imagine getting this mad because someone simply pointed out what you were obviously doing and have done before. it's not even a big deal, we all like to take a victory lap once in a while.
Yeah his reaction and describing it as the greatest goal he’d ever seen confused me. still love the goal, one of the prettier ones we’ve scored in a while
Curious what this was. I like both you guys and don’t think there’s any ill will in most the back and forth is why I say that. If it seemed harmful or really getting personal, that’s different but I never really took any of what was posted as being too personal This thread is good people IMO. Hope Tomiyasu is all you guys hoped for and more, seems like he’s off to a good start
Teams currently learning on the job at the moment. Just have to play our game and hope we don’t pay for mistakes.
Not sure how much it would really matter but seems favorable to have Carrick out there instead of Ralf. https://www.theguardian.com/footbal...-as-manchester-united-manager-carrick-arsenal Wonder with Saka a risk (and our recent ass kickings away to bigger sides) if Arteta will go more defensive/counter attack at OT
It will be interesting to see. He always went straight up against Old Gunner Scrotum. Those were enjoyable matches for the neutral. No idea what Carrick or Ralf would do.
SugarShaun what's your take on the Sterling loan rumors? Not sure how I feel about the potential move, apart from the age profile... But Pepe certainly has to go first?
Hadn’t really seen them but it wouldn’t be surprising if he wanted out to play regularly and a loan would make sense. Foden and Grealish ahead of him on the left Jesus, Mahrez, Bernardo seemingly ahead on the right Foden, Gündogan, Torres, KDB ahead as false 9. He’s also been struggling for a bit so it doesn’t seem like any sale would come close to what he’s worth in the new world of the inflated market
those unused transfer funds being taxed for lavish council houses starting to come back and bite us in the butt all these years later smh
Think there's a few of you that don't have an Athletic sub Analysed: Seven strikers that could fit Arsenal next season Spoiler It is no great secret that Arsenal are on the lookout for a new centre-forward. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is 32, and has just 18 months remaining on his contract. Alexandre Lacazette, 30, has a matter of months remaining on his deal. In Folarin Balogun and Gabriel Martinelli, Arsenal have a pair of promising forwards, but neither look ready to shoulder the club’s goalscoring burden. Come the summer, Arsenal will need a new striker — ideally someone capable of making an immediate impact. In the last summer transfer window, Arsenal made six signings aged 23 or under. There was a clear directive to rejuvenate the squad. When it comes to looking for centre-forwards, The Athletic has chosen to be a little more relaxed on age, widening the range to allow players up to 25 years old to be included. The age profile of the squad has been sufficiently redressed now — Arsenal arguably would benefit from a couple of players closer to their prime. This tweak should allow us to identify forwards with a little more maturity and end product. Using a combination of data and video analysis, The Athletic has compiled a shortlist of possible forward targets. Our track record here isn’t to be sniffed at — when we produced a similar list of possible creative midfield signings, we picked out Martin Odegaard some six months before he arrived at Arsenal on loan. To illustrate each player’s capabilities, we will be using pizza charts based on smarterscout data. Smarterscout profiles break down parts of a player’s game into different performance, skill and style metrics, and then give scores based on how often they perform a given action or how effective they are compared with others playing in their position, producing an overall rating between zero and 99. This will help us determine if the players in question are a good stylistic fit for Arsenal’s requirements. Let’s begin with a player who has already been linked to Arsenal in the Italian press. Dusan Vlahovic The 21-year-old Fiorentina striker is currently being touted around Europe, with some of the continent’s biggest clubs linked with a move for the Serbian. It’s easy to see why: his record in front of goal this season is outstanding, with 11 goals from just 14 Serie A appearances. Only Robert Lewandowski has scored more goals in Europe’s top five leagues. It’s worth noting that this figure is inflated by Vlahovic’s four penalty goals. He is an outstanding spot-kick taker, with 16 goals from 16 career attempts to date. From open play, his shooting this season has been a little more varied — partly because he takes on shots from deeper positions, and only one in the six-yard box this campaign. Vlahovic tends to operate as a clear No 9 — the focal point of the Fiorentina attack. A smarterscout link-up play volume of just 10 out of 99 shows he is not someone who drops deep to combine with the midfield, in the fashion that Lacazette sometimes does. His high scores for receptions in the opposition box (68 out of 99) and shot volume (78 out of 99) show him for what he is — a penalty