Arsenal 22/23 - go to new thread

horsechoker

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I'm going to abandon the other thread and ask the mods lock it.

NO DISCUSSION OF SA ALLEGATIONS

Discuss the team, players, banter, jokes, gaffes, lego etc.


Any chance of top 4 for the arse?
 

SambaBoy

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I don't think there squad is deep enough to compete on both fronts in PL and Europe. They get rid of a number of players in January and ran out of steam towards the end of the window despite having no European football all season.

They've obviously brought in a lot of players but also a few have left so I think with the congestion period, world cup and possible injuries, I can't see them getting a top four position. Obviously they could be there or thereabouts in January and bring in a few more additions, or even this window. But I just think Arteta will struggle to balance the demands of both competitions this season and they will throw away a few games after a Thursday fixture.
 

Raw

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Jesus and Zinchenko are class signings. But they still need depth if they're to handle the extra burden of European games. Still time to get players in but if He Who Must Not Be Named isn't available then their midfield has taken a massive hit.
 

awop

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Sounds like RW cover plans are being shelved if we don't find the right target which is sensible. But, anything happens to Saka and our right side dies. Everything shift to Martinelli who is still growing into his role. It would be Pepe/Vieira coming in with very unpredictable results. I really hope we get at least one more body even on loan to avoid repeating last January mistake.
This and CM are the two obvious weakness in the squad but there is no excuses not to get maximum points in August before going to OT.

Also, Ben White looks good in pink.
 

Red the Bear

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I find it quite hard to see them reach top 4, I'll imagine it'll be europa again for them next season.

I wonder why they didn't go for conte when he was available and they had that terrible run of form.
 

SAFMUTD

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I'd say they'd be fighting with Spurs and us for the last top 4 place. With Spurs being fairly ahead of both of us.
 

bosnian_red

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Zinchenko I feel like will be a OK signing but not really stand out at anything, IMO just a decent player who benefitted from being part of Pep's system but isn't any sort of "top" player.
Jesus is a great signing unfortunately. Fabio Vieira seems kinda pointless, depth at right wing pretty much? They already have ESR and Odegaard who can be 10's or creative mids.

I don't really rate Arteta. Though they have backed him and they have had a decent window, mainly though Jesus. Their "front 4" and depth to that is good with Jesus, Nketiah, Saka, Martinelli, Vieira, Odegaard, ESR... Don't rate any of their deeper midfielders, and only rate Tierney as a defender (so Zinchenko not really much of a change there anyway). But with Arteta, I think they'll be capped ultimately this season, and I think their potential isn't as high as United/Spurs/Chelsea. So 5th or 6th is my bet. Though their attacking depth is far better than ours. Overall I'd guess it'll be relatively tight between 3-6, but I don't think they get in ahead of Ten Hag or Conte.
 

AltiUn

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I think they're comfortably ahead of Spurs, Arsenal and us.
Comfortably ahead of us, don't think they're comfortably ahead of Spurs or Arsenal at all.
 

phelans shorts

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I reckon they might get something of a rude awakening this season. The clouds regarding a certain player will be sitting over them, and the pressure to succeed with all the money spent the last couple of seasons will only intensify. Can definitely picture the wheels falling off.
 

AltiUn

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You wouldn't know we finished ahead on all three sides two out of the last three years reading this comments.
And completely irrelevant, that was 2 managers ago and a different team. The most important season was the one that just happened. Doesn’t matter how good we were in 2019.
 

Trex

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And completely irrelevant, that was 2 managers ago and a different team. The most important season was the one that just happened. Doesn’t matter how good we were in 2019.
Time will tell.
 

Offside

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Definitely being overhyped. Only did better than expected last season due to having no European football and they still bottled it. Can’t see how their signings have turned them a top 4 squad at all, not close. Their manager is hugely unconvincing too. I think their fans are just gassed at the fact they aren’t dreading a probable 8th place finish for the first time in a few years.
 

GoonerBear

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Good, a new thread. Let's talk about football.

So the squad is shaping up to look like this.

Ramsdale (Turner)

Tomiyasu (Cedric)
White (Saliba)
Gabriel (Holding)
Zinchenko (Tierney)

Partey (Elneny)
Xhaka (Lokonga)
Odegaard (Vieira)

Saka (Pepe)
Martinelli (Smith-Rowe)
Jesus (Nketiah)

Need to Leave
Leno
Runarson
Tavares
Bellerin
Mari
Torriera
Maitland-Niles
Nelson

The bolded is the areas I think are particularly weak. I think at most we might sign another midfielder and a wide player but that will depend on players leaving I'm sure.

