Before I start – this is not a rant, nor is it a critical analysis of our youth system or our manager. I think we have the best manager in the world and also the best youth set-up in the world, but – and it is a big but, as in everything in life there are flaws, and this post is about a certain flaw- AKA Theo Walcott..
When Theo first burst onto the scene there was a huge buzz around the club. People were saying we had signed the next TH14. A player who could run so fast that you could smell his studs burning as he ran. A player who was going to cause defences world-wide problems with his pace and he was labelled a wonderkid.
A few years back when Theo would get the ball the whole crowd would stand up in awe, there was a huge expectation and a huge buzz surrounding what he would do. As he set off running everyone in the ground would shout ‘go on theo’ and off he went.. ‘look at the speed of the kid, he’s going to be a superstar’ they would cry..
That doesn’t happen anymore. The reasons why are quite simple – techincally he is inept. He has no skill, no composure, he can’t dribble, pass, cross, head or take set pieces. Bottom line is he can’t play Wengerball..Hes just fast, which isn’t really good enough-i don’t see clubs worldwide queuing up to fight over Usain Bolts signature do you? Just because your fast doesn’t make you a footballer and the more Theo plays I don’t see a footballer..not one bit..
Now this is just my opinion, we all know that players like Theo will divide arsenal fans opinions…well thats mine
The first thing Pro Theo fans will say is that he’s always injured so its unfair to judge him. I have two counter arguments to this statement.
1- If he’s always injured then hes obviously injury prone..thats what injury prone means.
2- He’s been at arsenal 4 years!! I would argue that in that time he hasn’t improved one bit..Theos two main highlights are his CL lung-busting dribble against liverpool and his hat-trick for England where Croatia’s tactics where a shambles and they played a high line..Capello instructed Theo to hang off the last man and England hit long ball baby..these two ‘highlights’ doesn’t make Theo a top player…I once hit a 50-yarder and an over-head kick for my sunday league team but that doesn’t mean im David Beckham or Pele does it? Neither does it warrant me a 60k a week contract!!! So why fans focus on them points i’ll never know
Another excuse that I hear Pro Theo fans say is that we should stop knocking him, he’s only young and we need to be patient. He will mature and he will come good. He will prove to everyone Wenger was right to stick by him and that we don’t need to ‘waste money’ and sign quality players..which in fairness is a good point, we have a lot of young players in our team like Ramsey, Jack, Song and Gibbs – who will no doubt become very good players. I don’t buy this idea in regards to Theo..the reasons why are quite simple..
Firstly, in all the players I have mentioned above, you can actually see the improvement year by year, you can actually see the potential..with Theo I just dont..I’d say if anything he’s still the same player he was 4 years ago..
Secondly, and this is my main gripe and main focus of the post, is that strikers usually peak between the ages 25-30…we signed Theo when he was 16 for 12 million..hes now on 60k a week, which over the next 5 years works out at around 15.5million!!! Add the transfer fee and the wages Theo received before his bumper contract and we are looking at around 30million..
So logic tells me that we’ve invested 30million in cash and almost 10 years of time just to see if Theo comes good or not..my fellow Gooners – surely thats just as much as a risk as going out and buying a ready-made player like a Torres or an Arshavin or a Drogba for 30million???
The whole concept of Wenger not buying ready-made players and wasting money is a myth..especially in Theo’s case. We are wasting money aren’t we? We would be no worse of financially in buying a superstar than what we would in ‘waiting’ for Theo to maybe become one after 10 years.
Avenell Road 
Nice one jonjon. You know my thoughts on Theo.
I can remember on another site 2 years ago I dared say that Eboue is a better option and links the ball better with Rosicky and Hleb and I got the nuts caned out of me.
Now everyone is seeing through the “kings clothes” that is Theo..
I think he is still an okay player but would suit a team that plays in the old fsahioned style with traditional wingers like blackburn.
In fairness to his injuries Theo pulled up near the end of the game on Wednesday.. What was Arsene doing he should have took him off after an hour. Or if he wasn’t fully fit brought him on as a sub.
like the kings clothes point ave..
arsenes under pressure with theo…hes on a massive contract and he never plays…he needs gametime and hes under critism to do the business so wenger wants him to play as much as he can..but he isnt getting the results..
theos not doing the business and if hes got niggles wengers in a lose lose situation…leave him out and theo gets pummelled, play him and he gets injured…
i guess peaches and the others are still huge admirers of theo and dont want to upset me..lol
What hacks me off the most.. no one outside Arsenal cares about Theo unless he is fit for the World Cup.
