Morning all, following on from some interesting and varied comments on RC78’s team balance post we had recently, I thought it would be an idea to analyse how strong I feel we currently are in each department, to ascertain which positions we feel we need to spend big on, which positions we need to add more moderately priced back up to, and which positions should we defer adding to and be patient while we establish whether we already have what we already need, likely through the rapid emergence of a young prospect?

My opinions are really just that, so I trust and hope that you will all contribute as to what you feel we should be doing in the summer transfer window, and why. Obviously feel free to obliterate and rubbish any of what I suggest.

My pragmatic head says that we will not be able to recruit and get every position spot on and top drawer after half a season with Arteta. I have often referred to us as being at the start of the Liverpool / Klopp route of development towards an end goal of a high quality title challenging squad over the next 2-3 seasons, and that every 6 months more pieces of the jigsaw puzzle should fall into place. As such I would suggest that after this summers TW, and going into next season, we should have plugged some much needed gaps, but may still have certain question marks, and be left waiting to find out whether some of our current players, especially the young ones, can become what is required before we “over-recruit”.

Going through our team from back to front I would say the following:

Keepers – I am happy with our first choice and back up keepers. Leno, Martinez, and even a couple of our youth prospects all look very good to me right now, and yet all still have further room to improve in certain aspects of their specialist position. Any expenditure here would be a waste of funds much needed elsewhere in my opinion.

Full-backs – I am happy with our first choice and back-up full-back options when fully fit (Bellerin, AMN, Tierney, Kola) but would probably play AMN ahead of Soares. AMN has done well recently in Arteta’s improved tactical formations so why would we play someone who couldn’t get in the Southampton team over a home grown lad? Is Soares not a loan of convenience to suit all parties before we get players back from injury and he seeks somewhere else in the summer. If he does have more about him then we will find out, but that will be a nice problem to have. Again I feel overall that this position would constitute unnecessary expenditure in the immediate future.

 Centre backs – this is a difficult one to assess because we have Saliba arriving who, if highly encouraging reports from France are to be believed, seems destined to be a 1st choice CB immediately, even at his young age. Luiz has played well recently and, again if fully fit, I feel both Holding and Chambers have the potential to be a 1st choice CB, and we will have that option on Mari as well once we see him more.

I do feel there will likely be some movement in and out in this position. We have the numbers for this position but may be looking to upgrade in quality. Arguably we need another high quality additional CB as well as Saliba coming in, but then I would say that 2, (or possibly 3), of our current incumbents will need to go. Who though?

Defensive and Central Midfield – At defensive and central midfield we arguably need an Ndidi type player, but again under Arteta’s improved tactics we have looked more solid with both Xhaka and Torreira sitting at the base of the midfield sometimes together and sometimes with a box to box type. Willock and Douzi both strike me as more number 8 or box to box types, and Emile Smith-Rowe could also be added to those two as one of the two positions he could eventually become a key player in. If we do add someone I think we may potentially need to lose one of the above due to excessive numbers resulting in a lack of game time for one or two of them. Again who would that be?

Attacking mid-field options – Looking at the ACM / number 10 and the attacking wide position in conjunction we have a lot of options. At attacking CM / number 10 we arguably need an addition with Ozil’s time left with us being limited, but also his consistent effectiveness in the role being questionable. There are some games where he still seems to be the man but it is not consistent and all successful top teams have a consistent, rather than sporadic, creator in chief. Could Lacazette move there as more of a deep number 10 striker, rather than an attacking central midfielder, as an option that many of us have suggested. That seems to split opinions and I do see both sides of the argument with this.

After that consider our other young options from what we already have. I concur with some others that ESR, a player who I feel has a very high ceiling (injuries and correct development permitting), can become that player. Not only that, but we have a number of other quality young players that at the moment would be considered more as attacking wide players but some of whom may be able to play the ACM or number 10 role.