Im optimistic this season. We've had a good pre season, players are looking sharp and I feel we've added well to the squad. I feel we'll be right in the race for top 4 with a fair wind.

Am I wrong to think like that? What's others opinions on the squad, and where do others see us as weak, Arsenal or non Arsenal fans (I'm expecting a few Arteta replies to this question).
 

Klopper76

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Pretty hard to tell where they'll end up in the top six (they won't be lower than that). They've improved in some areas and didn't finish far off of top four last season, but Spurs have improved and I don't think United will be as bad as they were last season.

If they don't get top four then I think they may decide to move on from Arteta. Seems like he's spent a fair bit of money.

I'm sure they'll have a better start than last season.
 

Powderfinger

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Good, a new thread. Let's talk about football.
I basically see it the same way as you GoonerBear.

I think effectively Saliba will be the backup for both CB spots and RB (maybe White plays RB if Tomi is out). The plan is likely to give the lion's share of minutes to our six good defenders and try to only use Holding or Cedric sporadically in lesser competitions. Nuno is very close to his Marseille loan. Overall, I think adding Zinchenko and Saliba will be just as transformative as adding Jesus. The team fell apart when the defense apart and the defense fell apart when we had to go past our best four guys last year. Saliba also just looks really really impressive - like he could realistically be our best defender by the middle of the year. I haven't seen a young CB with a higher ceiling in a long time.

Up front we really need another winger in my view. Not only do we not have great cover for Saka but we just need somebody who can do the same things as Saka and Martinelli in terms of playing outside and inside, stretching the defense vertically, contributing in the buildup and off the ball, etc. I like ESR but he is a different kind of player. I want somebody who can spell Saka and Martinelli and our basic tactical plan doesn't have to change. Pepe is definitely not that guy. Marquinhos could become that guy in time but I wouldn't want to rely on him heavily this year.

It's pretty clear that Jesus will be a huge improvement on Laca and what Auba gave us beforehand in the fall. Just how good he'll be I don't know but the bar is really low. We simply got awful awful play out of the CF position last year.

I think we are fine in midfield as long as Partey doesn't get suspended. Elneny isn't the ideal cover but its not the top priority for me. I think Odegaard will be a mainstay at right 8 and we'll see a rotation of players at the left 8 position, a lot of Xhaka but also a good amount of Vieira and maybe some ESR and some Sambi. I'm very excited to see what Vieira can do. Its frustrating that the injury he picked up on international duty has curtailed his pre-season.

Largely I think we have been done very good business this summer and are pretty ready to go. Adding the winger is important but it won't hurt to wait until late in the window.

We've never really seen what an Arteta team looks like when he has 15-16 players to choose from and rotate that are suitable for his system. We saw glimpses of it last year when he had 11 players that could play that kind of football and we played some great stuff in that stretch. So I'm optimistic about what this team can do as long as Partey remains an Arsenal player and we stay reasonably healthy.

All that said, the PL is an arms race right now and its very conceivable to me that Arsenal could improve quite a bit, get 73-77 points while also doing decently in cups, and still not make top four.
 
Last edited:

padr81

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I basically see it the same way as you GoonerBear.

I think effectively Saliba will be the backup for both CB spots and RB (maybe White plays RB if Tomi is out). The plan is likely to give the lion's share of minutes to our six good defenders and try to only use Holding or Cedric sporadically in lesser competitions. Nuno is very close to his Marseille loan. Overall, I think adding Zinchenko and Saliba will be just as transformative as adding Jesus. The team fell apart when the defense apart and the defense fell apart when we had to go past our best four guys last year. Saliba also just looks really really impressive - like he could realistically be our best defender by the middle of the year. I haven't seen a young CB with a higher ceiling in a long time.

Up front we really need another winger in my view. Not only do we not have great cover for Saka but we just need somebody who can do the same things as Saka and Martinelli in terms of playing outside and inside, stretching the defense vertically, contributing in the buildup and off the ball, etc. I like ESR but he is a different kind of player. I want somebody who can spell Saka and Martinelli and our basic tactical plan doesn't have to change. Pepe is definitely not that guy. Marquinhos could become that guy in time but I wouldn't want to rely on him heavily this year.

It's pretty clear that Jesus will be a huge improvement on Laca and what Auba gave us beforehand in the fall. Just how good he'll be I don't know but the bar is really low. We simply got awful awful play out of the CF position last year.