We pay him 60k a week so he is ready to get injured playing for England. Then we can pay him for sitting on his sick bed.
On top of that the tackle that put him out for 6 weeks was perfectly okay in the media’s eyes.
Vela is crap too and we just rewarded him with a new contract..
That should sort it.. 😉
Yea…100% agreed. He’s shit
Hi Zain. welcome to Avenell Road. Your comments will go straight on from now..
I think I’ve made clear on here before Im no fan of theo walcott as a player, but I think you go a bit far saying he has no skill and cant play wengerball.
I see he has that ability in his game. He shows some really nice touches on occasion and hes been heavily involved in some really good moves in the past.
I also think he has improved enourmously from when we first* signed him. He SLOWLY learnt how to keep possession to a decent degree and not try to beat defenders EVERY time.
That said he still isnt good enough for our first team at this time. The main reason imo is that he’s just let all this hype go to his head. He concentrates too much on picking the ball up and trying to run at ppl (even though as I said he does it far less than he used to) when really his strength has always been running beyond the backline. And I think the formation we have now could suit him perfectly running from the right side down the middle – and of course we have the players to pick him out.
Trouble is he thinks hes Messi or something and doesnt play to his strengths.
Wenger always said it was important to stay grounded, so I guess that side of it is theo’s fault, but Id have thought wenger could have explained to theo how to get the best out of his abilities. I hate to use this argument, but you’d bet that if utd had signed walcott hed be a lot more effective by now.
Also wenger, or whoever made the decision at arsenal made a big scale cock-up in giving theo that contract. It reminds me slightly of adebayor – where he had one good season and had his wages increased dramatically (tripled probably) – but at least you could justify it by saying ade WAS one of our most important players that season and really kept us oging for long periods; walcott on the other hand has never played well for a stretch of more than about 3 games – even when he has been fit.
It also sends the wrong message to other players. Eboue has played very well in all but I think 2 matches this season (and many times been one of our best players, imo at least) but he loses his place next match every time. As soon as theo gets fit, hes straight back in the side – and he doesnt even play well!
Same deal with carlos vela to some degree. The guy works hard and plays well most games but cant get a look in, but he has to watch as a walcott (a far lesser player imo) gets a massive contract and walks into the side whenever hes fit. Its a joke.
The way the youth system works for the majority of the young players is very good imo. They get a few opportunities and back up the older ones. They get the chance if theyr good enough, but normally wenger will buy if he doesnt believe in the backup we have.
Walcott has been a massive exception to the way arsenal normally does things. Hes been put into the 1st team way too early. He’s had a disproportionate number of opportunities than the other youngsters and really hasnt deserved it.
yeah agree ave..
and velas 6 year deal confused me a little too…he seems to have gone a bit stale..i could understand if we offered him a new deal after his performances lsat year..but so far this year i dont see how hes got that contract…
hello zain..short but sweet and i agree…hes not the best
davi, good reasoned post..
thats one thing i dont get about walcott..we have players like jack who fits into wengerball perfectly, yet theo gets into the team with a drop of a hat…
like you say theos an exception..an unusual one at that…
i still dont think he has the abilities required to be in our squad…his pace offers an option from the bench but pace alone doesnt make you a gamebreaker..
and yes he has an ego…weve already seen that with his ignorance of wengers instructions for the u21’s and in the interviews where he compared himself to TH14…
nothing wrong with an ego, but you need to back it up..or eyebrows will be raised..and so far ive seen nothing from him..
and why did Wenger allow Theo to go to the 2006 World Cup amazed me.. That’s how to heap the pressure on.
Hi Davi..
i think thats played a part in it all ave…
wenger likes players to keep their feet on the ground…that theory went out of the window from day one with theo
JonJon – I dont blame you for not thinking hes good enough, lol. I think he can play a role in wengerball, but he needs to know his role. He thinks hes messi when he could in time become overmars if he sorted out his ego – which wouldnt be a bad thing would it?
Re: vela
Im pretty tempted to blame wenger for him missing those chances the other day (which is the only thing ive seen that I really thought was poor from vela so far)
His confidence has taken a knock, its hardly surprising.
Right:
RVP gets injured, so naturally wenger turns to edu to take his place (perfectly logical as he was the only experienced option)
1st match against sunderland, edu played particularly poorly and we lost.
2nd match, Vela plays well (not perfectly, but his control kept our moves going etc) and we won comfortably.
3rd match against chelsea – edu plays poorly (not his fault we lost, I put it more down to the defence, but still he didnt do well) Vela actually did really well from the bench too.
