The Battle of LCM.

[Wounded Healer]

Why didnt anyone else go for Maddison? Did Guardiola, Klopp, Ten Hag also use their "eye for talent" to "not help our rivals at all"?

Klop went with Dominik, which seemed more exciting, a better fit for him.
Ten hag betted on Mount.
Guardiola is Stacked with players there.
Chelsea is a coocoo nest.
We went on a player out of his depth with a good name but no clear identity, overpriced, from a rival in dire need for cash. All of this while Maddison provided brilliant numbers for years even when getting relegated, ready to deliver from day 0. It was the obvious choice and yet Arteta tried to outsmart reality as he does so many times and only players whos their talent is so colossal like Saliba can survive this damage and blossom.
It wasn't hard to see. It was cheaper. x2 to x4 times more efficient and would have prevented Tottenham revival. But we had to do a Havertz.
I have nothing against him and I pray he will make it but i have to ask you why make things so hard in the first place, why try so hard to swim against the current and make things so dramatic when they are really out there. Arteta's biggest enemy is Arteta. There are moments I tell myself that I know he isnt the best manager in the world but he is the right man at the right time for us BUT he really makes it hard for me to believe in it with his stuborness on things that dont and wont work because it is just wrong. It annoys me to bits to see it game after game that he refuses to learn. He seems so beautifully passionate (which i really admire, I do!) that he loses connection with reality and then refuses to wake up.
Maddison is one of those very obvious and huge mistakes. There is no way around it. Arteta is in love with a vision that he tries to force on reality with not enough awareness to change and create it on the fly. He doesn't adapt quickly enough even if its glaring and it is also evident in games with substitutions. That's my take and that is the reason I am always on the fence about Arteta.

 

[SA Gunner]

Klop went with Dominik, which seemed more exciting, a better fit for him.
Ten hag betted on Mount.
Guardiola is Stacked with players there.
Chelsea is a coocoo nest.
We went on a player out of his depth with a good name but no clear identity, overpriced, from a rival in dire need for cash. All of this while Maddison provided brilliant numbers for years even when getting relegated, ready to deliver from day 0. It was the obvious choice and yet Arteta tried to outsmart reality as he does so many times and only players whos their talent is so colossal like Saliba can survive this damage and blossom.
It wasn't hard to see. It was cheaper. x2 to x4 times more efficient and would have prevented Tottenham revival. But we had to do a Havertz.
I have nothing against him and I pray he will make it but i have to ask you why make things so hard in the first place, why try so hard to swim against the current and make things so dramatic when they are really out there. Arteta's biggest enemy is Arteta. There are moments I tell myself that I know he isnt the best manager in the world but he is the right man at the right time for us BUT he really makes it hard for me to believe in it with his stuborness on things that dont and wont work because it is just wrong. It annoys me to bits to see it game after game that he refuses to learn. He seems so beautifully passionate (which i really admire, I do!) that he loses connection with reality and then refuses to wake up.
Maddison is one of those very obvious and huge mistakes. There is no way around it. Arteta is in love with a vision that he tries to force on reality with not enough awareness to change and create it on the fly. He doesn't adapt quickly enough even if its glaring and it is also evident in games with substitutions. That's my take and that is the reason I am always on the fence about Arteta.

We didnt need Maddison that's why we didnt go for him.

Dont think about fixed roles and responsibilities in our team, that's not how we recruit players. We recruit players that move around the pitch and operate in different zones at different times.

Maddison's role is currently played by Vieira, Smith Rowe, Ødegaard, even Trossard and Jesus can play as a creative 8 in our system. This is in addition to Havertz who plays that role as well.

If you want to think about Havertz, think about a Calvert-Lewin option, namely a forward who can give us a direct option upfront. In addition he is able to drop into midfield zones and help overload that area. Its different to what Maddison brings to the table.

We need to find more space to attack in games, and that space includes the air as well.

 

[Tir Na Nog]

The elephant in the room here is that most would be better from RCM. I don't think Ødegaard would suffer playing LCM, but the only thing is the dynamics with Saka/White.

