League teams. Not the place to visit when we are misfiring.
Because of the above I am starting to think that maybe Monday is not the best time to play the youngsters and the squad, perhaps its time to send out the first team and tell them to fill their boots against what should be a very beatable opposition. If they can’t or don’t then it adds further weight to any arguments Wenger may or may not be having with the board about the need for some new signings.
I know there will be some who say we are approaching red zone and that the players cannot play every game and maybe that is true, but when a team is winning and playing well fitness becomes far less concerning. In January we have only 4 games including the FA Cup game, is it really a step too far to imagine that a player cannot play 4 games in 22 days. (Admittedly if we beat Leeds there will be another game to squeeze in).
So lets put the first eleven out especially Theo and AA or the Ox (Gervinho is unavailable due to the ACN) and tell them to run riot and grab as many goals as they can. Treat it like the first team game it should be. I know we have a lot of games this season, but their is something about the FA Cup that I don’t think we should dismiss too lightly, who knows maybe its this cup this year that helps us kick on, and at least with the final at the arse end of the season it means we can’t suffer a slump like we did last season from 1 March onwards if anything untoward happens in the final.
The visit of Wolves over the last two seasons has produced two wins for the boys in red and white keeping clean sheets on both occasions. Although Wolves have some robust players McCarthy tries to get them to play football.
He is one of the few managers who I like listening to in post match interviews as he rarely complains about decisions and outcomes of games, choosing instead to inject some humour in his “call a spade a spade” approach to cross examination.
Having read the BBC head to head I am slightly concerned about today’s game as there are too many statistics in our favour. Here are a selection (you can read the rest here):
Wolves are yet to take a point off Arsenal in six previous Premier League matches.
Arsenal have kept clean sheets in each of the last three contests between the sides. Wolves’ last goal was JodyCraddock’s 89th-minute consolation in a 4-1 home defeat in November 2009.
It’s now 13 top-flight matches since Wolves beat Arsenal. That win was at Highbury in 1979 under the management of John Barnwell.
Wolves’ only away win this term came in their season-opener at Blackburn. They are winless in seven subsequent matches.
In addition to the probability that these stats have to be upset sometime there is the added pressure of elevating ourselves to fourth today. On numerous occasions last year United performed poorly in a game and gave us the chance to leapfrog them, nearly every time we failed to maximise on the opportunity.
Today we find out whether most of us are correct to believe that this is indeed a New Arsenal and that they actually have a mental toughness that matters, one that can be used on a football pitch to grind out results rather than the kind that allows one to turn a blind eye to the cry of man overboard.
McCarthy has rarely sent his team out to face us with bus firmly parked, but they will almost certainly be up for the battle. The team need to be prepared to win the battle of midfield first and the right to pass and play.
For me there is not much to figure out in team selection. I fully expect the same line up for Villa except Song will return. There is also a hint that Djourou could be fit, so he could return at right back.
Team for me should be:
We could see Coquelin at right back again but Jarvis offers a threat down the left flank and I think a more experienced defender in Koscielny will stop any early tail lifting danger.
All in all another game where result is more important than the performance which earns it, although perhaps I’ll be greedy and ask for at least two of the three goals Robin needs to surpass Shearer’s calendar year record.
I am struggling with inventors but have managed to come up with Sunbeam – a company founded in 1912 by John Marston and based in Wolverhampton which produced popular bikes, motor bikes and later cars (or at least it did according to wiki).
The second game of the busy festive period is upon us, and a trip to Aston Villa and the odorous Alex McLeish awaits. Villa fans have not warmed to their new manager and his style of football. He has turned them into Birmingham of 2010-11 and so far they have managed four wins from sixteen games scoring only 18 goals. They have though like McLeish’s former charges become the draw specialists and no doubt he will set his side up in the traditional Routemaster formation.
This is often the type of game that we have been known to take too lightly in the past, often featuring numerous changes to the team and resulting in a disjointed and difficult to watch performance. Last season Wigan away over the Christmas period was a case in point. If the boss needs more recent proof of why he should not over rotate it is the Olympiakos away game where the team sent out never got going, no matter that it was a dead rubber.
For these reasons I hope Arsène will make no more than two or three changes and do the same for the rest of the games in the festive period to provide rest for the big players over the period but still maintaining the core of the side. One change for this game has been forced upon us by suspension and one by injury.
Tonight I would line up as follows:
We need all the attacking quality we can muster, although part of me expects Wenger to start Arshavin in place of Gervinho. Perhaps because it is away from the glare of the Emirates crowd it would be more beneficial to Arshavin’s confidence to start tonight rather than at home against Wolves.
Whatever team takes the field tonight they will need to be up for the fight and to continue the drive we saw from them on Sunday, Villa may be lacking in technical craft but they have players that will do their best to outmuscle the new look Arsenal, especially across the back four and they will certainly be sent out fired up by McLeish. Given and Bent, both so often tormentors of the good guys, are missing as is Herd, and Collins is struggling to make the game. The biggest blow for Arsenal is that Heskey is also unavailable which means they may have more mobility in midfield and final third than anticipated.
It is important the result is secured early on, we need to conserve energy reserves for the next three games so a fast start with a couple of goals before half time will be a perfect tonic. A win is a must to continue our pursuit of the Champions League spots.
To continue with tradition of Inventors hailing from the home of our opponents I have unfortunately struggled to come up with any worthy men from the tiny Birmingham suburb named Aston……well that is apart from the fateful day in 1969 when Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, Bill Ward and Ozzy Osborne decided a band called Earth was a bit rubbish and reinvented themselves as Black Sabbath and gave birth to Heavy Metal. Rock on to three points.
