So, about Theo Walcott’s contract … I kid, I kid.
We’ll start (and probably finish) this morning with some interesting stuff from Petr Cech who has spoken about his first impressions of the Arsenal dressing room. It’s obviously going to be different from the years he spent in the lair at Stamford Bridge, but so far it seems to have been a very positive move:
What I’ve found is a group of players who work very hard and are focused on what they are doing on the pitch to get ready. I’ve found the team spirit quite extraordinary. Everybody pulls in the same direction, which is why I believe we will have a successful season.
One of the keywords from last week’s tour of Singapore was ‘cohesion’. It was used by players and manager alike, and there’s something to be said for having a squad that’s in tune with each other because of consistency in selection and because they know each other well. As we touched on in yesterday’s Arsecast Extra, those famous ‘automatisms’ take time to create as teammates come to understand each other on the pitch more.
It’s part of the reason why I think any further moves in the transfer market will only happen when somebody who really improves the first team becomes available. The manager places a lot of stock in stability and it’s not something he’s always been able to maintain over the years. Big players have left like Cesc, Nasri and van Persie, and even secondary characters like Clichy and Adebayor wanted away which required replacements and for new relationships to be formed.
As I’ve mentioned before, since August 2013 we’ve signed 8 new players and if you add in the emergence of Hector Bellerin and Francis Coquelin – neither of whom were really expected to be members of the first team squad – that’s 10 relatively new additions in 2 year. The upside of that is the increased quality of the squad, the ability to keep things fresh, and a healthy, competitive environment.
On the other hand though, you can’t keep adding players at that rate. There’s some natural attrition, of course, but there has to come a point where you’re pretty content with what you have. That’s not to say it can’t be improved further, but as I wrote last week, it’s much easier to make a weak squad better.
It’s interesting to hear Cech talk about the importance of the squad also:
There are a lot of talented players in our team, but the real strength lies in our numbers. This squad has a number of players ready to compete for every position, and we will need them all during the course of the season.
And the age-profiles within it:
We have a good balance. We have players with a lot of experience, who have won the World Cup for example, and young players who want to prove their point and play as much as possible. We have experienced players and hungry players so that balance gives us an advantage.
I’m sure we’re not the only team with hungry players and experienced players, I think that’s true of all the other top teams, but perhaps for some of the experienced chaps we’re heading into the time of their careers when their chances of winning the Premier League are running out. Not quite ‘now or never’ territory, but going in that direction.
That’s been true in the past also, but what makes things a bit different this time is that most of the young players we have in the squad have won something. This isn’t like before when the inexperienced members of the team were so raw we all felt if they could just get a trophy under their belts it would help them kick on. Players came and went without gaining that experience, some got it elsewhere, and the team carried that monkey on its back for years.
Now when you look at the likes of Wilshere, Ramsey, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Gibbs, Coquelin, Bellerin – all of whom have at least one FA Cup win to their name – alongside players like Ozil, Alexis, Cech, Mertesacker who have the same, along with trophies from their previous clubs or international sides, there’s a knowledge prevalent throughout squad that hasn’t been there for a long time.
Whether that in itself is enough to mount the title challenge we all want to see remains to be seen. As a team we have to improve, no question. Some of that can come from players growing and developing, from finding form and consistency, and some can come from the transfer market if the player to really kick us on is identified and pursued. I don’t doubt that if we find someone who can do to this team what the signings of Ozil and Alexis did, then we’ll do the business necessary.
But even without that it feels like this is a squad that can do better than last season. This group of players should challenge for the title, and it should go further in Europe. We’ve gained a lot from winning a couple of trophies in the last two years. As well as being enjoyed, they ought to also act as building blocks for the season ahead.
—
If you haven’t yet had a chance to listen to this week’s Arsecast Extra, James and I discuss the Walcott situation, a possible move for Mathieu Flamini, the prospects of Chuba Akpom next season, and loads more. You can check it out here or via the player below.
Right, that’s that for now. News throughout the day on Arseblog News, more from me here tomorrow.