For me any of Martinelli, Saka, Pepe, Nelson could become a great option at ACM or number 10 as well, but we would need to find out by trying it. Any extra addition to the attacking wide or central positions will thwart one or two of these youngsters and I think 1-2 will be forced to leave before we have even found out how good they can become. That is why I would potentially turn down the pursuit of a player like Grealish, despite the fact that I really rate him.

We don’t lack for numbers in players who can take up attacking wide or central positions; Pepe, Martinelli, Saka, Smith-Rowe, Nelson. If we were to add a creative CM or another number 8 type, I would suggest it would have to be one of a high level of proven quality in the EPL and not just another developing type or someone unproven in the EPL. It would have to be a Grealish or Maddison, if that addition were to effectively call time on one or two of our other young prospects in their development through lack of game time, and therefore their future at the club.

Our number 9 – Now to the final position and the one that I, possibly controversially, think we should be looking at as the most serious and high level investment in this summer….the number 9. That would seem strange bearing in mind we currently have 2 senior strikers in Lacazette and Aubamayeng who most teams would be very happy with. Both of those players have been linked with other high profile clubs, possibly less Lacazette on recent form, but this is the key position in the team where we have the most uncertainty.

We have Martinelli who can potentially play there, but such is his energy and ability from wide and deeper positions I think we would stifle him, with less contact time on the ball, by playing him as a 9. I would prefer to see him continue as a goal-scoring attacking wide player or possibly a central slightly deeper 10 where he can still drop more and get on the ball as well as into the box.

I want to see both Nketieh and John Jules brought more into the first team environment as number 9’s, but it would be extremely dangerous to assume they could step in and replace what Aubamayeng and Lacazette give us. Those 2, like Martinelli, give us great alternative options and possibly top level first choice solutions in the future, and as such should be focussed on in bringing them through. They would, however, require another senior striker, to lessen the pressure on their development, in the absence of both Aubamayeng and Lacazette.

Signing a contract extension or moving our two senior strikers on needs to be decided with both of them this summer (ideally before the Euros), and both have been holding back on signing extensions and maybe have an eye on being elsewhere. Also, from our own end, their ages will be starting to count against them in what they can provide at the highest level and for how long. I wonder whether more than a couple more seasons at the top level will be seen, maybe 3 in Lacazettes case, so this needs to be factored in to consideration.

In addition, despite both being very good strikers, there remain question marks over how effectively we can play them together, or if not together, how we rotate them with each other while keeping both happy with being rotated. That is a lot of stars that need to align for both our current senior strikers to represent our future beyond this summer, and for us not to have a significant need in high level recruitment in this position in the summer. However………..these types of players don’t grow on trees you know.

You only have to look at the January transfer window which saw many top clubs scratching around trying to find strikers to cover them or strengthen them. There seems to a dearth of top quality proven options in a good age group. In our case, and the case of all top EPL sides, we need a striker with both the qualities of being effective at European level, but also to have the right attributes to be effective in the more physical EPL. This narrows down viable options even further for the top 6 EPL teams compared to other top European clubs.

There is one striker I feel fits the bill though, and one I feel could be on the move so will be attainable, and that is Moussa Dembele from Lyon. In the summer he will just be turning 24 so is an excellent age, but still with time to improve even further. Before Lyon he was at Celtic for a successful stint, so has a proven pedigree in a more physical “British” league. He has an excellent goal-scoring record at both Celtic and Lyon and looks quick and very strong, ideal requirements for the EPL. I just can’t see another striker out there, or emerging, that has all of these attributes.

We would not be without competition for him, so we would need to sell it to him that Arsenal is the best place for him for the next stage of his career. If our 2 current senior strikers, or at least one of them, were leaving that would indicate he would be the main man, which is a big selling point. He will not be cheap either which is why I am suggesting that the greatest part of any budget we have, and any funds from other sales, goes on this player.

