So that’s it. Another Interlull over.
I suppose, in one way, one very strange way, I’ll miss it. I mean, the one good thing about the Interlull is that Arsenal have remained unbeaten so that’s a positive, I guess. All the same, in another more natural and common sense way, it’ll be good to see the back of it, like it’s good to see the back of a rash on your … well … somewhere you don’t want to have a rash.
Those players out in that big, bad international world will come back to the club today, be assessed for any potential aches and strains, but so far there have been no reports of anyone coming a cropper or being taken to the ICU with just moments to live. And the good thing about Interlulls these day is the fact that games are on Friday/Tuesday as opposed to the Saturday/Wednesday we had before. Arsene is a fan, saying:
Those 24 hours make a huge difference, especially when you have players who play in South America or in Asia. You have the chance to recover, and when we play on Sunday it’s even more of a benefit. So without a doubt it is much better, but we had to fight for years to get it.
It’s still not perfect for the clubs, but it’s better than before.
Leaving aside the chance to recover, it gives the club managers time to work with their players ahead of the weekend’s fixtures. In the past players would come back Thursday, some of them Friday morning, and for a Saturday game that left little or no time to work on things ahead of that fixture. For clubs like Arsenal, with so many players away with their countries, that obviously presented a big challenge. Of course it’s part and parcel of having players whose quality means they get picked for their national team but the new system makes infinitely more sense.
So now we can look ahead to the weekend and it’s a trip to newly promoted Norwich. One man likely to play, in the absence of Bacary Sagna, is Carl Jenkinson. As a lifelong Gooner, Jenks is, quite literally, living the dream, but he knows he’s got a lot of work to do. He says:
There’s a lot more improvement for me to do and I know I have a lot more in me to show it. I know I have to improve if I want to be a regular at this football club.
And talking about why Arsenal were interested in a youngster with barely a first team game under his belt – and at a level well below Premier League – he said:
From what they told me I think Arsenal were quite impressed with my athleticism – the fact that I can get up and down the pitch.
I think they saw that there were many things that I can improve technically but that they could improve when I came here. I think physically they were quite impressed with me but now I’m here I can improve other aspects of my game.
There’s no doubt he’s got plenty of energy, like Sagna he’s got an engine that runs at full pelt from first whistle to last, and if there was going to be a learning period he’s slightly unlucky in that it came during Arsenal’s most atrocious run of form under Arsene Wenger. If experienced defenders, with full knowledge of the Premier League, were struggling, why on earth wouldn’t a young guy who has barely played?
He’s definitely got some way to go but the fact that he will always give you 100% is something I really like. I know it should be the norm, the very least you expect from any player, but I think we all know that’s not the case. If he can develop as a defender while maintaining his run-through-walls attitude then his future could be a light brighter than people thought just a few months back.
Meanwhile, Bordeaux apparently want a Chamakhattak but both Arsenal and the Moroccan have been studiously avoiding the calls of the Bordeaux president. It’s hard to know what to make of him these days. He, by all accounts, works harder than anyone else in training, this recent injury apart has been fit and healthy, but he’s a striker who just doesn’t score goals anymore.
Of course he’s suffered a bit at the awesome feet of van Persie but the fact is Robin can’t play every game. From comments made by the manager in the past it seems he’s accepted his role as an understudy but those guys have a role to play too. It can’t be easy playing in bits and pieces, almost impossible to get yourself into anything approaching form, but unless he manages to recapture some of what made him a very effective player in the first few months of his Arsenal career it’s difficult to see a future for him at the club.
The fact is van Persie was allowed back from international duty as a preventative measure. He’s playing so much that he’s constantly in this ‘red zone’ that Arsene talks about. The zone in which picking up an injury is far more likely. Arsenal need somebody to share the burden with the captain. Chamakh isn’t that guy at the moment – and while Park says he’s got a part to play he’s yet to play a single minute of Premier League football since his arrival.
Robin’s form would keep any player out of the first team at any club in the world but those left on the bench ought not to accept their lot, instead it should be viewed as something of a challenge. The reaction should be to try and do better, not accept it mournfully. Chamakh is off to the ACN in January, meaning we have fewer options at a time when the games are stacking up. Whether or not Arsene decides to spend in January is another thing entirely but ultimately it’s up to the Moroccan to make that decision difficult for the boss.
Right, that’s just about that. Just time to give you the winners of the book competition. I asked you who was the players whose memories featured in the book ‘Over the bar’ and the answer was, of course, Jack Kelsey. Congratulations to the following people – each of whom gets to choose any book from the GCR Books range: Matthieu Millgate – Helen Gallery – Steve Wade – Kevin Kozel – Tony Foreman.
Well done to you, I’ll be in touch later to sort out details. Another competition on the way later on (keep an eye out for a new post).
Have a good one.