box forward. Vlahovic’s contract with Fiorentina is due to expire in 2023, and the indications are that he will not be signing a new one. That means the Italian side know they need to sell in the next two transfer windows if they are to maximise their return. It’s no coincidence that we see Vlahovic being linked with the great and the good — he is most certainly for sale at the right price. The Athletic understands Vlahovic may prefer to remain in Italy. This would not suit Fiorentina, who would prefer a Europe-wide auction for his services. Darwin Nunez Over the past year in particular, it has become increasingly apparent that Arteta wants a striker with a mix of both Lacazette and Aubameyang’s talents. Having someone able to drop deep and link play as well as stretching opposition defences in behind has been ideal. This was evident in their summer interest in Lautaro Martinez, but has also been seen in Aubameyang’s play this season. He has often dropped deeper to support Emile Smith Rowe during quick breaks, which resulted in his goal against Tottenham Hotspur and the 21-year-old’s strike against Aston Villa. Benfica’s Darwin Nunez is not a carbon copy but, as seen in his pizza chart from a more reliable sample of minutes last season (below), does help aside from just scoring goals. His link-up play volume (78 out of 99) show how he is more likely to find a nearby team-mate with his passing rather than dropping in to play long, searching balls himself (progressive passing 25 out of 99). Meanwhile, his high xG from shot creation (88 out of 99) shows how his actions were very efficient in creating chances, with a lot of them often coming from inside the penalty area (receptions in the opposition box 97 out of 99). The 22-year-old claimed 12 assists in all competitions last season to accompany his 14 goals. Fairly quick for his height (6ft 2in), nine of these resulted in first-time finishes from the goalscorer because Nunez burst into positions where he could make the finish easy for his team-mates. Nunez’s primary job will be to score goals, however. Last season, six of his 14 strikes came in the league. This term, he has 11 in 16 games in all competitions (eight in 10 in the league, including a hat-trick at the weekend) after missing the early weeks of the campaign due to knee surgery. Rather than playing with his back to goal, his instinct is to run in behind. He often takes off as a team-mate is receiving the ball to dictate what happens next, sometimes running offside and then waiting for play to catch up to him before applying a finishing touch. Space in behind has been key for both Nunez’s goals and assists since the start of last season. If he is not afforded that in the Premier League, some adjustments may be necessary. The Uruguay international is fairly strong in the air, however. Although just three of his 22 goals scored since the start of last season have been headers, with neither Lacazette and Aubameyang particularly proficient in this area his presence would be an upgrade. The striker’s presence and all-round play was a major factor in Brighton & Hove Albion’s interest in him this summer. They were unable to prise him away from Benfica, however, and with Arsenal in need of a striker who can create a platform to attack from and link up effectively with his supporting players as well as score goals, Nunez fits that profile. Alexander Isak Sweden international Isak signed a new deal in July that not only removed Borussia Dortmund’s €35 million buy-back option, but extended his commitment with Real Sociedad until 2026. Were the 22-year-old to move in the summer, he would not come cheap. However, Arsenal showed in the most recent transfer window that they are able to flex some financial muscle when it comes to transfer fees. Isak caught the eye of many fans at Euro 2020 — but those familiar with La Ligawould have been talking about him long before that. Last season, he scored 17 goals in 34 league games for Real Sociedad. With a rate of 0.65 non-penalty goals per 90 — the fourth-highest in La Liga and level with Atletico Madrid’s Luis Suarez — it’s no wonder Arsenal’s scouts have been following his progress. This season, his goalscoring has dropped off somewhat, with only three La Liga goals to date. Perhaps, at his age, such fluctuations are inevitable. Isak’s super-power is arguably his dribbling ability. Looking at his pizza chart from last season, smarterscout rated him 91 out of 99 for carry and dribble volume, illustrating his willingness to run with the ball. Arsenal are not a team blessed with many natural ball-carriers — Isak could provide them with something different. One interesting aspect of Arsenal’s interest in Isak is that he had a good on-field relationship with Odegaard during the latter’s loan spell with Sociedad in 2019-20. They combined effectively on several occasions, such as for this goal against Celta Vigo. Odegaard, who often played off the right-hand side for Sociedad, makes a run into a central position, close to Isak. With Odegaard screaming for possession, Isak comes to life and darts between the opposition defenders. Although initially somewhat flat-footed, he shows good acceleration and positional awareness to find