I think we are fine in midfield as long as Partey doesn't get suspended. Elneny isn't the ideal cover but its not the top priority for me. I think Odegaard will be a mainstay at right 8 and we'll see a rotation of players at the left 8 position, a lot of Xhaka but also a good amount of Vieira and maybe some ESR and some Sambi. I'm very excited to see what Vieira can do. Its frustrating that the injury he picked up on international duty has curtailed his pre-season.

Largely I think we have been done very good business this summer and are pretty ready to go. Adding the winger is important but it won't hurt to wait until late in the window.

We've never really seen what an Arteta team looks like when he has 15-16 players to choose from and rotate that are suitable for his system. We saw glimpses of it last year when he had 11 players that could play that kind of football and we played some great stuff in that stretch. So I'm optimistic about what this team can do as long as Partey remains an Arsenal player and we stay reasonably healthy.

All that said, the PL is an arms race right now and its very conceivable to me that Arsenal could improve quite a bit, get 73-77 points while also doing decently in cups, and still not make top four.
77 points would def get you in the top 4. The highest thats ever been needed was 76 (Liverpool over you guys with 74 or 75 iirc), the average is 72.
 

GoonerInPeace

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I dont understand the love for Chelsea, we just smacked them 4-0, yes its only a friendly but they may as well have been an MLS side. Its one thing to surrender league position to Man City and Liverpool. But if you think Chelsea are beneath finishing 6th then your not with it.

As for Arteta. Well he dealt with PEA in his own way. Lets see how ETH deals with Ronaldo. Thats a toxic bomb waiting to happen right there. I can only imagine the toxic energy Ronaldo will radiate when he has to travel to a European minnow for a europea league group match.

So despite all the criticism Arteta gets, he has build a cohesive unit. Which is more than can be said for present day Chelsea and Man United.
 

RedSky

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Arsenal duking it out for 6th. I'm sure that opinion will frustrate the Gunners on here but they just don't have the quality in the squad and I just don't see it with Arteta. It'll be another season where they don't really do anything.
 

the_cliff

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I dont understand the love for Chelsea, we just smacked them 4-0, yes its only a friendly but they may as well have been an MLS side. Its one thing to surrender league position to Man City and Liverpool. But if you think Chelsea are beneath finishing 6th then your not with it.

As for Arteta. Well he dealt with PEA in his own way. Lets see how ETH deals with Ronaldo. Thats a toxic bomb waiting to happen right there. I can only imagine the toxic energy Ronaldo will radiate when he has to travel to a European minnow for a europea league group match.

So despite all the criticism Arteta gets, he has build a cohesive unit. Which is more than can be said for present day Chelsea and Man United.
We beat Liverpool 4-0 too, they must be in the top 4 race as well, can see em finishing 6th..... They also lost to Salzburg...
In all seriousness, pre season is pre season, if you think you're going to have as easy a game against Chelsea in the league as the one you did in America, you're mad.

Back to the subject, I think they have a decent squad, the one thing I feel they're missing that the other top 6 teams have is a world class player. They don't have a player that I feel will drag them over the line in the way that Kane/Son/Sterling would for Chelsea and Spurs. Arsenal have a lot of potential but right now that's all it is, Potential.
I think Arsenal will end up 5th or 6th.
 

GoonerInPeace

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We beat Liverpool 4-0 too, they must be in the top 4 race as well, can see em finishing 6th..... They also lost to Salzburg...
In all seriousness, pre season is pre season, if you think you're going to have as easy a game against Chelsea in the league as the one you did in America, you're mad.

Back to the subject, I think they have a decent squad, the one thing I feel they're missing that the other top 6 teams have is a world class player. They don't have a player that I feel will drag them over the line in the way that Kane/Son/Sterling would for Chelsea and Spurs. Arsenal have a lot of potential but right now that's all it is, Potential.
I think Arsenal will end up 5th or 6th.
Yeah but we beat Chelsea's first team, not a team with 5 academy players starting

Whose your world class player? Still counting Ronaldo who none of the top teams want?
 

the_cliff

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Yeah but we beat Chelsea's first team, not a team with 5 academy players starting

Whose your world class player? Still counting Ronaldo who none of the top teams want?
I said at the end Arsenal will finish 5th or 6th, as will United....
 

tinfish

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I basically see it the same way as you GoonerBear.