As I have mentioned we cannot realistically get high quality and expensive upgrades in all areas of the team in this next transfer window but, as I have outlined, I think we can be considered reasonably well covered in most other positions in the squad, if we just retain what we have and bring a couple more young prospects into the fray more. However I feel a top number 9 that can be prolific in both Europe and the EPL is not only currently hard to come by, but will remain so for the next couple of years, so I feel we should go in big and strike now before the opportunity passes us by.

If you made it to the end of this I have one simple question…….what do you think? 🙂

GoonerB

……………. and then RC78, who is obviously not finished with this topic, sent a further follow up which has been tacked on here ……………..

If we do not buy any players and rely on our current crop of young players, our squad could look like this under Arteta in 2 years:

Leno – Bellerin, Chambers, Saliba, Tierney – Torreira, Douzi – Pepe, Willock (or Smithe Rowe), Saka – Martinelli

Do you think that with two years more, this team could fare well in the EPL or do we need to strengthen this summer in key positions with players that are currently above 25 years old but that come with more skills and experiences like Koulibaly, Milinko Savic, Brozovic and Grealish?

So what to do? Give a chance to our youth and hope they develop into fine players or give them less playing time and buy some more confirmed players?

The choice is yours…

Yesterday we revealed the Arsenal Team of the Decade (2010-2019) as voted by the readers of Arsenal Arsenal.

Now, by popular demand, here is the Worst Team of the Decade – in other words, the team made up of the players who received the fewest votes in each category.

Where players are tied on the same (low) percentage of votes (because of rounding up to percentages), I have dug into the actual votes cast to see who got the smallest number and earned a place in our Team of Shame.

I can’t say I’m entirely happy putting out our Worst Team of the Decade for public consumption. The players in this team, regardless of how highly we rate them now, all had my full support when they pulled on the Arsenal colours and many of them had good spells and excellent games from time to time.

In fact, when you look at the team, it could actually perform quite well with a fair wind (although I think it would struggle to score goals).

Still, it’s a Darwinian world and where there are winners there have to be losers.

One surprising factor in our week of voting for the best players of the decade is that every single player received at least one vote. No-one scored a zero, which just goes to show. What it shows, I have no idea.

Below we’ve listed the results in full for every player in every category. Peruse at your leisure.

But first, here’s the line-up for a team that won’t be receiving any Valentines Day cards from Arsenal fans today:

Vote Results in Full

Goalkeeper

Leno                  38%

Szczesny           37%

Cech                   18%

Fabianski           3%

Ospina                3%

Almunia             1%

Mannone            1%

Right Back

Sagna                 71%

Bellerin              20%

Eboue                   3%

Maitland-Niles     2%

Debuchy                2%

Jenkinson              1%

Lichtsteiner           1%

Left Back

Monreal              66%

Clichy                   23%

Kolasinac               6%

Gibbs                      4%

Santos                     1%

Centre Backs

Koscielny              41%

Mertesacker         33%

Vermaelen            13%

Gallas                       4%

Holding                    2%

Gabriel                     2%

Sokratis                    2%

Mustafi                     1%

Djourou                    1%

Squillaci                   1%

Defensive/Holding Midfielder

Arteta                     30%

Song                        22%

Torreira                  21%

Xhaka                      11%

Coquelin                   7%

Flamini                     7%

Denilson                    2%

Elneny                        1%

Midfielders

Cazorla                    38%

Fabregas                  28%

Ramsey                    13%

Ozil                            11%

Rosicky                        5%

Diaby                           3%

Wilshere                     2%

Guendouzi                  1%

Benayoun                   0% (Rounded down to 0%, but Yossi scored a single vote!).