the gap. Odegaard’s path, however, is blocked by a defender. Without a channel through which to thread the pass, he rolls the ball to his right-hand side, then uses the outside of his left foot to find Isak. Those split-seconds spent shifting the ball mean the defenders are able to close on Isak, but with his tall, strong frame he is able to hold them off and go through to score. If Odegaard is to be a significant part of Arteta’s plans, then part of the task is to find a forward who complements him. Arsenal arguably failed to find a striker ideally suited to capitalising on Mesut Ozil’s creative capabilities — they should not make that mistake again. Youssef En-Nesyri Before discussing Youssef En-Nesyri, it is important to note he is currently out of action due to injury. He has not featured for Sevilla since a 12-minute cameo against Osasuna in late October and has not started since scoring in a 2-0 win over Espanyol in late September. The 24-year-old started garnering Premier League attention on the way to his best goalscoring season last year, with West Ham bidding €25 million (£22.5 million) plus €5 million (£4.5 million) in add-ons for the striker in January. He went on to score 24 goals in 53 games in all competitions in 2020-21 and started this season by netting three in seven league appearances before injury. Conversely to Nunez, En-Nesyri is more of a finisher than an all-round striker who also creates. Although he can run in behind defences, he’s more likely to stay central with his long strides to get a shot off than peel wider to possibly cut the ball across goal. Still mobile at 6ft 2in, if he does not opt to shoot when bearing down on goal in these situations, he is not shy to round the keeper to knock the ball into an open goal. En-Nesyri’s biggest strength is his aerial presence. Attacking crosses with authority, he is much more effective in the air than Arsenal’s current options. Of his 27 goals since the start of last season, eight are headers. The striker announced himself at the 2018 World Cup with a towering header against Spain, and remains a threat for Sevilla. Last season, for instance, he scored two headers against Cadiz in La Liga. En-Nesyri is the only player to react sharply. Everyone else in the frame is flat-footed, while he’s preparing to take off. Sniffing that opportunity, there is not a contest when he goes for the ball. Eight of his 19 non-headed goals since the start of last season have been first-time finishes, showing how proficient he is in the box. These mostly result from his good movement and anticipation inside a packed penalty area, either darting across defenders into the six-yard box or hanging away from traffic to tuck away a rebound. Despite being a prolific shooter (shot volume 99 out of 99) and a very effective finisher, the areas where En-Nesyri may need improvement to truly fit at Arsenal is his more general play. As seen in his pizza chart below from last season, he rarely links play with short passes and does not play balls in behind for his team-mates that often either. He is also average across the board for defensive contributions and with pressing a necessity for Arsenal forwards, that may need improvement if Arteta and Edu were to decide he is their man. Mohamed Bayo The 23-year-old Guinean forward is an intriguing option because, according to smarterscout, he profiles particularly similarly to Aubameyang. Arteta may opt for a different type of striker — a hybrid of Aubameyang and Lacazette — but if he wants to replace his club captain directly, Bayo could be an option. Like a young Aubameyang, Bayo is making waves in French football. His 22 goals in 2020-21 were key to Clermont’s promotion last year, and now he has seven goals from 12 Ligue 1 starts this season. For a side struggling near the foot of the table, it’s an impressive record. Bayo generally plays within the width of the penalty area, rather than chasing into the channels. What stands out on video is the variety of finishes he produces — flicks, chips, side-foots. He has the dexterity and agility to find the necessary angle. He makes good runs, frequently dashing to the near post at the corner of the six-yard box. There is predatory instinct to his game. Smarterscout shows the Guinea international to be someone who will frequently link the play (link-up play volume 83 out of 99) and get a shot away (shot volume 85 out of 99). An xG from shot creation rating of 62 out of 99 — adjusted for Premier League standard, don’t forget — demonstrates that his actions on the field make a good contribution towards making goalscoring opportunities, when compared with other strikers. He also defends with good intensity — something Arteta has demanded of Aubameyang and Lacazette of late. After being linked to Bordeaux last summer, he signed a new three-year contract in October. However, it’s unlikely Clermont could resist a bid from a club of Arsenal’s stature next summer — especially if they continue to flirt with relegation, or even go back down. Jonathan David The 21-year-old Lille forward has been on Arsenal’s radar for some time. They watched the Canadian forward after he joined Gent in 2018. In the summer of 2020, David moved to Lille. It was a