4th match against City – vela gave a good account of himself again, but didnt get much to go on.
5th match, edu is injured, vela must think he HAS to start up front as hes the only striker left – but wenger STILL leaves him out. It turned out to be a good enough decision as arshavin played well, but it must have affected carlos.
Then against olympiakos in midweek, vela had a decent enough game, but let himself down in front of goal with one terrible miss, and I think 2 other decent opportunities where he should hit the target really.
Technically, hes still the best striker available. His 1st touch is as good as van persies, and that’s the most important thing for a striker playing in this system for a club like arsenal. We know he can finish when hes confident.
Even if not up front, hes played well enough to deserve more opportunities wide left or w/e in the 1st team – I think he could do a good job supporting arshavin for example. Better than theo anyway
Hi avenell, sorry
I don’t see much difference in what Vela or Theo brings to the team.. Yet Mr Wenger will play Theo at every opportunity.. perhaps like you say there is pressure on Wenger too.
I have to nip out for a while.. keep your eye on the dashboard JJ..
no probs..
velas a proper finsiher with good movement..alot like dudu..
only currently dudus movement is poor and hes not making himself available for the finish and although velas movement is good hes not finishing…confidence plays a huge part..
both players are talented but both are off form and that doesnt help the team when your best finishers cant finish their dinner..
i think velas problem is the age old problem that wengr has…when the young players are in form he still doesnt play them..there were times last year where vela and jack were on fire…and in the first team eboue and nikki were not…yet wenger stuck with eboue and nikki whilset jack and vela coulndt get into the team..they must have been scratching their heads…
to me thats chance gone..we now have to wait for the confidence to come back..
JonJon – You might be right there. Didn’t think of it like that.
I understand it more with eboue, cos at least hes been around a bit and shown long stretches of good form, but bendtner (and walcott) still havent proven themselves enough to be considered 1st team squad members OVER players like vela, jack and merida.
You’re right, when a spot opens up due to injury, the players who are on form should get the chance
thats it..if your in form you play, if your off form you get dropped..
there were times last year when wenger left the good players on the bench and named the off form players week after week and it really pissed me off…
Hi JonJon
I agree that it it looks like as far as Theos development has shown he doesn’t appear to be a very good footballer. There was always the chance that this was going to be the case.
However, although he cost a pretty penny I don’t think Arsene would persist with him if he didn’t see something of a footballer in Theo during the time he has spent at Arsenal. What Theo should be able to do is terrify teams with his pace and get into the box either to have a shot or win penalties. Because of his injuries he hasn’t been given a fair chance to prove his worth to the team.
Part of me feels that if he wasn’t English, many supporters would have given up on him much sooner than this. I still think he needs a run in the team before I write him off. I’m not ruthless enough to let go of something that might be wonderful ……..
and wolves are beating spurs already..lol
Sorry JonJon, I started to write my comment a couple of hours ago and then the doorbell rang…….been having a cup of tea 😆
hi peaches…
i think wenger persists with him becuase his pace offers an outlet..
but…….
theo cant dribble, so it renders him useless..a player like theo only fits a system where the defence plays a high line and he can exploit the space…but teams never play a high line against us..the play is always compressed, unless theo learns to dribble his way into the space he offers nothing to the team
if we played a more defensive counter attacking game then theo would be useful…but we dont do defending, we cant soak up pressure and hit teams on the break like chelsea do..
so i dont see the point..
and everton have taken the lead v chelsea… 😉
and bolton are beating citeh…come on..
i like the avatar peaches… 😳
Afternoon all
Just a quick comment – JJ, I love your post, it say’s everything that people like me can’t bring myself to believe, yet know it’s probably the truth 😦
Deep inside I really want to believe he will prove all doubters wrong, but aso deep inside I know that is partly because he lived a couple of miles from me and went to the same school etc etc…
But also, there is something much deeper in me that thinks’ that if he could be played in the CF role he would start performing to a higher standard, and start scoring goals.
Maybe the 4-3-3 should not be played tomorrow against the dippers, revert to 4-4-2 and play Theo up front alongside either Eduardo or Arshavin?
As you rightly say, the one thing Theo does have is pace, and the aging Carragher will get ‘done’ every time..
Back shortly, the Dyson needs a work out 😦
hello rico..
442 would be good tomorrow but i think the 433 would still work…
ramsey had a good game in midweek so he deserves a start…
cesc song and rambo in the middle and nasri AA and diaby up top
bring theo on in the second half to cause the dippers defence problems when they are tired..thats if hes not injured.. 😉
Hi rico
Whatever you all think or care about team England I would love Theo to be influential in that team too – he won’t be unless he can prove his worth at Arsenal.