Wide Attackers

Aubameyang            38%

Walcott                       15%

Arshavin                     12%

Podolski                      11%

Nasri                              9%

Oxlade-Chamberlain  6%

Gnabry                          3%

Iwobi                              2%

Campbell                       1%

Gervinho                       1%

Mkhitaryan                   1%

Central Striker

Van Persie                   54%

Sanchez                       18%

Giroud                          13%

Lacazette                        5%

Eduardo                          3%

Welbecl                           2%

Bendtner                         2%

Chamakh                        1%

RockyLives

And so we come to the final choice to be made by you, the readers of AA, in our search for Arsenal’s Team of the Decade.

If you have not yet voted in the previous categories (Goalkeeper, Fullbacks, Centre Backs, Midfielders, Wide Attackers) you can still do so. Just follow the links in the ‘Recent Posts’ sidebar below.

Tomorrow we’ll have the grand reveal.

There’s just one position left to be voted on: a fairly important role – that of central striker. Who’s going to be the primary goal-grabber in your Team of the Decade? Here are the options:

Eduardo

The first season of the decade was the last at Arsenal for our unfortunate Crozilian. The horrendous broken leg he suffered away at Birmingham in February 2008 derailed what was looking like a really promising career at Arsenal. His return to the Emirates in the colours of Shakhtar Donetsk was an emotional occasion.

Robin Van Persie

Another brilliant player whose reputation is tarnished for some fans by the nature of his departure. After we stuck with him for years through persistent injury problems he cleared off to Man Utd as soon as he’d got a single full season under his belt. Nevertheless, it’s indisputable that he was a brilliant striker.

Carlos Vela

Never quite made it at Arsenal, but Vela showed promise for a while and scored some sweet goals with his trademark chips from the edge of the box (reminiscent of Ian Wright in an earlier era).

Nicklas Bendtner

Often mocked, but Bendy was an excellent asset off the bench during his Arsenal career. In fact the current squad could do with someone like him. In his best season for us he scored 12 from 21 starts and a handful of substitute appearances.

Marouane Chamakh

Good in the air and showed early promise, but his goal return was never enough to justify a place as our lead striker.

Olivier Giroud

Loved by the fans and a terrific all-round striker, Ollie was nevertheless somewhat underappreciated. He scored some absolute blinders and played a huge part in our goal of the season versus Norwich in the 2013/14 season (scored by Jack Wilshere).

Alexis Sanchez

Powerful, dynamic and direct, Alexis had a couple of great seasons at Arsenal. Fans appreciated his non-stop effort and his goalscoring ability. On the down side he lost possession more than any other player in the squad.

Danny Welbeck

A popular guy with the supporters and his teammates, Danny’s progress was blighted by periodic injuries (in contrast with Giroud, who seldom had long spells out). A willing worker who scored some fine goals in our colours but never seemed likely to be our main source of goals.

Alexandre Lacazette

The Frenchman arrived for the start of the 2017-18 season and quickly demonstrated his deadly finishing. He may be going through a goal drought now, but in the seasons under scrutiny for this exercise he netted 36 times in 69 starts, which is pretty awesome (and worth remembering by his current critics).

RockyLives

Sticking to the 4-3-3 system we’ve adopted for the sake of clarity and simplicity, today it’s time to vote for two wide attackers to form part of our front three.

There are plenty of juicy options to choose from, so have fun…

And remember, you can still vote for the other positions in the first five Posts in this series (links available in the ‘Recent Posts’ sidebar below). Tomorrow we’ll vote for the last unfilled role – that of central striker. The results will not be revealed until the full team has been assembled.

Today’s selections:

Samir Nasri

A fractious figure and not loved by the faithful after he decamped to Man City, but Nasri could be a devastating attacker when he put his mind to it. In the first two seasons of this decade, before he left us, he bagged 20 goals from 75 starts.

Theo Walcott

Theo seemed to frustrate a section of the supporter base for long periods, but his stats stack up pretty well. In his final season at Arsenal he scored 19 times from just 28 starts and eight substitute appearances. He scored some memorable goals against the noisy neighbours.

