Bleacher Report - Articles by Zshan

Where's The DESIRE, Arsenal?

Zshan — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 04:28:12 -0400

There has been a growing trend recently. Many of Arsenal’s young, unknown players who have one good season think they are suddenly bigger than the club. Then they hold the club ransom and surprisingly succeed. Respect of Arsenal as top European club has been falling, as it is no star player's dream to join Arsenal anymore. They could not even turn the heads of Brede Hangeland or Tim Cahill, while their own players have been openly flattered by the links of Barca, Madrid, and Milans, a certain Beyounce. Many of these clubs have been achieving less than Arsenal recently. Minor teams fancy a game against Arsenal.

Many pundits link Arsenal’s recent decline and "soft club status" to lack of experience and physical strength. I believe it’s more the lack of mental strength, resolve for the club to succeed, loyalty, and passion for Arsenal—or DESIRE as Wenger says.

Lack of passion for the club was imminent last season in all the games in which Wenger said that they did not really want it and did not show the DESIRE. I believe they lacked it in all of their games.

If the players did not really want it, then they do not deserve to be in there. I think Wenger has really turned Arsenal into a soft club with his defense of under-performing players, suspect transfer policy, and the soft talk of DESIRE.

Who is the person who fills players with venom and ferocity before a game? Who do young players look up to? Cesc Fabregas? Willaim Gallas? I am not so sure.

Their own players enter the field as if going for a daily jog. Wenger's initial success was mainly due to players like Tony Adams, Martin Keown, Thierry Henry, Patrick Viera, Dennis Bergkamp, etc., whose passion and desire could be felt easily. They do not have any such players now, as they are no longer demanding success from them. Rather they are "developing" them. There is more to developing than improving technical aspects. Moreover who will the players look up to in the team, and who is their role model? Bergkamp is no more an Arsenal player!

This is not really about leadership either, this is more about the self belief 18-year-olds and 35-year-olds have that they play for Arsenal, so they would be really good and have good backup in case they fail. They may not be that good, but confidence makes up for it.

Another contributing factor I think is the presence of a French-speaking clan in dressing room, and then there are "the others." This is really a negative environment as the squad should be cohesive and diverse in origin and age with the right amount of British players to bond the team with the club.

Departure of certain French and African players is key to balance off and on the field. I think it is time for their board and manger to show that they have to DESIRE to win as well, take this opportunity with scruff of the neck, and make difficult decisions. There is no doubt that Arsenal has a long-term plan, but do they really have a short-term plan?

Lack of DESIRE should not be defended. Players should be demanded of what they are paid for and the likes of Emmanuel Adebayor and Mathieu Flamini should be made examples for years to come. The aim should be to instill pride in players of being an Arsenal player and fear in the opponents facing them.

Arsenal is no lesser of a club and should be treated likewise. They have to be brave and decisive in the transfer market to restore the confidence of their own players and that of the footballing world that Arsenal is a top club.

This is not a call to spend like Real Madrid did. Arsenal has a crop of very talented players, but they think they are more talented than they really are, thus undermine the overall potential.

They need to invest in the right quality players to restore balance on and off the field (not necessarily big names, but players who can compliment the capabilities of the current squad), instill passion and DESIRE. They also need to sort some of their players’ heads straight or head them straight out, so that next year Song won’t ask for a transfer or undeserved pay-rise.

Arsenal really needs to move swiftly to fulfill its short term goals and win a major trophy convincingly, which they really can—without much fuss. Otherwise, it would be no use of a great stadium, sustainable structure, and paid debts if they are not considered a top European club.

I think Matthew Upson for starter is a good choice, not because he is the best defender in the world, but because he is an arsenal product and knows what the club really means! He has enough experience in EPL and has a point to prove following his prior departure from Arsenal, putting a firm stake in England’s World Cup team next year.

He should be able to instill calmness, passion, and loyalty toward the club and not take it for granted as many of players have been thinking. But they need more than players to clear this invisible wall which seems higher every season. Whoever they buy needs to be passionate for Arsenal and not see it as a stepping stone.

Maybe a psychiatrist should analyze potential transfers for any traces of greed and certain American pop stars…Cheers!

