Arsenal – the club – may have moved from Highbury to the Emirates, but their team’s sense of invincibility is yet to be found. Arsenal is one of the top performers in the league, and qualifying seventeen times consecutively for the Champions League is testament of Arsenal’s ability to rack up points and victories.
The team has been said to be a world-class player short over the past few seasons, as fans look for reasons why their team cannot shrug off the constraints and obstacles weighing them down to make a consistent run towards the title. Arsenal has fallen short in comparison to the wealth of the other clubs to purchase players, while the heartbeat of its team has been ripped apart on a number of occasions – Robin van Persie to Manchester United in ‘12, Cesc Fabregas to Barcelona in ’11 are some examples.
Arsenal bucked that trend in 2013 with the £42.4m purchase of Mesut Ozil from Real Madrid, which gave the team a much-needed psychological lift, and made fans believe that their club was not going to turn into a selling club. They followed it up with the purchase of Alexis Sanchez from Barcelona last season, and fought hard, but could not keep up with the defensive excellence of Chelsea for all their attacking riches, as defensive lapses felled them at the worst of times.
With the rise of Francis Coquelin, the imminent arrival of Serge Stamper and the purchase of an ageing, yet consistent Petr Cech, Arsenal have built themselves defensively. They are a defender short of making a full-fledged assault on the title, but that could also fall Arsenal’s way in the next month.
An ideal line-up for Arsenal with their current team would be:
Petr Cech
Matthieu Debuchy – Per Mertesacker – Laurent Koscielny – Kieran Gibbs
Francis Coquelin
Theo Walcott – Mesut Ozil – Santi Cazorla – Alexis Sanchez
Olivier Giroud
Goalkeeper:
Petr Cech – The major purchase of Arsenal’s season so far, the consistent Petr Cech is the mainstay required at the back to thwart the goal-scoring efforts by oppositions, and will bring the much-needed experience in goal.
Defenders:
Matthieu Debuchy – Bought last season, however, his injuries and the emergence of Hector Bellerin meant that he had a lesser role to play. Fully-fit and with an eye on his place in France’s national team for the Euros, he will be raring to go.
Per Mertesacker – The big German cannot sprint and challenge opposing pacy players, but he is a good tackler and has an ability to lead the defence, along with his aerial power. He will be essential to Arsenal’s title hopes.
Laurent Koscielny – He is one of the best defenders in the league, with his all-round ability to stop opposing players in their tracks and move the ball forwards.
Kieran Gibbs – With Nacho Monreal breathing down his back, he was unable to hold down a constant place in the line-up. This season, he will be looking to improve defensively and make the left-back spot his own.
Midfield:
Francis Coquelin – His emergence last season was one of the major positives, as Arsene Wenger did not have to look for a midfielder, but could afford to bank on the young Frenchman to improve and get better.
Santi Cazorla – A versatile and a complete team player who can impact a game from any place on the playing field, with his trickery and mazy runs and passing.
Mesut Ozil – The record buy of Arsenal, he was unable to live up to expectations and the hectic nature of the Premier League in his first season. He was excellent in the second half of last season and has to carry on from where he left.
Theo Walcott – Walcott has put in match-winning performances since the end of last season, and is beating Jack Wilshere and Aaron Ramsey to hold down a place in the starting line-up, as long as he remains injury-free.
Alexis Sanchez – He lit up the Emirates in the first half of last season, and can be expected to make runs through opposition defences to create chances for his teammates to score, even though he will be on the wings.
Forward:
Olivier Giroud – He is the most underrated player in Arsenal’s starting XI, and fans want a flashy, better striker. However, Giroud is a solid striker, and has been consistent without disappearing in crunch games last season. He wants his place in the French national team for the Euros next season, and will look to score goals as often as possible.
Season after season, Arsenal have plunged into the competition without having the necessary squad depth to last through the season. This season, with the likes of Aaron Ramsey, Jack Wilshere, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Hector Bellerin, Calum Chambers and Danny Welbeck on the bench; Arsenal have the players to come off the bench in crunch games and create an impact on the game. There will be a jostle for places, as everyone will be on their toes to hold on to their first-team places, which can only be good for Arsenal’s chances of holding trophies aloft at the end of the season.