Andrey Arshavin

There was a dreadful spell when Wenger played the diminutive AA as our sole central striker. Needless to say he had a tough time. But cutting in from the left (particularly) or the right he could be lethal. There is always a sense of promise unfulfilled about Arshavin, but how about the 4-4 draw at Anfield where little Andrey scored all four of our goals?

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain

Wanted to play in central midfield but was generally played wide. He could be excellent but was a little inconsistent and his goal tally could have been better. But he’ll soon have a league champion’s medal at Liverpool.

Gervinho

Gerv the Swerve – strange player. He had plenty of skill but seemed to go to pieces in front of goal and would do anything he could to avoid shooting. However, maybe we just never got the best out of him: he had a significantly better strike rate at Lille before he joined us and also at Roma after he left us.

Lukas Podolski

A real fan favourite (not least because of how bonkers he was), Lukas’s left foot was rocket powered. He never earned the full confidence of Arsene and consequently was in and out of the team. Scored some crackers.

Serge Gnabry

I know he’s highly unlikely to make our team of the decade, but his later exploits at Munich suggest we should have made a bigger effort to hang onto him.

Joel Campbell

The Costa Rican had only limited opportunities at Arsenal but was much appreciated by the fans when he did play. Showed a surprisingly good eye for a defence splitting pass from time to time.

Alex Iwobi

A powerful runner with an occasional eye for goal, but perhaps Alex’s overall awareness was somewhat lacking. Most fans were happy when we got £40m out of Everton for him.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan

Arrived as a makeweight in the deal that saw Alexis Sanchez go to Man Utd. Had a few good moments early on but seldom imposed himself on games.

Pierre Emerick Aubameyang

An outstanding addition to the squad. Arsene was bizarrely reluctant to use him as a regular starter at first, but he eventually established himself as the most reliable scorer in the squad. In the final season of the last decade (2018-19) he netted 31 times in 42 starts in all competitions.

RockyLives

Hopefully in yesterday’s Post you selected your defensive/holding midfielder as we continue to build our readers’ Team of the Decade (2010-2019). Today we move onto the two remaining midfield positions.

If you missed the previous instalments, you can still vote by following the links in the ‘Recent Posts’ sidebar below.

We’re going for a 4-3-3 formation (if you feel that this does not allow you to pick the players you would like to, you can explain your point in comments), but today you need to select TWO midfielders from the list below.

You’ve already picked your midfield anchor… which two players are best suited to working with him to give our team the best chance of midfield dominance?

This is going to be tough…

Abou Diaby

A gifted player whose career was more or less ruined by one nasty tackle from meathead Sunderland player Dan Smith. On one of his many attempts to restart his career I remember him completely bossing the game at Anfield.  If only he could have stayed fit.

Cesc Fabregas

What can I say. The anointed Son of God. Why Arsene Wenger didn’t take him back when he left Barcelona remains a mystery to me.

Tomas Rosicky

Don’t you just salivate thinking about some of the great players we’ve had? Tomas was another player unlucky with injuries, but so good on his day. A class act.

Aaron Ramsey

The Welsh wizard overcame a horrendous injury committed by another “not that kind of player” English thug and emerged as one of the best central MFs in the EPL. His assets included box to box effort and a real eye for goal.

Jack Wilshere

The curse of injuries seems to be the theme of this selection. Probably would be England captain by now if he hadn’t been slowed down by repeatedly getting crocked, often from malicious fouls inflicted by opponents. But I’ll never forget him running the midfield against Barcelona as a mere 19-year-old.

Yossi Benayoun

A one-season loanee, but he made a lot of friends in N5 with his willingness and commitment (and his four goals).

Santi Cazorla

We were blessed during this decade, weren’t we? What a superb little player. He left us with two FA Cup winners’ medals under his belt. His control on the ball and ability to dribble out of tight spaces was a cornerstone of our midfield game.