We’re a top English side and we should have players in the national squad – I think thats another reason why Arsene keeps going with Theo.
I look away for 2 minutes and the chavs score 2 😦
i know peaches..and citeh have scored aswell
but the spuds are still losing
Why should we care about England?
The English press hate us ..
The English FA hate us..
Stupid friendlies ruin our players, They take our players, play them in September, They get injured could be up to 6 months,then they make a rule up that we cannot sign anyone else until Jan..
Look what happened to poor Dean Ashton..
And I get too much grief from the English goverment..
On top of that most of the England team are at clubs that do not generate there finances from within the game unlike us..
As soon as a player becomes successful with England they will be off for more money.
Like Cole and Barry, Lampard and Terry would have left Chelsea if there wages were not backed by a Russian gangster.
I know ave that there are lots of reasons why we shouldn’t care less about the England team but if we have one of our own getting plaudits from everyone else it kinda makes me feel proud……probably cos I’m a girl ……. 😛
hopefully thats the reason why wengers got him on a longterm contract…hes planning to sell him…but he better hurry up cos his price will go down..
we could get 25mil or a fit theo..even tho hes pants…
Hi peaches .. you have been playing with your avatar again I notice..
I like that idea JJ.. trouble is whoever we sell him to you can guarantee he will only have one or two good games a season.. against us.. Like Ade and Bentley.
ave – I thought it needed to be a bit more eye-catching 😆
bolton wiining again..
no there not lol
2-2 now.. 😦
evertn equalise
Who needs sky sports – I’ll stick with you two 😆
Could be a good day. 🙂
Hush your mouth ave …..
…..kiss of death now you’ve said it in blog-world 😦
If Man City and the Spuds lose.. Liverpool won’t be under so much pressure to play catch up.. could be good for us in that way too..
and if chelsea drop points it gives us extra incentive to win tomorrow
Don’t know if you saw Soccer AM this morning, but,
A really funny Hel’s Bell’s moment re our game against Stoke and the Cesc goal bound effort that was cleared off the line by one of ours…..
Don’t blame it on the sunshine
Dont blame it on the moonlight
Don’t blame it on the good times….
Blame it on Eboue!!
😛 😆
Hi peaches 😛
I want Theo to do well to and go to the WC – We will all be watching as its a footie fix, and no doubt will be cheering the teams that have our players involved, and as much as I get bored with England, I really want the country I live in to win it…
3-2 Bolton 😛
citeh in still shit shock hahaha
heres a thought..we need a target man right? what about old pointy elbows..??
drogbas a wanker..
sahas a legend lol
Hey JJ, love Rocky 🙂
Belllllllamy off 😛
cheers rico…with all this talk of avatar change i felt left out so i thought id jump on the bandwagon…
Come on ref’s – all blow your whistles NOW 😆
citeh 3-3
chelsea 3-3
spurs 0-1
come on hold on boys
JJ, how is Mrs JJ doing? How long to go now..
6 f’n minutes injury time at WHL :mrangry:
shes fine rico.
id prefer to keep it to football… thanks for asking though.. 😉
the game at the bridge wont finish til 5 either..there 10 minutes behind cos of an injury to jo…
Sorry JJ 😦 😦
dont have to be sorry rico.. 😉
this is one stupid rule..
kabul has equalised for pompey in the last seconds and has gone to celebrate with the fans and taken his shirt off and hes been sent off…
rules are rules but i wish the refs would use some common sence…
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Get in there Wolves, an ex reading boy kills the Spuds :lol 😆
CHitty draw 😛
yes the spuds lost hahaha
citeh drew..
now for everton..come on toffees
yesss
JJ, I was thinking the same, especially after what Pompey have been through…
Chavs draw too, what a great weekend of results for us, we need to make the most of then tomorrow, big time!
Oh what a night, late December back in………….
Come on Villa, get a point off the Mancs later….
I was thinking of sticking a tenner on for a Villa win.. it was something like 7-1.. I thought that is a pretty good bet.
But I couldn’t risk it knowing my luck.. Man U would definatly win then. 😦
I’ve spent the last 20 minutes thinking that those results couldn’t possible last 😛
it all means nothing if we dont beat pool tomorrow..
this is what champions do, they take advantage of other teams downfalls…
we need to win tomorrow, if we dont, we dont deserve to be champions..
Will be a big turning point in the season if we win tomorrow..
What are our next games again? I’ll go and have a look.. 🙂
i think villa have a chance…manure have a weak defence and in young and ablongawhore they offer alot of threat..
