Under-rated or over-rated players; who is leaving, who is stepping up. « Untold Arsenal: Arsenal News, supporting the club, the players and the manager
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ARSENAL ARTILLERY PLAYER BY PLAYER
By Don McMahon,M.Ed.
I will briefly explain what I intend to achieve in this article and then begin the analysis. There are incessant criticisms and dismissals of some of our seasoned and less experienced players from all corners of the Gooners community. Lets see if their criticisms are justified as I will rate a few players on a very subjective scale of 1-10, with 1 being atrocious and 10 being irreplaceable and basing these evaluations on their actual win/loss or performance records, their continued usefulness, and their relative fan support/manager’s trust:
Established first team players often criticized;
Manuel Almunia, (34) – Spanish/English – Keeper -joined the club on July 18, 2004 and has played 176 games in all competitions since then. Apparently he cut short his honeymoon to complete his transfer to Arsenal in 2005. He also used to run with the Bulls in Pamplona. His most active season was 2008-9 when he appeared in 44 games. The EPL record shows that out of 38 EPL games, he won 20 and kept 10 clean sheets with a +31. While these are pretty respectable results for any keeper, his high profile blunders have painted him as an unreliable and nerve-wracking keeper and neither Wenger or the fans rate him any more. I would generously award him a 5é5/10 because he left his bride for us.
Sebastien Squillaci, (31) -French -Centre-Back – joined us on August 27, 2010 and has played 32 games in all competitions at Arsenal. His 2 goals for Arsenal last season helped keep us in the race mid-season but he also scored an own goal. He tried his best to replace Vermaelen but the outcome was a foregone conclusion as he never really struck up a viable partnership with Koscielny or Djourou. Fans and pundits criticized him for being ineffectual and error-prone but he was there when he was needed. Wenger seems to feel he is a good bench option but the fans aren’t convinced. I would give him a 5/10.
Emmanuel Eboue, (28) – Ivorian – Right Back -came to us on January 02, 2005 and has played 209 games in all competitions scoring 10 goals. He is one of the most versatile players in Wenger’s side but it is very much a case of jack of all trades,master of none. He was openly booed in 2007 but came back to become a cult hero the following season. He married his Belgian girlfriend just before joining Arsenal so didn’t have to cut his honeymoon short! He has been a faithful and stalwart servant for AFC but will never be more than a bench player. AW and the fans have a fondness for him and he can still play a useful bench role. He deserves a 6/10 for his loyalty and character shown since 2005.
Nikolas Bendtner, (23) – Danish – striker – signed by AFC on Aug.1st,2004 and has played 204 games in all competitions scoring 58 goals and earning 28 assists. This is a pretty good return but when seen in the light of how many of those goals were game winning, (20) it is really appreciable. Never known for a lack of confidence, he has alienated some fans with what they interpret as his arrogance and excessive self-promotion. The issue here is whether he can start to put his money where his mouth is and improve his goals to games ratio. Wenger seems to have lost confidence in Nick and recently stated that he is available for transfer. In my opinion, he has had his chance and needs to grow up somewhere else. He is a definite talent and simply because of his promise,I give him a 6.5/10.
Andrei Arshavin, (30) -Russian – striker – came to Arsenal on February 03, 2009 in a last-minute transfer. In 106 games in all competitions has scored 28 goals and 33 assists. Many fans have turned on him after an initial honeymoon, where he showed great brilliance and skills. Last season, he was accused of being ¨lazy¨, often ¨invisible¨ in key games and also being overweight. Dick Avocatt, who had coached him at Zenit, stated that he was not a 90 minute runner and had to be used more as an impact player. Wenger values him a great deal as both a wide striker,midfielder and when playing behind the striker. AW also considers his assist to game ratio to be invaluable. I agree with Arsene’s assessment and value him, but he is getting older and will likely only get a one year contract, if that after this season. I would rank him a 7/10 because of his impact player status and assists record.
Abou Diaby (25) – France – defensive midfielder – brought to AFC on January 13, 2006 , he has missed a significant part of almost every season since his arrival due to recurring injuries. Over 158 appearances in all competitions with AFC he has scored 20 goals and had14 assists. He has never played a whole season injury-free but when he does play he can be very powerful attacking from midfield. He has been compared to Vieira but he is more offensive-minded which many claim is his greatest weakness. He is intelligent enough to admit that he needs to play with a true holding midfielder beside him to be most effective. If he can ever stay fit for an entire season, he could actually justify Wenger’s faith in him but the fans are beginning to doubt his self-control and fitness. Due to his chequered record of injuries and half-starts, and his raw talent when fit, I believe he merits a 6.5/10.
LOANEES and WANNABES:
Vito Manone, (23) – Italian – keeper – Vito came to us on July 01, 2005 and began showing his stuff almost immediately. Various loan spells have kept him out of the first team but when he has played, he’s done very well. It is hard to believe he has played only 9 games for AFC since 2005 but all of them were wins! Interestingly enough, 4 of those games were clean sheets and he has never lost a game when playing for Arsenal in league or Cup competitions. Rate him very highly but believe he needs far more exposure to ever consider knocking out Fabianski or Szceny for 1st place. It is his great misfortune that one of the two is younger than him. I give him a 7.5/10.
Jay-Emmanuel Thomas (20) – English – striker – JET as he is fondly referred to came to Arsenal via the Academy on July 31, 2007 at the tender age of 16. He has only played 5 games for AFC and never scored but he has been extremely prolific for the Reserves. He is one of the few loanees who needs first team exposure to break into the lineup but it looks like he’ll be sent out on loan again this coming season as Arsene feels his fitness and maturity still needs to be worked on. I rank him as a 6.5/10.
Henri Lansbury (20) -English -Midfielder – He showed up on Arsenal’s book on July 31, 2007, another Academy graduate. He has appeared for the first team 6 times and scored 1 goal but that was against the Spuds so it counts as 1.5! He has had the unfortunate timing of trying to enter Arsenal’s midfield when they are considered among the top in the EPL. It looks like another loan spell for him but AW says he rates him highly and will ensure that he gets his opportunity to break into the first squad. I rank him as a 7/10 because of his excellent skills and success on loan.
Carl Jenkinson (19)-English and Finnish – right back – Our first signing of the summer, Carl signed a professional contract on June 08, 2011. We saw him play two games so far, both in the Asia Tour and he looked very solid for a 19 year old. He has been criticized as being a nobody, another diamond in the rough, and not what the fans wanted or expected but he is definitely an asset and in my opinion could replace Eboue as Sagna’s backup. I rate him very highly thanks to his mature and skilled start. He gets a 7/10.
We could go on but this article is about our most under-rated or over-rated players and hopefully it has hit the nail on the head.