Arsenal News » This season, last season. What’s the difference

By Walter Broeckx

What is the difference between The Arsenal this season and Arsenal last season?

For this and last season Arsenal were written off by almost all the pundits and it was sure we were the one who would fall from the top 4.   It is not happening.  Why not?

Last year around this time, the championship for us was over. And now we are only 5 points behind first place and played a game less and we have had some tough trips away from home, where other may lose points as well. We always played good football and with some luck we could have won all our games.

There is not much difference at first sight between the team last year and this year. We sold two players, Adebayor and Toure, and there was only 1 new player brought in Vermaelen.

One can say that we have just one central defender replaced by another. Toure was a good player but the partnership with Gallas did not work and now it seems to be working with Vermaelen and so the team is certainly stronger in defence.

Adebayor was sold and was not replaced. On paper because after a few weeks to fully adjust, Van Persie has come good on that new place for him. Assists, goals, … you name it, he delivers the goods.

So where is the difference? For the real difference we have to go back 1 year earlier. We all know how great we played with a midfield consisting of Flamini, Hleb, Cesc and Rosicky and Adebayor and Van Persie / Eduardo front. A midfield with youth, energy and experience.

It eventually went wrong by heavy and prolonged injuries. But it was in the summer when disaster struck. Wenger, who knew that he could put up a brilliant midfield, suddenly lost 3 of his four midfielders. Rosicky was hurt much worse than first thought and to make matters worse Hleb and Flamini were off to go and sit on the rather comfortable bench in Milan and Barcelona.

The result was that Arsenal suddenly had a huge hole in the heart of the team. The core of the team was gone. 75 percent of the midfield had to be replaced. Wenger had to rebuild and fast.

Denilson was put in the team and some fans and most journalists laughed him away and called him lightweight and not good enough. Song was put in the team and some told he will never be good enough. Diaby came, as he occasionally was fit in the team but fell away again and again by new injuries.

Otherwise Wenger excelled in putting players outside their normal position and caused some more surprise and displeasure with some fans.

Up front there was still a player running around, sorry I correct myself and call it walking. After his stunning season before he thought it unnecessary for him to work hard. Just hanging around on the field and wait until the ball fell at his feet was enough for him. Also frequent and gratuitous running offside. Actually one could say that Arsenal last year, almost always played with 10 players on the field instead of 11.

And yes maybe the moaners had last season are partly right. It was not good enough, especially in the beginning.

But we had to fit in 3 midfielders, Cesc was the only regular starter of the season before and he was also out for a long spell. And anyone who knows a bit of football knows how difficult that is. Especially when the replacements were still very young players with limited experience. But Wenger stuck to his team and gave the confidence and let the players know he believed in them. And at the end of January, after the arrival of Arshavin, it slowly began to click and there was a, sometimes underestimated, series of 21 matches without defeat. For many, including myself, it was clear: this group had future.

As said this summer the squad remained almost unchanged and back came Rosicky and Eduardo from career threatening injuries and suddenly it worked.

Song, last years “zero”, is suddenly one of the best defensive midfielders in the PL, Denilson played great until he went out with his back injury. The entire team fit into each other. Not surprisingly, there were almost no changes and the core of the team was a year older and became more experienced. They had learned a lot from the sometimes painful mistakes they had made.

The difference is that there actually is no difference to last year but there is enormous difference between the older team in midfield and the young midfield we have now. The normal growing pains that you know will happen if you are turning a young team into an adult squad came along the road.

Many supporters knew this and could live with a temporary step back to then move forward, certainly seen in the light of the cost that building a new stadium brought to the club.

This year it really seems we have put a giant step forward. Despite once again the vast amount of injuries it seems that we have players at every position in the team who just come in and are ready for whatever is asked.

Wenger has a team, a young team, brought together with many players from our own ranks and with a bright future ahead of us. A team of players currently only known by a few but who  in some 10 years time will be remembered as a team of stars.

It up to us support them and to make sure that we succeed together.

Walter Broeckx

If you know someone who supports Arsenal, and you can’t think what to buy for Xmas – try MAKING THE ARSENAL – £12.99 for the most original book on Arsenal ever written.  Details at www.emiratesstadium.info

And coming soon to this site – a new series THIS IS NOT FOOTBALL.  The very worst of football that we have seen, worst grounds, worst players, worst teams, worst supporters, worst commentators, worst TV programmes – you name it.  Starting later this week.