Carew will give them a few problems too.. 🙂
Poet knowit.. 😉
liverpool
burnly
hull
villa (h)
pompey
come on
Say we are top the League.. say we are top the League..
Then Bendtners back.. 😉
I see Man U are only watering half the pitch again.. cheating b***t*rds..
it doesnt matter what happens tomorrow ave even if we lose..todays been a good day…!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
LMAO
The good thing is a draw against a “top 4” club is a good result..
Losing to Wolves at home might not be.. lol..
lol…
we need to catch up to chelsea though..nows our chance…weve waited for weeks for chelsea to drop points and now they are…we need to take advantage…
And they won’t have Essien until Feb..
yup…it showed today didnt it..
Jonjon. did you see that we have gone through a hundred thousand hits?
I think that is amazing really when you think of the year we have had and what has gone on..
wow..yeah..thats pretty impressive…welldone everyone
Excuse me, there is a widget that gives us all our December fixtures…..
Sometime I wonder why I bothered …. 😦
thats where i got em from rico 😉
yessssssssss
1-0 Villa, get in there
1-0 Villa.. 🙂
I was being a tad naughty JJ 😉
rooney dive about fucking time..
What about the red card ref…….
Joe Royle, you are a breath of fresh air!!
It is Joe Royle commentating isn’t it??
yes rico..but he also said rooney dont dive much..lol
im liking this match.. 😉
I missed that I had to put a headlight bulb in er indoors car.. she will go to these parties without me.. 😉
I might have to stay in and try a Stella.. 🙂
haha I didn’t realize they booked St Rooney.. lol..
yeah ave he got a yellow..well chuffed…
i might even watch MOTD tonight..lol
Do you think they will show it??
It’s a pity it’s on ESPN.. Sky have an excuse..
Didn’t Ferguscum say Brown was the best defender in the Prem? lol..
Bet they wish they still had Silvestre 😉
JJ, at least he said live on air it was a dive 😉
yeah and theyve replayed it a few times…good viewing…lol
“Everyone who watches me play knows I am an honest player,” he said. “I play the game as honestly as I can.
said Rooney.. lol
the dive was a beaut ave…best dive ive ever seen…pure cheating…and he got caught..brilliant..
Sorry JJ, I meant to say I saw it at HT..
Same as the almunia one except Manwell fell for it..
Oh and the Sol Campball one..
luke young is one tough cookie…theres plenty of players i know who would have needed a stretcher after that and 3 months out after a knock like that…
the post is about one of them lol
yeah ave..all the same..but this was was the best cos he got booked..lol
Still some people support the diving piece of s**t when he plays for England.. 😉
dunne just needs to talk about rooneys mum for a bit to his face..make him snap and get him booked again…
i dont understand why more teams dont try it…
I’m shocked .. he has a mum.. 😯
Man U are far better now ronaldo has gone.. much better football. 😉
yeah they really dont miss him…and that 80mil they made went to better use on new players dint it???
valencias a class act..
id still take owen over theo though
if i was a defender id be trash talking shrek all the way through the game…id make him punch me in the first 10 minutes..lol
Who would do us more good at the moment?
A striker who can still score a goal in every two games in the premiership, even for Newcastle.. or theo..
It makes great debate.. 😉
We need Keown back JJ…
a mass debate..
but i dont think it would be a fair contest..
I think I will leave you two to it….
And on play as you go.. theo on 60k a week with two and a half hours football this year..
He’d be skint..
C’mon rico.. 🙂
How are you? Are the pups (octopus) okay?
he’d have to write kids books to earn extra cash.. maybe a job in mcdonalds with the rest of the students at weekends…?? 😉
Evening roadsters,
Good post JonJon. I’ve waded throught the days comments and agree with most in principle. I think Theo’s potential is not being realised. JonJon said it himself, he scored 3 goals for England because Copello told him to sit on the shoulder of the last defender – why oh why don’t we do the same? There is absolutely no point in bringing him back to defend corners. Make him stand on the halfway line and see how many of the oppositions defenders stay back.
He could write War and Peace again in the time he has off..
Hi Raspno..
Hi ave,
How did Villa sneak above us? Good to see the spuds out of the top 4 any way ….
maybe an updated version of the dictionary??