Mesut Ozil

A genius, without doubt. There have always been questions about his body language (unfair) and commitment. But on his day he can see the game better than just about anyone and may be the best passer of a ball we’ve had since Dennis Bergkamp.

Matteo Guendouzi

Played 33 games in the final season of the decade, which was his debut season. A great prospect. It’s probably too early in his Arsenal career for him to be selected in this vote, but when we come to vote for the team of 2020-2029, who knows? His name could be high on the list…

RockyLives

Today we move onto one of the pivotal midfield positions as we look to build what AA readers consider to be our Team of the Decade (2010-2019).

If you missed the previous instalments, shame on you! But don’t despair, you can still vote by following the links in the sidebar below.

The final team, as selected by you, the most discerning supporters in Arsenaldom, will be revealed only when all the votes are in and tallied.

We’re going for a 4-3-3 formation (if you don’t like that approach, feel free to have a moan in comments). Today you have the chance to select one player to be the most defensively minded player in that midfield three. In the next Post you’ll be asked to fill in the other two MF positions.

Denilson

We thought he was going to be the next Gilberto but it never happened. Even so he was a regular presence in our midfield for a few years.

Alex Song

Sometimes it was a sweet song, sometimes an out-of-tune one, but Alex gave us good service over several seasons and had some great moments.

Mikel Arteta

Arrived at a tricky time and exuded pure class for his entire spell at Arsenal. Good to have him back as the boss.

Francis Coquelin

A good workhorse of a holding midfielder who maybe never lived up to his potential with us.

Matthieu Flamini

Did a decent job during his second spell at the club. Tidy and competitive.

Mohammed Elneny

Arrived as back up for the holding MF role and got a fair few outings. Mo was a good passer who seldom lost possession but perhaps could have been a bit more dynamic.

Granit Xhaka

The decade we’re looking at precedes his controversies so you should put those out of your mind. He has been one of our most regular starters since his arrival.

Lucas Torreira

When the Terrier joined us we breathed a sigh of relief, because we so clearly needed a combative DM. He quickly became a fan favourite although being played out of position by Unai Emery did him no favours.

RockyLives

During the winter break, when we’re denied our fix of regular football, AA is asking readers to vote for our team of the last decade (2010-2019).

Yesterday we went through the options for goalkeeper (you can find the link in the sidebar below if you missed it).

Today we move onto the outfield players, starting with fullbacks. There are separate votes for Left Back and Right Back.

I should note that although we have played many different systems during the decade (including five at the back), for the purposes of this exercise we’ll be voting on the basis of a 4-3-3 set up. So that means your fullback choices should be as traditional FBs, not as wing backs.

Results will not be revealed until all votes for all starting positions have been cast.

Right Back

Bacary Sagna

A classic Wenger signing – a promising French player – Bacary was our go-to right back for many years and had some memorable moments in the red and white. His headed goal to help drive our 5-2 comeback against the Spuds at the Emirates stands out for me.

Emmanuel Eboue

An enigma, a joker, an ever-smiling character who ended up leaving the pitch in tears on one awful occasion… but on his day Eboue was a talented attacking fullback even if he probably never lived up to his full potential.

Carl Jenkinson

We all loved Corporal Jenks. An Arsenal fan all his life he looked for a while as if he could be the answer at RB and was never anything less than fully committed to the cause.

Matthieu Debuchy

On his way to the Emirates after signing for Arsenal, Debuchy walked under a ladder, had a procession of black cats cross his path, smashed a mirror and opened an umbrella indoors. Has there ever been an unluckier player at our club? I was excited by his signing (I’d been impressed with him when Newcastle played at the Emirates the previous year) but cruel luck with injuries meant his Arsenal career never took off.

Hector Bellerin

Hector has been making regular appearances since 2015 and has sometimes seemed like he could be one of the great right backs. Again, injuries have made his progress stutter but his speed and composure on the ball are still huge assets.