Wenger's Young Guns Should Copy Young Pep's Brilliant Barca

Zshan — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 06:04:12 -0400

Confession time: I’ve had this in my mind for long enough and current inactivity in Arsenal transfer speculations sector is driving me mad and delusional to explore territories unknown, so I seriously started to think and deliberately believe that Wenger’s Young Guns (WYG) should emulate Young Pep’s Brilliant Barca referred to as YPBB from hereafter.

Like any other Arsenal fan, I have a few ideas of my own of how we should play and ultimately…ahem ahem…who we should sign this summer etc. etc. What makes this analysis truly different from others is the application of a complicated scientific method known as COMPARISON... and some good old gut feeling.

Therefore, I am 98.53 percent sure, none of this is going to happen. If you are still interested… then it is one of those days!

On a serious note, my advocating of YPBB’s formation for WYG,s peaked because:

YPBB won a treble (Surprise!)
YPBB succeeded to beat English opposition that thrashed WYG very easily
YPBB achieved all this by playing attractive football that everyone in England deemed unsuccessful because WYG play such a game, supposedly
WYG failed to play the way they were supposed to play
I wonder if Wenger knows?
WYG personnel are too similar or even better than YPBB’s in their formation(Remember COMPARISON!)

On a more serious note:

It is my gut feeling for god sake!

The point is we should play more of 4-3-3 and less of 4-5-1 or 4-4-2 or whatever.

The back four are… just back four so that has to do very little with formation expect we need a good one this summer. I won’t name names but HANGELAND… sorry couldn’t resist… is the best for the job. Anyway the rest of 6 players make the real difference and a big one.

What YPBB do is that they have a trio of midfielders and a trio of forwards. Among the midfielders two are attacking and one is defensive but all are technically very sound so everything revolves around them.

They simply pass the ball to each other endlessly whilst moving forward, the players around them create space for themselves, swapping positions, going forward, tracking back inside the diamond to kick an odd ball and ultimately space is created, ball is passed to a forward, one of the midfielder moves in the box too, two cheeky touches and the tired opposition picks the ball out of the net.

Arsenal used to do this in their glory days but with different formation which was due to the presence exceptionally cool Bergkamp and two natural wingers in Pires and Ljunberg. It can be argued that WYG failings might arise from deficiency of one or two quality bodies but it is more down to asking the same from a different set of players.

It must be noted that WYG don’t have any natural winger OR two midfield enforcers OR players of Henry and Bergkamp quality in the way they played their roles. But WYG are asked to do the same things their predecessors used to do. Maybe they are not meant to do it.

Ironically, YPBB don’t have a natural winger, their midfield duo of Xavi and Iniesta would be termed soft in England yet they have conquered everything in their way with considerable ease and style. The secret to YPBB’ success includes:

Xavi who has a great pass, positional sense and is equally adept with or without the ball. Wait! this reminds me of someone…ahhhhh! Cesc Fabregas. No wonder they cannot play alongside in Spain because they are two similar.
Then they have Iniesta who can dribble and run with the ball out of a jigsaw puzzle and produce a killer pass or shot. Nasri did the same when moved inside the midfield and he was our best player over the two CL semi-final legs against Man. Utd. Rosicky and Arshavin can also play these roles.
YPBB have Eto, Henry, and Messi who are equally adept along the front line. While WYG forwards have been a dilemma to solve in terms of positions because there is no capable lone striker like Titi, there is no capable second striker like Bergkamp, Arshavin and Walcott have been deployed on wings to mixed results.

While Arshavin has had some success and Walcott failed to leave the wing, it is widely held belief that both can offer much more if given more freedom. Our forwards need support to operate and support thay will get.

We have Ade, RVP, Arshavin, Eduardo, Vela, Walcott, and Bendtner. A trio of any of these with some tuning of understanding in practice can be an explosive formula, maybe far more effective than YPBB.
Finally, they have a midfield enforcer, not brutal but a technical player in the mould of Yaya and Busquets. Song can be regarded our Keita but there is no Yaya, who we badly need.

These have been discussions that we need a bruiser or playmaker like Cana, Guttuso, Mbia, or Alonso but I honestly believe we can do with decent player who can go and do the job in an unfancied way like Barry, Toulalan, and of course Yaya Toure.

Frings is my pick though and a player who the speculators have bluntly ignored to link with WYG. So I speculate now and I am 1.47 percent sure he will be an Arsenal player in this life or afterlife! OR Cattermole anyone?

So some new innovations in practice, good knowledge of role being played, passion for the club, some good chemistry between players in midfield and attack can lead Wenger’s Young Guns(WYG) to glory.