But regardless ESR is by far my preferred choice, Vieira has shown a bit but when it mattered he was hooked vs Sp**s. I don't even consider Havertz.

 

[RunTheTrap]

Do we really need “the twink” as an option lol

My apologies. I will change the name.

 

[AberGooner]

I think Vieira earned his shot but then didn't perform against Sp**s so maybe give ESR his chance now after doing well last night. I'd rotate between them for a while anyway and reassess later in the season.

Havertz offers nothing those two couldn't do and more if given the opportunity.

 

[Maybe]

Trossard barely mentioned here even though he is far superior to all the players getting their chance there

 

[Xoxo]

Esr but unfortunately is made of glass

 

[field442]

Pretty sure it's going to be Rice once Partey is fit. The rest are too hit and miss to hold down that spot.

 

[Sparrahork]

Trossard definitely strikes me as an option. I have not voted yet as too early to make a determination imo.

I am being supportive of havertz, I initially anticipated he was being signed for a more attacking role. I think eventually out of the options given he may win out.

I questioned the havertz signing as I want esr to be given a fair chance, right now of the three choices havertz would sneak it for me, I think he is defensively better / more stamina.

If it doesn't click for him and esr given minutes it may switch to him if he proves he has the stamina, defensive ability and positional sense.

Trossard ahead of all of them just now, a partey / rice midfield trumps them all however!

In essence we are yet to establish a clear identity in that role, maybe that won't happen at all until mls and nwaneri break through.

As for the other players who moved, mount would not join a London club and Maddison less of an 8 than havertz imo.

The Liverpool signings would have been interesting for us to get.

 

[TH14shahriar]

ESR is perfect for that role.

 

[Riou]

All the poll options are a significant downgrade on Xhaka, ffs

The only proper choice should be Rice with Partey back at 6, but will Kai keep getting played because of his price is the £65 million question.

 

[BigPoppaPump]

All the poll options are a significant downgrade on Xhaka, ffs

The only proper choice should be Rice with Partey back at 6, but will Kai keep getting played because of his price is the £65 million question.

Remember when I was telling everyone our midfield would suffer all summer and Arsenalmania wrote me off as a troll and made me enemy number 1 on this forum?

 

[BigPoppaPump]

Also they’re all poor choices you’re all desperate to sign Toney and replace Eddie we’re gonna have to do the same with the midfield.

I dunno why Arteta went from such a technically high midfield in Xhaka and Partey to a pair of plodders in Havertz and Rice. Pep sticks to players like Nunes and Kovavic, you can see why.

 

[Gunner D]

Remember when I was telling everyone our midfield would suffer all summer and Arsenalmania wrote me off as a troll and made me enemy number 1 on this forum?

Anyone with a brain cell could see that replacing Xhaka with Havertz wasn’t gonna work

 

[Trilly]

Pretty sure it's going to be Rice once Partey is fit. The rest are too hit and miss to hold down that spot.

Rice doesn't have enough va-va-voom to play there though.

 

[Trilly]

Anyone with a brain cell could see that replacing Xhaka with Havertz wasn’t gonna work

Pep could have made it work.

Havertz is going to be a big test of Arteta's management credentials. Let's give him a few more months but if you can't get Havertz peforming better than Xhaka in an attacking sense then I don't know for you as a manager.

 

[BigPoppaPump]

Rice doesn't have enough va-va-voom to play there though.

These guys expecting Rice to create chances and play through balls

 

[Trilly]

Put Saka there, sign a CF and play Jesus RW. Done.

 

[Gunner D]

Pep could have made it work.

Havertz is going to be a big test of Arteta's management credentials. Let's give him a few more months but if you can't get Havertz peforming better than Xhaka in an attacking sense then I don't know for you as a manager.

I don’t think any manager could get a tune out of this guy tbh. I wanna be proven wrong though.

 

[Trilly]

I don’t think any manager could get a tune out of this guy tbh. I wanna be proven wrong though.

Tuchel had him playing half decent I believe, but yeah fair point.

Tbf to him he should have two assists in his last two games so maybe there's a slow improvement arc coming.