Posts filed under “Tactics”
Gervinho comes into form to fit nicely into Arsène Wenger’s grand plan
Arsenal fans have a lot to look forward too if Gervinho’s first man-of-the-match in the 3-1 win over Stoke City is anything to go by. Daniel Jeandupeux, the man responsible for bringing Gervinho to Ligue 1 at Le Mans, tells Sabotage Times that “if he continues to improve, he could become one of the very best players [...]
Crossing is football’s greatest divide
An interesting sub-context to this season has been the running battle between Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur fans to “prove” who is the “better player”; Theo Walcott or Gareth Bale. Of course, such debates can only be subjective but Spurs currently have the bragging rights on this one as Bale is the PFA Player of the [...]
Arsenal need to take advantage of channels in Walcott’s absence
<Figure 1> Arsenal can exploit the space vacated by Barcelona’s full-backs. Arsenal may have received a boost with Robin van Persie returning four weeks ahead of schedule but they will need a miracle for the other two key men this season – Theo Walcott and Alex Song – to be fit for the second-leg against [...]
Arsenal’s system finds no space for holding midfielders
Some plans fall into place as if part of a grand design. Others just happen by accident. For Arsène Wenger, there is something prophetic about the way the season has panned out thus far. Less clairvoyant is his prediction that Arsenal would meet FC Barcelona in the Champions League but he is being proved right [...]
Are target men ever successful?
England’s love-affair with the “big man” or target man perhaps transcends practicality. As a position, they are hoisted up proudly in the air like a totem, therefore, when one emerges, like Andy Carroll of Newcastle United, it is no surprise that they dangled over the balcony like one of Michael Jackson’s babies. The giddiness, it seems Carroll’s [...]
Didier Drogba and Chelsea take advantage of Arsenal’s defensive inefficiency
Some things over time become more and more difficult to defend. Like refusing to ever use a public bathroom despite buying those twelve tacos off that dodgy vendor. Or insisting on reverse looking-up the phone numbers of every person that calls. And it increasingly feels that way about Arsenal too. They have become the purist’s team – great to [...]
Older posts from this category→