difficult start — at one point he endured a run of seven consecutive games without scoring. However, in the second half of the season his form picked up. Eleven of his 13 league goals in 2020-21 came after the turn of the year, as Lille defied expectations to finish as French champions. This year, they have struggled to maintain that form, and sit in mid-table. David, however, appears to be going from strength to strength. His 10 goals in Ligue 1 make him the highest scorer in the French top division. In a league including the likes of Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi, that’s no mean feat. His work rate is not in question. Last season, The Athletic proposed him as a potential successor to Roberto Firmino at Liverpool, due to his ability to harry and press off the ball. In Lille’s league-winning campaign, his defensive intensity was remarkable. This season, he is a player transformed. David has traded off some of that defensive work, and remodelled himself as a poacher. A record of 0.75 non-penalty goals per 90 is excellent, and smarterscout rate his xG from shot creation at 94 out of 99 — the highest score among this list of forwards. Admittedly, he is yet to produce this kind of form at Lille over the course of an entire season. If David can put it all together, he might be a player capable of both: working hard off the ball, and being a goalscoring threat. That might be precisely what Arsenal need. One of the factors counting against David is that he is generally poor in the air. If Arteta decides he wants a conventional target man, then David is not one to consider. Nevertheless, the potential is clear. At 21, David is one of the younger forwards on this list. It’s exciting to imagine what he might achieve in the coming years. Arsenal paid Lille big money for Nicolas Pepe in 2019 — could they return to the Romance Flanders region in search of their new striker? Ivan Toney The Brentford striker proved himself last season, scoring a record 31 goals in the Championship. With more eyes on him this year, he set the tone for what he would bring to the Premier League on the opening day against Arsenal. Despite not scoring on the day, he was arguably the most influential player on the pitch — as highlighted at the time. Prepared to play with his back to goal, he bullied Ben White and Pablo Mari to build a platform for Brentford to attack from. Whether it was winning aerial duels, retaining the ball himself or winning fouls from long balls up to him, he laid the groundwork for Brentford to control the game, playing a more supportive role to Bryan Mbeumo who had most of the host’s chances on the night. That theme has continued throughout the season. Although Toney has four goals to Mbeumo’s two in the Premier League, the latter has hit the woodwork seven times. (Brentford have hit the woodwork nine times as a team, which is more than anyone else this season). Going into the weekend Toney had also made the most open-play passes leading to shots (19) for the club this season, which is represented by his 98 out of 99 smarterscout rating for progressive passing. His defensive contributions also display he is a well-rounded striker who could lead the line in all respects, but scoring goals in the Premier League is likely the next step. In fairness, the quality of chances the 25-year-old has had this season have not been great, as he only had an xG of 3.2 going into matchday 13. In short, with three goals scored before the penalty against Everton on Sunday, he had as many goals as the quality of his chances determine he should at this point in the season. That being said, he did have an extra two goals disallowed against Wolves in September and another against Newcastle last week. Gareth Southgate has monitored Toney this season, as reported by The Athletic’s Brentford reporter, Jay Harris. If the striker wants to break into England’s squad ahead of the World Cup in Qatar next year he may consider whether a move to a bigger club will help his progress. Toney being a very good profile for what Arsenal could need post-Lacazette-and-Aubameyang and Brentford being willing to sell are two different conversations altogether, however. He is Thomas Frank’s talisman, they are proving they are worth their place in the Premier League and Toney is key to that, so it is unlikely they would want that to change anytime soon. (Top photo: Jeff Pachoud/AFP via Getty Images)
Initially, I thought so, but not so sure he's ready to step up just yet. He's also the same age as Balogun & Gabby
He's in that weird stage where he's too good for u23 & not yet ready for the 1st team... We haven't developed any striker past this stage in forever
almost feel you're better off getting guys like him to lower leagues on the continent. send him to a mid-table Eredivisie side and let him tear it up. I just don't have faith in a Championship side playing a 20 year old striker regularly unless he really takes his chance.
#1 priority has to be minutes, don’t care where, but I figured the championship would provide a good physical challenge for him. Strikes me as a player who can just physically dominate the younger guys and taking away that advantage would be the next big step in development.