I think effectively Saliba will be the backup for both CB spots and RB (maybe White plays RB if Tomi is out). The plan is likely to give the lion's share of minutes to our six good defenders and try to only use Holding or Cedric sporadically in lesser competitions. Nuno is very close to his Marseille loan. Overall, I think adding Zinchenko and Saliba will be just as transformative as adding Jesus. The team fell apart when the defense apart and the defense fell apart when we had to go past our best four guys last year. Saliba also just looks really really impressive - like he could realistically be our best defender by the middle of the year. I haven't seen a young CB with a higher ceiling in a long time.

Up front we really need another winger in my view. Not only do we not have great cover for Saka but we just need somebody who can do the same things as Saka and Martinelli in terms of playing outside and inside, stretching the defense vertically, contributing in the buildup and off the ball, etc. I like ESR but he is a different kind of player. I want somebody who can spell Saka and Martinelli and our basic tactical plan doesn't have to change. Pepe is definitely not that guy. Marquinhos could become that guy in time but I wouldn't want to rely on him heavily this year.

It's pretty clear that Jesus will be a huge improvement on Laca and what Auba gave us beforehand in the fall. Just how good he'll be I don't know but the bar is really low. We simply got awful awful play out of the CF position last year.

I think we are fine in midfield as long as Partey doesn't get suspended. Elneny isn't the ideal cover but its not the top priority for me. I think Odegaard will be a mainstay at right 8 and we'll see a rotation of players at the left 8 position, a lot of Xhaka but also a good amount of Vieira and maybe some ESR and some Sambi. I'm very excited to see what Vieira can do. Its frustrating that the injury he picked up on international duty has curtailed his pre-season.

Largely I think we have been done very good business this summer and are pretty ready to go. Adding the winger is important but it won't hurt to wait until late in the window.

We've never really seen what an Arteta team looks like when he has 15-16 players to choose from and rotate that are suitable for his system. We saw glimpses of it last year when he had 11 players that could play that kind of football and we played some great stuff in that stretch. So I'm optimistic about what this team can do as long as Partey remains an Arsenal player and we stay reasonably healthy.

All that said, the PL is an arms race right now and its very conceivable to me that Arsenal could improve quite a bit, get 73-77 points while also doing decently in cups, and still not make top four.

We are NOT ok in midfield. Either 'he who cannot be named' gets suspended or injured and the quality in the middle drops significantly. The backups are not good enough to handle a few games on the run. Vieira I still think is a pointless signing, we really need a beast of a DM as a top priority. After that we can look into a RW but I really hope Arteta instils some confidence into Pepe. Feel like he is more capable of doing a job than whoever our backup DM is.

If we get a top DM, I'd say we would be in with a fighting chance for top 4. Contrary to other opinons, I don't rate Chelsea this season and United I feel have left it a little late to bed in some decent signings. Regardless the top 6 is solidified once again this season without a doubt.
 

sglowrider

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Yeah but we beat Chelsea's first team, not a team with 5 academy players starting

Whose your world class player? Still counting Ronaldo who none of the top teams want?
I think the 3rd position is Arsenal's to lose. They have spent serious amounts the past two seasons -- with a squad that's 100% built to fit whatever Arteta's trying to play now. Anything outside the Top 4 has to be seen as a serious failure. But even then I bet Josh wont rid Arteta the teflon man if they fail to get in.

Chelsea seems to be in a mess and wouldn't surprise me if they fall out of the top 4. Spuds have strengthened.

I expect United to come in 5th or 6th due to this being ETH's first season and the lack of squad depth that plays to ETH's philosphy.
 

roonster09

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I dont understand the love for Chelsea, we just smacked them 4-0, yes its only a friendly but they may as well have been an MLS side. Its one thing to surrender league position to Man City and Liverpool. But if you think Chelsea are beneath finishing 6th then your not with it.

As for Arteta. Well he dealt with PEA in his own way. Lets see how ETH deals with Ronaldo. Thats a toxic bomb waiting to happen right there. I can only imagine the toxic energy Ronaldo will radiate when he has to travel to a European minnow for a europea league group match.

So despite all the criticism Arteta gets, he has build a cohesive unit. Which is more than can be said for present day Chelsea and Man United.
So not making top 4 for Arsenal is a failure? Or do you guys have excuses ready?
 

ThatsGreat

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Vieira was such a pointless signing. Could easily have got CM backup. Same thing last season with White when we already had Saliba. As things stand can't see Arsenal reaching top four. Could see us throwing all our eggs in the EL basket if CL is too far away.