Ainsley Maitland-Niles

Although not a RB by choice, AMN has proved himself a very reliable stand-in and it has been the position he has occupied more than any other in his Arsenal first team career.

Stephan Lichtsteiner

Probably a good player in his day, but in his single season in N5 he seemed too old and too slow for the pace of the EPL. He had a good line in hard man tackles, however, which was occasionally enjoyable.

Left Back

Gael Clichy

The Frenchman held down the LB spot for several years before moving to Manchester City. Although never a spectacular player his consistency was high and you never worried about the position when he was playing.

Kieran Gibbs

When Clichy moved on, Gibbs seemed ready to make the LB position his own. He had speed, control and good defensive awareness. His best season was the 2013-14 one, when he made 41 starts, but injury after injury blighted his career.

Andre Santos

The Brazilian wasn’t with us for long but he scored one memorable goal in a stirring 5-3 win at Chelsea.

Nacho Monreal

With Gibbs’s frequent injuries leaving a gap at LB, Monreal was brought in and quickly made himself indispensable. He was a very reliable mainstay of the team for years and had the versatility to play at centre back when required.

Sead Kolasinac

Our Bosnian beefcake is perhaps better suited to a wingback role than being an out-and-out fullback but his strength is impressive and he has made many goals with his surging runs down the left flank.

RockyLives

During this boring winter break we thought it would be fun to get AA readers to vote for their team of the past decade (2010 to 2019).

Today we start with the position that attracts the craziest men in football: goalkeeper.

During the decade seven players pulled on the green (or yellow, pink, blue, black, aubergine etc) jersey and took their pace between the sticks for Arsenal: Almunia, Fabianski, Mannone, Szczesny, Ospina, Cech and Leno. We’ve left out Emiliano Martinez and Matt Macey because they made only a tiny number of appearances.

Have a quick read, then cast your vote. You won’t be able to view the results in real time because we want to keep everyone guessing until we reveal the final ‘Team of the Decade’ line-up.

Important note: you’re voting for them based on their Arsenal career. So, for example, you shouldn’t vote for Cech because he was brilliant for Chelsea or for Szczesny based on his performances at Juventus. It’s how they played in Arsenal colours that counts.

Manuel Almunia

The Spaniard was never really taken to the fans’ hearts, but he was in goal for our 2005 FA Cup win (not in the decade in question of course) and became a much valued member of the Watford team after leaving us. I’ll never forget his best ever performance for us when he made a string of almost impossible saves in the 2-2 draw with Barcelona at the Emirates in 2010 (when Barcelona were at their very best).

Lukas Fabianski

Signed when we had a fad for Poles in Goals, Fabianski was in our 2014 FA Cup winning side and has had a solid career in the EPL since departing N5.

Vito Mannone

Looking like a heavy from Goodfellas, Vito got limited first team opportunities and is clearly a long shot for the team of the decade. But he had a few good performances before moving on to Sunderland and then Reading.

Wojciech Szczesny

Our Pole No 2 came to us as a youngster with good footballing genes (his dad was a professional goalie who was capped for Poland). Many of us thought the eccentric Wojciech would be our starting goalkeeper for a decade or more, but doubts crept in about his form and his attitude (getting caught smoking in the showers was not his finest moment). He has established himself as a valued stopper at Juventus so perhaps we should have persevered with him for longer.

David Ospina

He never established himself as an out-and-out starter, but was played by Arsene Wenger as our “cup ‘keeper.” The Colombian was between the sticks for two FA Cup wins and for a League Cup final defeat. Not a bad haul.

Petr Cech

Arguably the best goalie in the league during his Chelsea career, Cech came to us in 2015. He may not have reached the peaks that he did in West London, but he was a reliable custodian during his time with us.

Bernd Leno

Our second German ‘keeper (after the brilliantly bonkers Jens Lehmann) joined from Bayer Leverkusen in 2018 and is our clear first choice as we head into a new decade.

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