Would be nice to get him more minutes in the current squad. Ideally December death march then African Cup time.
Michael Cox Athletic article on the lack of dominant goal-scorers seems related to this. Where have all the goalscorers gone? https://theathletic.com/2987834/202...-goalscorers-gone/?source=user_shared_article Spoiler One-third of the way into the 2021-22 Premier League campaign, and the table has started to shake itself out into normality. Sure, Manchester United and Leeds United have endured difficult starts, and West Ham and Wolves are exceeding expectations, but otherwise it’s roughly what we expect to see in May. The same cannot be said, however, of the race for the Golden Boot. After 13 rounds of Premier League action, several odd trends emerge from looking at the top goalscorers’ charts. First, only 12 players have managed five or more goals so far. This is a very low figure, considering the number of players to have scored 5+ goals after 13 matchdays in the previous three seasons was 14 last year, 17 in 2019-20 and 21 in 2018-19, according to Opta. In fact, in the 30 Premier League seasons, this is the second lowest number of players to have scored five or more goals after 13 matchdays, behind 2005-06, when the ten included the likes of Marlon Harewood, Andrew Cole and Kevin Nolan. Second, two clubs contribute three of those ten apiece. It’s not particularly surprising to see Liverpool’s trio of Mohamed Salah, Diogo Jota and Sadio Mane up there, but Watford’s triumvirate of Emmanuel Dennis, Josh King and Ismaila Sarr, all on five goals, is more striking. Premier League top goalscorers PLAYER CLUB GOALS Mohamed Salah Liverpool 11 Jamie Vardy Leicester City 9 Diogo Jota Liverpool 7 Sadio Mane Liverpool 7 Raphinha Leeds United 6 Michail Antonio West Ham 6 Maxwel Cornet Burnley 5 Callum Wilson Newcastle United 5 Teemu Pukki Norwich City 5 Emmanuel Dennis Watford 5 Joshua King Watford 5 Ismaila Sarr Watford 5 Considering the other six players in the top 12 represent Leicester, West Ham, Norwich, Burnley, Newcastle and Leeds, an alternative way of putting this feels even more peculiar: Watford have three players who have outscored anyone that Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham can offer. Those clubs’ top goalscorers have managed only four goals — seven fewer than Salah, and therefore they’re probably out of the race for the Golden Boot already. Maybe this is entirely irrelevant and these are insignificant numbers plucked from a small sample size. But maybe there’s a wider pattern here. The two Champions League finalists last season were Manchester City and Chelsea, whose top Premier League goalscorers recorded 13 and seven league goals respectively. More pertinently, they were both midfielders, Ilkay Gundogan and Jorginho, with the latter’s tally relying entirely on penalties. Mason Mount — with six, alongside Tammy Abraham and Timo Werner — was Chelsea’s next top goalscorer. Both sides had shifted away from prolific strikers. This wasn’t the plan for this season, though. Chelsea paid close to £100 million for Romelu Lukaku, and Manchester City were willing to pay somewhere around that sum for Harry Kane. When the Kane transfer appeared unlikely, City turned their attention to Cristiano Ronaldo, before he was plucked from under their nose by Manchester United. The Premier League therefore benefited from the arrival of the top two goalscorers from last season’s Serie A: Ronaldo and Lukaku. That left City without a replacement for Sergio Aguero, but they have coped best without a dedicated goalscorer. Various players have led the line, the most effective being Bernardo Silva, their top goalscorer. Interestingly, of the 28 players to have scored four goals or more this season, Silva is the player who takes his shots from closest to goal — 11.0 metres, according to Fbref.com. The average is 15.1 metres. For a player unaccustomed to playing up top, Silva is very effective at sniffing out chances close to goal, while also linking play effortlessly and starting the press, too. Chelsea’s experience with Lukaku has been mixed. When he battered the Arsenal defence on his (second) full debut, it seemed Chelsea had found the missing piece in the jigsaw. Since then, his performances have dropped off significantly, and Chelsea have arguably looked better during his injury absence. Without him, they’re surely better at putting together combinations in the final third, with their dismantling of Juventus particularly impressive. There are certainly games where Lukaku’s finishing was missed — two dropped points at home to Burnley springs to mind. But the jury is still out on whether Lukaku has made Chelsea a better side. Oddly, he’s managed three Premier League goals