I've been waiting to see more of Ibrahim. Have heard he was good and I think we need someone of his profile in midfield.
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General Reserves Talk
- Thread starter M+D
- Start date
- Replies 11,775
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Reminds me a bit of young Smith Rowe.
Very interesting article. Does expose what we've all suspected - Arsenal are very hit and miss with loaning youngsters out to the right teams. A cursory glance at Sagoe Jr, Monlouis and a few others (even Patino) further exposes this. Think the truth re Azeez is somewhere in the middle however.
lomekian
Essays are my thing
Also reads like a hit piece vs the club by someone connected very closely to the player - everything is someone else's fault, and the accusation vs Mertesacker seems extremely unlikely unless there is a LOT more to the story.
Ultimately, whether it is the fault of the player or staff or more likely a combination, Azeez has failed to make an impression anywhere since his first few games in his first loan, even back at Arsenal u21s. A shame because a lot of talent there, and clearly the dedication to develop it to a certainl level, but the last 2-3 years have been a disaster unfortunately.
Had the same feeling tbh. Feel for the player and there's likely truth to this side of the story but its easy to pin everything on Arsenal. At the end of the day, if he was training and playing at his full potential, this would have been less of a problem.
I agree we've been a bit hit and miss but I don't know whether Patino and Sagoe Jr lies on us especially Patino when Swansea have had 3 managers this season, and Patino has somehow fallen down the pecking order despite a positive start. On the opposite end is BNC and Biereth who are thriving/been handled very well. Just look what the likes of Nketiah,Smith Rowe and Nelson have to bear with in the first team where one really has to fight their way into the team. Balogun is currently finding it hard at Monaco. Lokonga couldn't get a game at Crystal Palace but has turned it all around at Luton. These academy players need to also learn the harshness of pro football and fight their way up. I listen to Biereth's interviews and watch him play and I can immediately see why managers like him. So, yes we can do better but its not all on Arsenal.
On another note ..just watched the u21 NLD derby. Lewis Skelly decided to show everyone who he is. He had a fantastic second half as the deep 6. His positioning, passes and energy was phenomenal. Nichols, Sweet and Heaven also had very good perfomances. One of those games where I wouldn't give anyone less than 7.
It really was a fantastic game, the best PL2 game I've seen in a while. Started off scrappy but it was incredibly competitive and high intensity. Lewis-Skelly was immense all game, grew into it in the 1st half and dominated in the 2nd. Near perfect #6 performance, incredibly encouraging in terms of his chances of first team progression.
Have to say the backline also had a very good game again. They defend much better with Walters in the backline ahead of Foran IMO, although Foran has been better of late.
Only blot for me was Cozier-Duberry wasn't quite his best self today. He was really threatening in the 1st half but really faded in the 2nd. Still kept plugging away though, real determination, but I'd like to see him be a little less predictable than he was today. I also think that Butler-Oyedeji's spot could be usurped by Chido Obi at some point soon, depending on how well the latter does for the U18s for the next couple weeks. We need a fresh threat up there IMO.
What a performance
He has so much raw talent. Strength, speed, agility, balance, technique, vision, spatial awareness, timing. Now he is adding more composure and better decision making. Only thing he is missing is height, needs to learn to take touches and turns with his weaker foot and Nwaneri's slick touch lol. If he stays healthy and motivated he has to play for Arsenal first team as a starter in the next 5 years at least.
I think more games as the deepest midfielder will give him the tools to use his right foot more and perhaps find more directions to focus his initial touch other than forward. That said, I really don't see that being a problem for him, neither do I think his height will be a massive deal. I of course do prefer the taller midfielders myself but given Lewis-Skelly is the same height as Nwaneri (5'10ish so not small) and the fact that he has the core strength of a big man already, I think he's already pretty well equipped to handle himself in the vast majority of his duels, ground or aerial.
I think we should prepare to start seeing Lewis-Skelly play from next season. Today was a return performance after injury, so I can imagine what it will look like if he builds on this game. He's every bit the star that Nwaneri is and I hope that will be more apparent soon.
Very much on the Ovie Ejeheri train. Strong shot-stopper, good on crosses largely but his passing has improved so much and his positioning is aggressive. We think of keepers who snuff out issues early on and Ejeheri definitely has elements of that in his keeping. He's largely unflappable and does a good job of keeping the momentum in possession despite being pressed. I'd like to see more of him in a first team capacity as he hasn't really been in the environment as much as keepers like Hein and Hillson. I think Ejeheri has the biggest potential of the current U21 goalies, with Okonkwo being a very close 2nd. Okonkwo has a ton of experience now, with lots of football under his belt now. He has almost everything but I don't think his kicking is as good as Ejeheri's.
I'd love for Ejeheri to be our backup or at least get a decent loan.
Okonkwo highlights. None of his kicking but his save catalogue is very decent. Handling on some of these shots could be better though. Few too many spills and parries into dangerous spaces. That said, very good reflexes and solid on crosses.
Had to post again - this was a platform performance. I need to see him at a higher level than this ASAP.
Rasmi
Negative Nancy
Country: England
I would promote him and nwaneri next season. Let Jorginho be his daddy for one season and learn from him
That game was arguably his most Jorginho-like display. Not much of the swashbuckling dribbles but some really clever passing and preventative ball-winning. Best I can remember his positioning being. Far cry from the game vs Newcastle where he had Ibrahim behind him but he was absolutely everywhere, contesting every duel possible and dribbling past 4 players every time.
Country: Iceland
I dont know if I said it before, but I think it helps Lewis-Skelly massively coming through while Arteta and Jorginho are here. Not saying Lewis-Skelly is bad at what Jorginho and Arteta did as midfielders, but they can help him so much and I hope he is just following Jorginho around trying to suck in as much as he can before he leaves.
All midfielders will have strengths and weaknesses, but Lewis just has so much potential do be a complete midfielder. Like it will be a nightmare to mark him if he reach his potential and become a starter here.
"Suck in as much as he can before he leaves!"
