With the official announcement that Barcelona’s Alexis Sanchez has joined and the deal to sign Newcastle’s Mathieu Debuchy as good as done this leaves Arsene Wenger with a very interesting and enviable dilemma.
Debuchy, as well as providing Giroud with competition for best haircut, is an obvious replacement for Bacary Sagna who unfortunately left the club on a free to join title contenders Manchester City. Although his wages have significantly improved by joining the Manchester outfit, his playing prospects will have suffered a major blow considering Pablo Zabaleta was in fine form last season and has had an outstanding World Cup campaign.
Our back four next season will be Mertesacker and Koscielny at centre back, Gibbs at left back and Debuchy on the right. Looking at Debuchy’s statistics in comparison to the man he replaces there is little to separate the two apart from age. Whilst Debuchy has proven more prolific in attack, taking more shots at goal than Sagna last season he is less assured in the air.
With the imminent return of Theo Walcott from injury, Wenger now has a decision to make regarding his attacking line-up. It is unlikely that the central pairing of Arteta/ Flamini and Ramsey will be interrupted barring another big transfer. Should Gazidis’ encouraging teaser turn out to be true and someone of the calibre of Khedira arrives at the club then you would expect Arteta and Flamini to become valuable squad players for cup competitions or when Arsenal are looking to defend a narrow lead in order to close a game out.
Ozil and Sanchez will be first names on the team sheet. Their obvious world class talent and record breaking transfer fees demand it. To placate the fans and the board Wenger will be forced to start his two wizards for large parts of the season. My hope is that he learns from the mistakes of last season, when playing Ozil, Ramsey and Walcott too often arguable cost us the league title, an admission Wenger himself has made. His reliance on key players especially during those tough winter months ensured that we stayed top going into the new year but ultimately cost us in Easter when our squad was severely depleted.
Losing one player at a time is manageable but losing four of our starting line-up in one go cost us dearly.
Ozil has had an extremely long and tiring season and with Germany through to the final he, along with Mertesacker and Podolski are unlikely to have more than 2 weeks rest before joining up with the rest of the squad for pre-season.
Sanchez, too, will be unaccustomed to the intensity of the premier league and having to play throughout the season without a break. Champions league and cup competitions will add further strain to his debut season at Arsenal as will the enormous pressure to perform considering the sizable fanfare made over his signing.
Wenger has to rotate more than he is used to and this will benefit everyone, as players like Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Serge Gnabry and Sanogo have shown great promise but need more playing time to develop.
This is how I believe our squad should line-up on day one of the Season when Arsenal face Manchester City on the 10th August:
Goalkeeper: Szczesny
Defence: Mertesacker, Koscielny, Gibbs, Debuchy
Midfield: Ramsey, Ozil, Sanchez, Arteta, Cazorla
Striker: Giroud
There are three possible areas of weakness here. Debuchy is an unknown quantity. He is obviously a talented player, putting in solid performances for club and country over the past, however he is yet to play at the highest level for either. His inclusion in the Arsenal squad could go one of two ways, but I am quietly confident that he will adapt under the tutelage of Wenger and his compatriot Laurent Koscielny who has blossomed into a world class centre back. He will have to learn to be more defensively astute in the way that Sagna was one of the best backs-to-wall defenders around. However this same aspect of his game could make him a more valuable asset than Sagna, as the ex Arsenal player was not exactly known for his ability to take a player on or for his crossing.
Arteta is also something of a weak link. Looking objectively at our squad and leaving emotion aside he is arguably the worst player on the team sheet. His passing stats are impressive as is his shooting ability however employed as a holding midfielder and judged accordingly he doesn’t quite fit the bill. We need to sign someone of monstrous stature combined with an ability to read the game. Arteta meets half of these requirements through no fault of his own, but Ramsey and co. need a minder, someone of Sami Khedira or Lars Bender’s stature (6 ft 2 and 6 ft 1 respectively) to strike fear into the opposition and battle with the likes of Yaya Toure.
Finally Giroud, although a fan favourite for his tireless commitment, is by no means a top striker. He is impressive in the air and adept at holding the ball surrounded by the opposition but as was shown several times last season his comversion of one-on-one chances or his ability to shoot from range is not there. What I am hoping is that Giroud will prove the perfect foil for Sanchez, the former requires defenders to play closer together as he is often tough to handle which will free space for Sanchez and Ramsey to run into, supplied by Ozil and Cazorla.
Players like Walcott, Chamberlain and Jenkinson can be fazed in and out when necessary, to provide rest to players when the result is assured or when an injection of pace and directness is required.
There has been some conjecture over the possible reallocation of players to different positions, making our squad more fluid. Jenkinson could be trained at how to play as a reserve centre back due to his height whilst Oxlade-Chamberlain has already shown promise in central midfield. This along with Sanchez’s versatility means that our squad depth is greater than it first appears, a crucial factor considering that this was our undoing in last season's campaign.
For the first time in nearly a decade Arsenal are in the FA Community Shield, a gala event I remember fondly from the days when Arsenal's inclusion was something of a formality winning in '98, '99, '02 and '04. Although little prestige is given to the trophy itself, it is still the first game of the new season and a way for two of the previous season's best teams to mark their intent for the coming months. Plus Arsene has started the bloodlust for trophies, Community Shield or not I want it and I want it now!
So much to consider in what is already looking to be one of the most intriguing and beguiling seasons for the Arsenal. Stay tuned to The Lovely Reds in the coming weeks as we'll look at Arsenal's pre-season preparation, the build up to that FA Community Shield clash at Wembley, plus any serious transfer news.
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