2007 – 2008 A Preview
Aug 8th, 2007 by 'holic
As the opening Premiership fixture looms large it’s time to consider our prospects for the coming season. It looks as though supporters of other sides have decided we are ripe to be removed from the top four come next May. It seems to me that theory is based entirely on the fact that Thierry Henry has opted for pastures new. So is it that bad?
From a squad perspective you have to say it looks as though defensively we have been strengthened by the signing of Bacary Sagna. Clearly rated by Arsene Wenger it looks as though he will get the opportunity to make the right-back berth his own, although Emmanuel Eboue and Justin Hoyte will doubtless keep him on his toes.
I have made no secret of the fact that I would have liked to have seen a commanding central defender signed this summer, and with over three weeks of the transfer window remaining that is still not out of the question. The performance of Kolo Toure and William Gallas at Ajax was encouraging however, and the Swiss pair of Philippe Senderos and Johan Djourou have both impressed in pre-season. Gallas has started uttering some more positive soundbites of late, which hopefully is an indication that he has finally realised the quality of the talent around him. He needs to concentrate on his own performances for now and hopefully help to eradicate the alarming collective lack of concentration at set pieces which was so costly last term.
Gael Clichy continues to improve with almost every game at left-back, and young Armand Traore has also shown signs of polishing some of his rough edges in the recent spate of friendlies. With Gallas, Sagna, Hoyte, and Flamini all capable of covering we should avoid too many problems on the left.
Behind what will hopefully be a better drilled defence, Jens Lehmann’s mind may well be focused by the prospect of keeping goal for Germany in next summers European Championship. Nagging doubts persist about the ease with which he can be distracted at set pieces, and at thirty-eight he is unlikely to calm down now. If his standards do slip at any stage I am sure that Manuel Almunia, who appears now to be approaching his prime, will be up to the challenge.
In midfield there has surely never been a collection of talent to rival our central options. Gilberto, Cesc Fabregas, Abou Diaby, and Denilson is a dream quartet. So much so that only Arsenal could consider Alexander Hleb and Tomas Rosicky to be wide players. Mathieu Flamini would also probably be in the starting eleven at any side outside the top four, and Alexandre Song has all of these ahead of him in the pecking order despite impressing during his loan spell at Charlton earlier in the year.
It is out wide that we need to make progress this season. Theo Walcott may get the opportunity to shake off the ‘prospect’ tag, but hopefully will face stiff competition from a new face, yet to be signed! If there is no addition to the squad then we will once again be trying to fit square pegs in round holes. Hleb will find new competition on the right hand side from Eboue, freed to venture further forward by the emergence of Sagna, and possibly Van Persie depending on who is available for the striking roles. Across on the left Rosicky, alarmingly subdued in pre-season, may find his place going to Eduardo.
Eduardo may prove to be the key to the season if nobody else arrives by the end of August. If he can repeat his goalscoring exploits in the Croatian League then the loss of Thierry Henry will not be quite as significant as others see it. Let’s be absolutely clear he is not a ‘replacement’ for Henry. Nobody is. However, if he can form a goalscoring partnership with either Robin Van Persie or Emmanuel Adebayor then our biggest single failing from last season will have been addressed. When the African Cup of Nations comes around at the start of 2008 there may also be an opportunity for Nicklas Bendtner to show how far he has progressed during his loan spell with Birmingham.
So there it is. For my money we have potentially got a stronger squad than last season, the loss of experience balanced by the fact that those who have moved on were rarely fit last season anyway. Much will depend on who gets injured and when. Whilst we can cover a number of injuries at the same time in the centre of midfield, we would not want to lose two or three defenders at the same time as the African Cup of Nations.
In that respect we will need Lady Luck to bestow her favours in our direction. One thing of which I am certain. Teams that have spent an awful lot more money than us will not fancy facing Arsenal this season. It will be hilarious if after making money during the close season, rather than spending it, we end up on top of the pile come May.
5 Responses to “2007 – 2008 A Preview”
We certainly were very unfortunate last season with injuries to key players. I’ll be praying that we can keep the players fitter for longer and that those shots that hit the wrong side of post and bar and went out last season will hit the right side and go in this season. Why were we called ‘lucky Arsenal’ again?
Your optimism is infectious, ‘Holic. I’ve got a good feeling about this season, a feeling I’ve not had for a few years.
I feel that Wenger has addressed the lack of a players willing to attack the box in two ways. First he’s signed Da Silva, a player who scores 34 goals in 32 games in ANY league is a good player, espically when he didn’t start all those games! Also, Helb, when played in the hole, seems to get into the box more. Bendtner gets into the box more than I had thought too. I didn’t see much of him last season, but from what I had heard he likes to take the ball out wide as Henry and Van Persie do. Not the case from what I’ve seen. He likes to get into the box, something I’m delighted to see from a player his size.
At 10/1 I’ll be placing £50 of my hard earned sausage and mash on Arsenal to bring back the Premiership.
Me too Simmo, but the first few weeks will tell. We cannot afford a slow start, and we should not drop home points to any of the teams we host until the Mancs visit in November. I have mentioned the effect injuries in certain positions could have, but there is also the chance of disruption being caused by a media war if Kroenke/Dein stir up the takeover business.
I am optimistic with reservations! 😉
I suspect that we will still need to score twice in most games as we have always tended to give a goal away – even in our strong seasons. The way we play lays us open to that. Consistent selection is important so no long term injuries and our defence will be able to cope with Toure and Eboues absence for the ANC. Hopefully by the time that comes around we will still be in contention. The team will grow this season that’s for certain but as you say we need the oxygen of a good start.
A good start is very important. The belief is building up within this team, we need a few solid wins under the belt to cement that. With the kind of opposition in the 1st 2 months, that may well happen.
The squad is still a little thin on numbers, though if you look at the quality, we seem to have atleast 2 options for every spot (except left wing). We cannot afford the same kind of injuries as last season, and we will certainly need some luck in that aspect. I feel Wenger is still not done in the transfer market, and will sign 1-2 more players to add to the squad (not necessarily to the starting 11).
I am quietly confident about the season.