As Wolfsburg front pair of Dzeko and Grafite indicated their friendship on and off the field led to their incredible goal exploits in BundesLiga, so I hope our players become Best Friends Forever (BFF) except Kolo Toure and William Gallas; I want them to be mean and hate each other.

After the incredible success of Young Pep’s Brilliant Barca(YPBB), I hope WYG shut their crap about playing dirty and do their job.

Moreover, I recommend to fantasize more as it kills time.

Wenger, Arshavin and Zenit Star In "From Russia With Love"

Zshan — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 16:21:42 -0500

From Russia with Love.

Stars: Arshavin, Zenit, Wenger.

Location: Multiple, Russia and England.

Scene 179

Arshavin: It would be a dream to play for Barcelona.

Wenger: Arsenal's transfer dealings don't take place in public!

Zenit: Why?

Wenger: It's not our way of doing things.

Zenit: Ohhhhhhhh!

Wenger: By the way Arshavin is overrated.

Arshavin: It would be a dream to play for Tottenham.

Wenger: We have the quality to challenge for the title.

Fabregas: Boss, I am hurt.

Arshavin: It would be a dream to play for Arsenal.

Wenger: Arshavin is exactly what Arsenal need.

Arshavin: Gotcha!

Zenit: He is worth £20m.

Wenger: Okay! Here's £11,!

Zenit: No. It's not enough!

Arshavin: I want to move to Arsenal to prove my worth.

Wenger: Take another million, that's it!

Zenit: Is this your final offer?

Wenger: This is my final offer.

Zenit: NO. Still not enough.

Arshavin's Agent: I am frustrated!

Arshavin: Don't worry. I'll pray to god.

Wenger: I am hopeful.

Zenit: He is worth £20m.

Wenger: £12.5m + add-ons = £15m. This is my offer.

Zenit: Are you sure?

Wenger: You will not hold me to ransom.

Arshavin's Agent: See, Zenit is "barbaric".

Zenit: But he is worth £20m!

Arshavin: I'll go on strike!

Zenit: We have an agreement!

Wenger: I don't know anything about it.

Zenit: Arshavin wants more money.

Arshavin: I have nothing to do with it. The clubs will decide.

Zenit: Arshavin, you are a liar!

Wenger: I am not close to signing anyone.

Zenit: He wants money, Wenger! Money, money, money.

Wenger: OK! I'll be quiet.

(Wenger sits quiet in the corner, disappointed and visibly broken. Arshavin and Zenit approach him with stealthy feet!)

Arshavin, Zenit: You've just been PUNKED! hahahahaha! You've just been PUNKED!

Wenger: I have signed Miguel Veloso and we have the quality in our squad.

Me: What rubbish am I writing! I need a nap, honestly. Sorry I've got to leave you with this..."thing?".

How Do Arsenal Utilise Denilson Effectively?

Zshan — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 17:13:54 -0400

The more I see Denilson in Arsenal, the more I am convinced he is not the defensive midfielder Arsenal need. However, he may be a lot more.

Denilson's ability of giving away fouls outside the box, coupled with his attacking exploits, means he is not really defensive. Moreover, his effective and consistent cutback crosses from the left into the box create a wonderful dilemma for Arsenal. Could he be an attacking partner for Fabregas?

I have analysed the positions he can be utilised in, but there are complications.

Defensive midfielder (4-4-2): In a more attacking 4-1-3-2, Denilson is not the kind of player to sit back like Flamini, he likes to attack and he does it lot better. Still a good tackler but gives away free kicks at dangerous positions (usually).

Midfielder(4-4-2): He can play alongside Fabregas as a play-making midfielder in a 4-4-2, but this would mean for Fabregas to share defensive responsibilities—but we know from last season what Fabregas can do when given the license to attack. So no.

Midfielder(4-5-1): In a 4-1-4-1 formation, I think Denilson can be most effective. It would need a defensive minded midfielder at the back (Alexandre Song will do), Denilson to share defensive and attacking duties and Fabregas to attack. However, this change would come at the cost of a forward. Feasible? You be the decider, but it is definitely worth a go in Champions League.

It is a tricky situation when a player shows another dimension and you start to think what if! For now Denilson is doing what he is told to do for Arsenal with some revelations but what if!

Have your say! What formation is best for Arsenal to make most out of its players?