from the equivalent of 6.9 Premier League games, the same number as wing-back Ben Chilwell from 6.0, and one fewer than Reece James from 7.1, the best example of a side finding goals from surprise positions. Then there’s Manchester United, whose performances since the addition of Ronaldo has become debated so routinely that it feels pointless going over familiar ground. Yes he scores goals, no he doesn’t press. It’s worth considering, though, that Ronaldo has only scored four times from the equivalent of 8.5 games — he joined, of course, after the season had already started. Therefore, the tally of United’s top-scoring players this season has almost certainly been affected by Ronaldo, considering that before his arrival, both Bruno Fernandes and Mason Greenwood had managed three in the first three matchdays of the season. In the subsequent 10, they’ve managed one each. Greenwood is no longer playing as a striker as seemed likely pre-Ronaldo, and the side is no longer based around Fernandes, as it was for the previous 18 months. Arsenal’s lack of a prolific goalscorer is partly down to the fact Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been wasteful in front of goal, missing simple chances against both Newcastle and Watford. Although Emile Smith Rowe has matched Aubameyang’s four goals, one suspects the Arsenal striker is actually a barrier to his teammates scoring more. His link play is mediocre by the standards of top strikers, and he was barely involved in the weekend win over Newcastle. Alexandre Lacazette is considerably better in that respect, although less prolific, and Mikel Arteta has recently fielded both together. But this Arsenal side already feels defined by the youthful Smith Rowe and Bukayo Sakarather than by the ageing strike duo, and when Arsenal come to find a new striker, Arteta might be looking for link play rather than goals. Finally, there’s Tottenham, whose two usual goal threats are affected by the same problem: Kane’s malaise. He isn’t scoring himself and isn’t assisting Son Heung-min either, as he did last season to record-breaking effect. This season he’s managed one goal and one assist, both recorded in the 3-2 win over Newcastle. Only Kane knows whether his issues are primarily physical, psychological or tactical, and while he’s recovered previously from poor starts to campaigns, on this evidence Spurs would have been better taking the money on offer, promoting Son into their technical leader and investing in another couple of attackers. That way — depending upon the identity of the new arrivals — they might have been following the pattern from elsewhere in spreading the goals across the team. Maybe the most pertinent aspect of all this concerns the underlying numbers, in the form of individual expected goal (xG) figures. By that measure, few of these players have been unfortunate or overwhelmingly wasteful. Of the 16 players who have scored exactly four goals so far, only Aubameyang, and perhaps Christian Benteke, have an xG figure that suggests they should have scored more — and for Aubameyang that owes to two missed penalties (one of which he scored the rebound anyway). Again, this data is from Fbref.com. xG of players with four PL goals PLAYER CLUB GOALS XG XG DIFF Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang Arsenal 4 5 -1 Christian Benteke Crystal Palace 4 4.4 -0.4 Cristiano Ronaldo Manchester Utd 4 4.2 -0.2 Ivan Toney Brentford 4 3.9 0.1 Roberto Firmino Liverpool 4 3.9 0.1 Neal Maupay Brighton 4 3.8 0.2 Wilfried Zaha Crystal Palace 4 3.2 0.8 Son Heung-min Tottenham 4 3.2 0.8 Conor Gallagher Crystal Palace 4 3 1 Bruno Fernandes Manchester Utd 4 3 1 Pablo Fornals West Ham 4 2.6 1.4 Mason Greenwood Manchester Utd 4 2.5 1.5 Bernardo Silva Manchester City 4 2.3 1.7 Emile Smith-Rowe Arsenal 4 2.2 1.8 Hwang Hee-chan Wolves 4 2 2 Reece James Chelsea 4 1.2 2.8 When you broaden this sample to include all 453 players who have played in the Premier League this season, there are even fewer standout cases. The players who should have scored more goals, based upon the positions they’ve shot from, have only scored one or two goals anyway, and wouldn’t be challenging the Kings and the Sarrs and the Dennises of this world even if they’d been more accurate. In other words, the reason why Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham don’t have any players who have scored more than four goals hasn’t been about wasteful shooting, with the exception of Aubameyang. It’s been about big names not getting big chances — through rotation, injury or tactical compromises. Ronaldo, Lukaku and Kane might surge up the goalscoring charts soon, but the pattern of the opening third of the campaign has been about top sides spreading the goalscoring burden.