After two weeks of interlull we could once again enjoy proper meaningful football with a trip to the Fine City of Norwich to take on Paul Lambert’s promoted Canaries.
The only selection problem facing Wenger was whether to field Koscielny, Djourou or Yennaris at right back. In fairness it was a no brainier, Koscielny is one of the first names on the team sheet on current form and out of our relative plethora of centre backs probably most adept at playing right back having had experience there in the lower French leagues.
The team started brightly with Walcott using his pace to scare Tierney and Gervinho causing problems on the left. The skipper was showing why he is the most feared attacker in the Premier League right now with movement and sublime touches that the Norwich defence could not cope with.
One of the early chances fell to van Persie, to the shock of Arsenal fans everywhere he failed to convert it. The team was carving out opportunities and controlling possession so easily that it was only a matter of time before the deadlock would be broken.
The best chance of the opening fifteen minutes came as Gervinho found Walcott arriving in the box he cleverly stopped and curled the ball past Ruddy with his left foot, Martin lunged towards the goal and somehow managed to clear the ball over the cross bar to prevent the opener.
It was Norwich however who took the lead against the run of play, Mertesacker came over all charitable (perhaps a Children in Need Hangover and a confusion of Pudsey with a Canary) and became the Big Friendly German, unnecessarily allowing the ball to bounce when playing it early or just clearing the ball into Row Z would have been the better option. Morrison bundled past the German and slotted the ball under the advancing Szczesny.
Szczesny’s look at Per summed up how we were all feeling about him at that moment.
However this is the new Arsenal, goals given away are just another obstacle to overcome, there was no ten minute spell where we felt we could go more goals down, the team instead set about getting the equaliser.
After another period of more spurned chances we equalised, Gervinho advancing down the wing brought the ball inside and fed van Persie he turned and found Walcott, he pushed it past Tierney, sprinted onto it, looked up and drove the ball towards the centre of the goal and Gervinho. The Ivorian managed an air kick back heel when a simple tap in would have sufficed, thankfully Robin couldn’t miss the opportunity to add to the seasons tally and he had ghosted into the box unmarked to tap in from two yards.
The half played out with more opportunities for Arsenal to take the lead but unfortunately they could not make any of them count.
The second half started well with more fine attacking play. Vermaelen breaking forward and managing to deliver a cross which found Gervinho but he could only head weakly at Ruddy. Soon after Gervinho had another chance to break the deadlock, played in by a beautiful reverse pass from van Persie he rounded the keeper but did not have the composure to pass in to the empty net.
It started to feel like we would not find a deadlock, and some legs were looking heavy from International duties. Then Ramsey disposed Martin and was immediately brought down, Song collected the loose ball and drove forward, Gervinho broke left, and Robin broke right, Song took his time and played in van Persie, it looked like he may have forced him to wide on his right foot, Ruddy came to narrow the angle and but Van Persie calmly lifted it over him with the chocolate leg and the ball nestled in the net.
The rest of the ninety played out with little incident, our new found maturity and responsibility meant that our attacks were limited to three or four players rather than five, six and seven of last season, and the defence rarely looked exposed or troubled.
All in all a job well done, three points were much needed to continue the form we have been showing in the last few weeks and to keep the momentum five Premier League wins on the bounce 15 goals for 6 against.
Undoubtedly there will be more people saying we rely on van Persie too heavily and calling us a one man team after another brace to get us over the final hurdle. Well here’s the thing, thats the laziest punditry I currently hear. Robin van Persie is a centre forward, you expect him to score the bulk of the goals. He does not score all goals by picking the ball up on the half way line and running past everyone, he scores goals by finding good positions and being played in by one of his talented teammates, that nearly every chance he has goes in means the team look to find him with the final ball more often.
Ratings:
Szczesny 8 – Goalkeepers union speaking here but i dislike a keeper getting a 7 just because he didn’t have a lot to do, everything that was asked of him he did well, no chance for Norwich goal, if he had saved it he would have got a 9.
Koscielny 7 – Strong defensively and Norwich did not get a look in on our right flank. However judged as a full back he did not get forward enough to support Walcott.
Mertesacker 6.5 – I know most will expect him to get a lower score because of the mistake that led to the goal, but in all honesty it was the only mistake he made al day, unfortunately he was punished for it. Other than that he swept up and closed down well and looked comfortable.
Vermaelen 8 – Won everything in the air, solid in the tackle and offers an alternative when bringing the ball out of the back line.
Santos 7 – This guy is marmite you either love him or hate him, I think I love him, he is an under-rated tackler and does well going forward. Has a tendency to give me kittens every now and again with a relaxed pass, he just plays the game he knows, pass the ball and trust the receiver.
Arteta 7 – Seemed to suffer really from two weeks off, once up to speed set about providing a useful screen to break up attacks and kept the ball moving in the right direction.
Song 7.5 – Comfortably dealt with all Norwich could chuck at him, filled in at centre back when Vermaelen went wandering forward, and good work to seize on the opportunity to set up the winner.
Ramsey 7 – Worked hard to get in good positions, but wasn’t always found by his teammates. Pounced on the poor touch by Martin to allow Song to break forward for the winner.
Gervinho 7.5 – Getting better all the time, movement good, dribbling good, passing good, finishing must do better, but I’m sure it will come with time.
Walcott 8 – Purple patch time for this young man, finding a way to beat his man every time, and using the ball to good effect. Unlucky not to have scored but a fantastic all round performance.
van Persie 8 – Great movement to be on the end of the first, sublime finish for the second. Good link up play and leadership.
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