Not yet mate… Fergies watch hasn’t allowed the game to finish yet..
he could add injury prone in there and put a big photo of himself next to the phrase
He wouldn’t know this one….
control [kənˈtrəʊl]
vb -trols, -trolling, -trolled (tr)
1. to command, direct, or rule to control a country
2. to check, limit, curb, or regulate; restrain to control one’s emotions to control a fire
3. to regulate or operate (a machine)
4. to verify (a scientific experiment) by conducting a parallel experiment in which the variable being investigated is held constant or is compared with a standard
5. (Economics, Accounting & Finance / Accounting & Book-keeping)
a. to regulate (financial affairs)
b. to examine and verify (financial accounts)
6. (Law) to restrict or regulate the authorized supply of (certain substances, such as drugs)
3mins injury time..lol
fergies words have comeback to bite his arse
Oh dear Fergie 3 mins.. Do you like that?
hi rasp…
yeah theos got the pace to utilise..but like i said earlier we dont play that kind of game….teams compress the play against us in the final third and theo gets stuffed out cos he cant dribble his way through…
villa win…lol
hahaha.. what a day.. 🙂
great day…
we need to win tomorrow to make it all count..
LMAO ave..control
look at that table…2 games in hand…we win them both we up to 2nd 3 points off… come on now we need to we tomorrow…come on
Hi JonJon,
True about Theo and our style of play, but that brings me back to the fact that we only have one style and one weapon in our armoury. We are supposed to be the most creative and intelligent footballers – why can’t we adapt when Wengerball is not working?
I’m going to do a post on that Rasp.. but how many teams do have two ways of playing?
We score more goals than 99% of teams.. I don’t think it’s forwards where our problem lies..
I agree ave that its the goals we concede that cost us titles/trophies, but we have struggled to unlock defences lately and in the games we’ve lost, we’ve hardly created a single chance. Too much pussying about on the edge of the box and not enough penetration!!!
i’ll wait for aves post rasp before i respond…it wouldnt be fair to mass debate it now.. 😉
I won’t do it today as a pre match may be better.. I’ll save it for in the week..
Are we playing midweek? (rico) 😉
😆 JonJon
even the commentators are saying we are back in the race…
Through clenched teeth.. Shearer??
im definatley watching MOTD…lol
Too much pussying about on the edge of the box and not enough penetration!!! rasputin did you say that
why did my last comment vanish ?
he did indeed kelsey
Hello Roadsters
I see Modric is back….lol…….good post JJ.
I always assumed that Wenger has had the brakes on Vela through fear of accidently creating another Dos Santos.
Hi kelsey,
Guilty ….. 😕
hi london…
yes modric will make all the difference to spuds top four push… lol
dos santos??? wasnt he a mexican spud?
Hi London,
The nature or nurture debate extends to footballers methinks…… what works for Ramsey does not necessarily work for Jack or Theo
Kelsey.. wrong email or you wasn’t signed in mate..
I’d have Modric.. 😳 he only got half hour..
yeah modric a good player…i dont think it matters how old a player is…well it does if hes 12 or something daft but if hes playing well and in form he needs to keep playing…no point playing him one week and then watching him play well and then dropping him for 3 weeks, then giving him another random game and watching him play badly and saying ‘i told ya he wasnt ready’…
Would Diaby get in the Spud first XI?
dunno..tough question…id say no
I would agree.. but why.. as Dodgy said “if he’s good enough for you”
I think it’s Arsene taking a chance.. I feel Redknapp and Freguscum take safer bets than Arsene..
check the widget ave, you will see we are!!
definately…alot like denilson…wenger takes alot of ‘safe’ bets when they are infact risks…hes too negative and effects the team..whereas other managers go for it…
saying that i would play diaby tomorrow…up top with AA
rico your 9.03 is a respose to? I have too many things open and I lost the thread, sorry..
diaby ave..it was a response to diaby
No JJ and ave, it was in answer to the question about if we are playing in the week.
I was just being cheeky yet again…
Anyway, I am off
Night peeps..
‘All the opposition have to do is chip the ball into Chelseas penalty area and they do the rest for you’ commentator on todays Chav v Everton game – why didn’t we do that?
Just watched Rooneys dive ………. that referee is brave booking him at the theatre of dreams……
Hi all,
What great results this weekend, we bloody have to beat Liverpool now. C’mon Gooooooners.
P.S. What a lovely feeling to wake up and see the Chavs, Mancs and Spuds have all dropped points 😀
Hiya is this up early or late for you?
How nice, you can go and play on the beach while we go to bed and then we’ll catch up with you later…… 🙂
That’s the plan Peaches 😀
Has my avatar changed yet?
I watched the manc v villa game – villa were very organised and able to hit the mancs with pace on the break…… their defending was good and strong…they deserved their points.