Balogun... mentioned the other day Spoiler Captain Balogun’s improvement ‘there for all to see’ in U21s, now Arsenal face dilemma after Nketiah news Spoiler Art de Roché On the day it was revealed Eddie Nketiah had rejected Arsenal’s latest contract offer, 78 miles from the Emirates Stadium, all eyes were on Folarin Balogun as he helped guide Arsenal Under-21s into the last 16 of the Papa John’s Trophy. The 20-year-old, who signed a new long-term deal until 2025 in April, has been on fire for Kevin Betsy’s side this season. Balogun was officially promoted to the first-team squad in the summer, but without many opportunities due to the presence of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette and Nketiah, he has spent much of the season so far with the under-23s/21s. “He (Balogun) could easily just train and be ready when called upon (by the first team) but he wants to get match minutes, match sharpness and he’s doing that with us,” Betsy told The Athletic after the side’s Premier League 2 loss to Derby County last week. “(He’s) showing an example to our young ones. When they’re thinking they want to be in the first team and at that level, they look at him and see, that’s the level — whatever position. His professionalism off the pitch is second to none and he’s a top character.” Turning out at a cold, windy Portman Road on the first night of December provided another test to gauge where the youngster’s game is at. Balogun unexpectedly made his Premier League debut on opening night against Brentford in August in the enforced absence of Aubameyang and Lacazette, while Nketiah was injured. Coming up against a back three roared on by an exultant full house, being man-marked by wily old pro Pontus Jansson, it was not an easy introduction to top-flight football. Since then, he had scored 14 goals in 10 Premier League 2 games and another in his only Papa John’s Trophy group-stage appearance, against Plymouth Argyle, before Wednesday’s last 32 trip to another League One side, Ipswich Town. Adding a further goal to his tally to equalise as Arsenal Under-21s came from two down after an hour to draw 2-2 and eventually win on penalties has maintained the level of anticipation over his short-term future. Given his presence in under-23s squads over the past few seasons, some fans felt another half-season with that age group would not be particularly beneficial. This sentiment has been shared by England Under-21s head coach Lee Carsley, who recently admitted he felt under-23s football was becoming too easy for Balogun. That ease has often been displayed by the confidence in his general play, as well as just his goals. On his first start for the under-23s this season, against their Manchester United counterparts, for instance, he felt free enough to attempt neat flicks and tricks. This has continued, with his winning of a penalty against Brighton & Hove Albion in October encapsulating the swagger he has been playing with in the past few months. While his season has been littered with moments like this, the notion that the past few months have been wasted is not entirely true. Despite it being sprung upon him and the general performance of the team not helping, that game at Brentford showed that for all the excitement, there will still be areas of Balogun’s game to improve before throwing him in again. “Flo is extremely bright and intelligent and every moment is a learning moment,” Betsy added after the Derby defeat — in which Balogun scored a hat-trick. “There’s been games where he’s played in the Premier League in front of 15,000-20,000 at the Brentford Community Stadium — it’s a very different game to playing in this type of arena (Meadow Park). This game (Derby) was probably (watched by) a few hundred, but that game’s (Brentford) a real pressure game and different type of emotion and he has to be able to deal with that. “The learning from him playing with those more physical players is he has to find different pockets and be cuter with his movement and we’ve seen that with his development this season. He’s not been one-dimensional in his play, he’s been fluid in everything.” Playing in front of 4,065 fans (including 244 away fans) at Ipswich last night gave Balogun chances to prove that on a few counts. In regards to his performance, it was not a totally standard night for him. The first half was difficult as, despite Arsenal controlling the match in two of the three thirds of the pitch, they were unable to penetrate the final third to give him chances. The Ipswich defence allowed him to drift wide and drop deep to receive the ball to limit the damage he could cause them, and made sure they were tight when he tried to get in behind. There were moments where he had to switch sides with Mika Biereth, who was on the right of the two-man strike partnership which has been in place since Balogun dropped down to the under-23s in September. He grew into the game in the second half, however, and this is where Balogun was able to display his increasing skills off the ball. Moving from out to in more often, chances began falling to him. Tim Akinola broke the lines well in the 50th minute to find Omari Hutchinson on the half-turn just inside the Ipswich half and Balogun was running in behind. He was unable to get a clean