Monday, August 6, 2007

Thanks for the Contribution

One of my secondary sources on football, and in particular, Arsenal, corrected part of my Arsenal post: Ljungberg's first name is Fredrik.  My apologies.  I'm posting his questions/comments below as I think they are strong points:

"-Can Eboue become a competent right winger? It looks like Wenger is thinking of starting Sagna at left back with Eboue in front of him."
-Can Hleb become a competent attacking midfielder? Wenger has been playing him in the middle behind a lone striker (RVR, Adebeyor or Da Silva). I've heard he's been playing well there. He's been a huge disappointment as an outside midfielder. I hope he can adjust and be productive in that new role. 
-Can anyone in the midfield score a damn goal?! I'm expecting big things from Rosicky this season. He's got the talent and he's a proven goalscorer. Look for him to notch 8-10 IF he can stay healthy. Fabregas will always be better at setting up goals than scoring them, but sooner or later he's going to develop into a more potent attacking threat. He's got a good shot from outside and he can beat defenders off the dribble. He's already such an amazing player for his age.
-Can Diaby or Gilberto Silva effectively play the holding midfield role? Gilberto is alternately brilliant and disastrous. Needs more consistency. Diaby is the future at that position (if Denilson, a more attacking midfielder, doesn't steal the midfield spot).
Can the defense defend set pieces and not give up dumb early goals? I have little faith. Our defense somehow seems weaker than the sum of its parts. I'm not persuaded that Wenger knows how to coach defenses well.
In a squad full of question marks, Bendtner and Walcott are perhaps the biggest. Either one could play a big role this season.
A lot of people are saying that Arsenal will struggle to finish fourth above Tottenham. I can see the logic, but I think they are really an unknown quantity going into this season. They could gel, feel liberated by the departure of Henry and challenge for the title. It's a distinct possibility. They have so much talent in their team. They're just so damn young! We'll know what they are capable of early in the season. If they get off to a bad start, I'm not sure they'll have the maturity to right the ship."

From Lucas Hollister

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