I would have really enjoyed it except they went ahead of us into third 😦
No still big phil
Villa will fall away again Peaches and we have TWO games in hand over them.
If we beat Liverpool we have a slight shot at the EPL, don’t win and we don’t. Even a draw may do.
Mancs won the league last season by beating the smaller teams, so far we are doing okay in that department – Sunderland aside.
You can win it without beating any of the top four as long as you don’t drop silly points to the smaller teams – Chelsea against Wigan…etc
Maybe after you get back from the beach 🙂
Yep I agree that you can still win the title while dropping points against the other top teams and maintaining wins against the smaller teams.
I’m sure we can outplay Liverpool tomorrow and hope we get no more injuries.
I’m going to bed Irish, catch up with you later, have a lovely day on the beach 🙂
Maybe ha ha
On an aside, there are rumours that Klose is unhappy at Bayern, he is cup tied for the CL but I think he’d be a great buy – can head, is very direct and a good goalscoring record.
Talk to you match time Peaches 😀
Hi Irish.. Big Phil was two avatars ago..
Or as Alan Brazil calls them havehaters.. techs into him if you want. 😉
Hiya Avenell,
Peaches is still Big Phil on my one – never changed.
It’s working it’s way down to you..
I’m off to bed, try and join us for the game.. I will look forward to it..
Nighty night..
Hello Avenell Road, I’m new to this writing response’s to posts and I’ve never done it before but, I noticed your topic about Theo Walcott on my iphone earlier today on the way to football.
I completely agree with you in your analysis of Walcott. You highlighted everything which I believe is wrong with him in the Arsenal side but, I believe he is being used completely wrong.
Walcott is quick! So quick in fact, he ‘IS’ our plan B when we can’t break down a team. Although he is quick he doesn’t really have a good footballing brain. He needs to be playing on the last defender running full on towards goal with only one thing on his mind… putting the ball in the net. He needs to play the same role as what Anelka and Henry did for us as an out an out striker. Having explosive pace up front worked for us for years. That has been our plan A since Wenger took over. Now it has become plan B. This is what I don’t understand! We have a player with the same attributes but he is being used in a position that is only harming the team and the player.
Walcott doesn’t have the technical ability or awareness to play wide, nor does he have the strength or aggresion. When he gets the ball he looks uncomfortable as he has 100 things running through his mind what to do if he has a bit of time on the ball. I understand Wenger putting him out wide to learn his trade and open his footballing education but, its been 4 years now! Henry was a winger in his early days but then gradually converted to a striker. I understand that worked but, the reason that worked for Henry is because he is 6ft plus and weighs probably 13-14 stone. He’s a powerful player and has a physical presence. Walcott is very slight and takes alot of physical contact which is why he gets injured alot. There’s no defender in the Premier League, Champions League etc… that will beat Walcott for pace so they are going to kick him, crunch him, do anything possible to stop him. Inevitably he ends up on the treatment table… again. He is not a winger and it is not working.
He has been at Arsenal now for 4 years. He hasn’t improved, he is injury prone due to his position and has yet to prove himself. In 4 years Walcott has only made 80 odd league appearances, half of them as sub. Theres a time to say its not working. I believe we have gone pass that stage. I do feel bad writing this as it looks as if I’m getting on his back but, I believe he really has alot to offer the club and I am a massive fan of his but he needs to go up top and have balls thread in for him to run onto and bare down on goal, use his pace and play to his strengths.
Morning,
Interesting results yesterday, to say the least.Have watched highlights of the games played yesterday, even though Villa had a game plan which worked a treat,to me that is just a small blip for United, though they seem to rely on Rooney more than ever. Chelsea have conceded 5 goals at home in 3 days,never thought possible, yet we hardly mustered a shot against them, yet we are a far better team than Everton and whoever they played in CL(forgot their name)
The point being we have only one game plan,and if we really are to challenge,surely Wenger can see that all defences including ours are vunerable if the right tactics are employed.City concedeing 3 to Bolton ?
On to today, i have a feeling Diaby will play just behind AA and they are our most likely goal scorers.Results favoured both us and liverpool so this could be a nail biter.I would take a draw now,as one can never under estimate Pool at home.
It will be interesting to see if eduardo and Walcott start,though i doubt both will.
Good luck to the boys and I will be back for the post match interview.
