Saturdays without a game are always strange, I find. Even though we should be well used to Sunday football by now it does make the day seem less complete, or something.
Anyway, the first of two games against Bolton takes place tomorrow at their place and there is some updated team news. We know Cesc is back, Clichy will be on the bench at a ‘minimum’ while Denilson and Aaron Ramsey miss out. We knew about Denilson already but Ramsey tweaked a thigh muscle in training yesterday, hopefully it’s nothing too serious. With Diaby likely to play the Song role which Denilson would have played, it means it’ll be Cesc and Rosicky, I’d imagine. Fran Merida might be another option but I think he’ll go for experience and it’ll be interesting to see how the two play together. Best friends off the pitch, they’ve rarely had a chance to play side by side, so that’s something to watch out for.
The return of the captain is a big boost for us and the manager reckons we’re only beginning to see the best of him and there’s much more to come. He says:
Cesc is a player who is an exceptional talent. But part of the exceptional talent is that he is never happy with what he is delivering. When he does something you feel straightway he analyses ‘ah, I did that wrong’ and the next time the right answer comes. That is how the big players improve, that means there is a lot to come from him.
The goalscoring part of his game has come to the fore. We know he’s creative and makes chances for others but with 12 goals for Arsenal already this season (and a couple for Spain, I think), it’s certainly his best return yet. Three times he’s scored twice in a game and the cameo against Villa was the kind of thing the pundits laud their favourite captain fantastics for.
Former captain Frank McLintock reckons there’s an unsung hero in there though, crediting Alex Song for Cesc’s goal return:
Song deserves some of the credit for Fábregas’s form and goals. Song is the most improved player in the Premier League this season and he has given Fábregas more freedom to receive the ball further up the field, where he can use his quick body movement to carve out space to shoot.
It makes an awful lot of sense. Last season Cesc used to drop deep and pick the ball up a lot from the centre-halves, then turn and try and make things happen. Now it’s Song who does that job leaving Cesc where he’s most effective and it’s no coincidence he’s scoring goals. In the season when Flamini played out of skin, protecting the back four, Cesc was on the scoresheet very reguarly too. It’ll be interesting to see if Diaby can play that defensive role. It’s obvious he’s a more attacking kind of midfielder so he’ll to curb those natural instincts to bomb forward and be really disciplined if it’s going to work.
Up front tomorrow you have to think it’ll be the trio that started the last game, Eduardo, Arshavin and Nasri and I’ll go along with what the ‘holic said on the Arsecast yesterday. I’d like to see Eduardo played as the central striker allowing the Russian to get more involved. We know it’s going to be a tough game, Bolton is always a test, and with their players out to impress a new manager we’re going to have be on our game. Play like we did against Everton and we might come away from the Reebok licking our wounds, so fingers crossed we’ve got that out of our system.
In other bits and pieces from yesterday Arsene confirmed that Sol Campbell would be signing a short term, 6 month, deal and basically said all the same stuff I reported in yesterday’s blog. As is usual with every little thing in football people start looking way into the future and asked him about Sol’s chances of playing for England again. Typically he just said that you can’t rule anything out in football so while it was unlikely it wasn’t impossible. Cue a raft of “Wenger tips Campbell for England recall” stories even though he did nothing of the sort.
Update: The signing has now been officially announced and Campbell will wear the number 31.
He also confirmed the signing of Samuel Galindo the Bolivian wonderkid who will be immediately loaned out to a club in Spain. No doubt by the time he actually joins us his talent will have become mythical, when in reality he’s got as much chance of making it with us as any other young player at the club right now. I do wonder sometimes if Arsenal fans aren’t a little bit too obsessed with the youngsters and if, in a way, it’s a negative thing. There’s a level of expectation surrounding them which means if they don’t perform like Cesc Fabregas then they’re written off just as quickly as the hype machine has built them up. If Galindo goes on to be a good player for us then that’s fantastic, but I certainly won’t be holding my breath.
On Nicklas Bendtner the manager said:
Meanwhile Nicklas Bendtner will be another two weeks. I’m desperate to get him back but every week he’s still two weeks away unfortunately.
There’s a solution to that Arsene. Have him taken out and put down. I mean, go buy a striker. That’s surely the clearest indication yet that we can’t count on Bendtner being fit for that run of games which is going to be so crucial to our title hopes. Get spending, Arsene.
He also admitted that Philippe Senderos could leave the club this month, which is probably the best thing for all concerned at this stage.
Transfer speculation from The Mail – Spanish full back Cesar AzuNahasapeemapetilon is interesting the boss apparently.
Nowt much else to be going on with so I’ll leave it there for today. Have yourselves a good, if Arsenal free, Saturday. Till tomorrow.