shot off after being tracked, but was now making an impression. Minutes later, Zak Swanson cushioned a pass to him in the six-yard box as he lost his marker but, unexpectedly, the England Under-21 international missed the chance to pull a goal back. He then got a shot off just outside the box with his left foot which was deflected behind for the Salah Oulad-M’Hand corner which was touched in for an own goal to make it 2-1. Three minutes later, the Arsenal skipper dropped deep to receive possession, burst past two players, played a one-two with Hutchinson to get into the box and scored arguably the hardest of all his chances. Trailing 2-0 away in the second half of a straight knockout tie to supposedly superior opposition could have been viewed as a lost cause, but it wasn’t, and neither has the first half of this season been for Balogun. “His link-up and movement to come and support the ball and link it between the lines has definitely improved (this season),” Betsy explained after the Ipswich win. “His ability to run in behind and stretch — you see the chance he had where he’s made a diagonal run from the left to the right and wasn’t picked up. “That run and movement has been continuous throughout the last two months. The goal at Plymouth he scored was similar and that’s something he’s working on every single day. “This is about the character-building, and these games help greatly. The first half wasn’t quite his moment, then in the second half we were 2-0 down. He’s the captain of this team (and) when it comes to making moments to win a game, get the team back in it, he delivered. The move for the (first) goal, he helped. Then the last goal, he dribbled from deep, showed energy and enthusiasm to burst past someone and make things happen. His application and endeavour to make a difference when it’s a bit tricky is fantastic.” Following a penalty shootout defeat by Plymouth in the group stage where the coaching staff decided the takers, a different approach was used at Portman Road. The players decided who would take the spot kicks, with Balogun stepping up first in front of the home fans, who enjoyed chanting, “Who the fucking hell are you?”, as well as whistling at the other Arsenal players when it was their turn to take one. Balogun set the tone by scoring his penalty and, minutes later, Hutchinson secured Arsenal’s victory and a place in the last-16 next month. Whether or not the 20-year-old will get a loan in January to test himself with regular first-team football still needs to be worked out. “That’s a decision that comes from the club,” Betsy said. “Every player’s journey is different whether it’s to stay at the club and develop with the under-23s and then push for the first team or go on loan like Emile (Smith Rowe, who was sent out on January loans to RB Leipzig and Huddersfield Town) did.” “His development is there for all to see. He’s scoring goals, making goals, being a threat. Today he’s playing against senior players and deals with it. There’s no doubt in my mind about Flo’s level and competency to be a top-class striker in the future and we’re all behind him and supporting him to try to get better.” There are still moments when necessary improvements are clear. In the 80th minute last night, for instance, he received a pass from Brooke Norton-Cuffy and tried to hold the ball up near the touchline instead of playing the return in behind. He ended up being forced out of play. But at his age, this is not particularly an issue, more something that will improve with more first-team experience. And with seven first-team games to come in the rest of December, not counting Manchester United away tonight (Thursday), Arsenal’s involvement in the FA Cup starting in January and Aubameyang leaving at the turn of the year for up to a month to captain Gabon in the Africa Cup of Nations, chances may present themselves at Arsenal. If not, then a loan for the second half of the season does seem logical. Either way, Balogun has done himself no harm by maintaining momentum with his performance levels, improving in certain areas and being consistently available to play at whichever level he is required. Seeing as he committed to Arsenal long term, and the striker position is due for a revamp, it feels like a matter of time before Balogun is playing first-team football. Smith Rowe was playing for Arsenal Under-21s in this same competition last November after all. Now he’s a first-team staple and goalscoring full England international. That is not to say Balogun’s ascension will be as drastic, but some things just need time. (Photo: James Chance/Getty Images)
no idea what to expect today feel like i’ve been thinking that often lately, but we’ve been pulling decent results out so…
I was thinking to myself earlier that whoever started I think I'm fine with all out options. then I saw the team sheet....
I'm not going to make a big deal about El Neny starting. hopefully it's fine. but if the reasoning is that Sambi had a rough one at Anfield and you don't want to have that happen to a young player again, wouldn't you apply the same logic to Nuno?
whatever it is I hope it works. just weird this is the game that we're going back to it. I know it worked against United before but it's not really the same team as it was then.