I believe we have a belief in our team 😉
kelsey u are spot on..
all defences are weak and anyone can beat anyone with the right tactics…
and we have only one tactic…but i remember us saying the same thing a few years back and wenger went and bought adebayor for plan B. will the same happen this seaosn????
saying that.up until a few weeks ago we had three players all over 6 foot playing in our attack…robin, diaby,nikki… and we were scoring for fun…theyve all been injured and the goals have dried up…
so maybe our tactics havent been so bad, just that injuries have limited us..
but again weve been saying the same thing for years
good point about theo and wasting all that money to just see if he comes good or not,,
i agree Theo is techincally inept, most of saw that become ever more true with every passing game.
one thing i feel what has hindered the development is the fact theres no DB10 to teach him vision or a TH14 to teah him how to be stronger on the ball while going at full pace. or a RP07 to teach him how to be more comfortable on the ball
all there are is other young players whos learning thie trade…
Oh and Hello everyone sorry ive been away for so long. Life hasnt been to kind to me over the last few 4 or 5 months
hello gunnergav
welcome to avenell rd…
what your saying is pretty much how everyone else feels…
but my problem with that is even if theo plays off the last man it still wouldnt work because when teams play us they compress the play in the final third…we are so attacking that their is no room for theo to run into…therefore we need a striker who can control the ball and put himself about abit in order to let the others in…theo has neither attribrute…
theos a better option to bring off the bench when defences are tired and the game is stretched…we have a problem holding onto leads so bringing theo on would make the other team stay back…and if they did decide to throw the kitchen sink at us theo would be in…
hi rrrraaaaaaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiifffffffffffyyyyyyyyyyyyyy
oh dear mate, sorry to hear that…ive sort of had my own fair share of life kickin me in the bollox but youve gotta keep going…
nice to hear from you…
yeah when u think about it we’d be better off buying a few players than developing them..it costs the same
GunnerGav.. If you are still reading welcome to Avenell Road.
Sorry about the delay in letting you on, the first comment is always moderated to stop abuse.
Morning Roadsters..
yeah man keep going is the only option. but its been rather hard with whats going on i must admit..
as for arsenal we put to much money into the young players for little or no return.
how much money have we put into Vela??? as we have already heard wenger saying they have invested alot of time on him.! Flip the spin they are using from Time to Money and theres our answer
Hi Raif..
Sorry things haven’t been so good.. Join the club mate.. We all need the samaritans on here at the moment.. 😦
hi Ave..
haha. i dont think the samaritans can help me to be honest 😦
as for todays game.. its a excellent chance to gain some points back after everyone droped points.. i hope we dont do the same.
thats the spirit raify
a few rumours this morning a find interesting guys..
1…wenger wants compo for robin…upto 20mil…which tells me hes after a striker and he wants the dutch to pay
2..weve been linked to VdV…which tells me rosicky could be up for the chop in the summer..
3..essien missed ghanas friendly and then played against wolves for chelsea…chelsea could be in trouble with fifa again but i dont know how true this is..
heres a question for you.. how about we let rosicky go as his more injury prone then anyone i know and get Helb back..
yes i said it Helb back
Keep Rosicky, buy Hleb and Flamini back and flog Theo..
what is Flamini doing now days i havent heard anything about him in ages,,
i like aves idea
flaminis keeping the bench warm at milan
i think theo would play and maybe even fit in better into to a team like Villa or somone like that as their games are not like Wenger ball. so he would be used in a way that suits him more rather then Theo suiting the team more.
http://www.imscouting.com/global-news-article/Arsenal-to-launch-Essien-protest-which-could-see-Chelsea-docked-points/4080/
http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11095_5768496,00.html
I don’t think he is playing at all. Good career move..
http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/sport/635054/GUNNERS-MAKE-VAN-DER-VAART-ENQUIRIES.html?OTC-RSS&ATTR=Sport&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ScoreArsenal+%28Arsenal+%29
Jonjon I am sticking a quick pre match post up is that okay?
It’s getting a bit close now.. 🙂
yeah, rock and roll lol
Okay NEW POST…..
Alright lads im new to all this forum lark, so bear with me ! I 100% agree with Gunner Gav about Walcott . but i think his lack of brain touch and decision making are shocking !! Aaron Ramsey is younger than Walcott but he is mentally years older than his age , i know they are different kind of players but we need experience and brains. Walcott lacks both of these important ingredients . Wenger should send Walcott out on loan or maybe use him in a deal to get David Villa or Edin Dzeko . If we are going to play walcott lets play him up top and get him running onto the ball so he doesnt have to make any decisions except from hitting the target .
Hi Magic Merse.. Like the name..
Welcome to Avenell Road..
This post is a few days old now and we have moved on a bit as we post every few days..
If you press the Home link at the top it will take you to our latest post where you have more chance of getting a response.. 🙂