There’s this idea I’ve been entertaining for a while. It’s about young players and how they develop.
I bet you’re asking why you should care what it is.
Well smarty-pants, you will care after I reveal the pinpoint prognostications I made about our youngsters a few years ago:
When I first saw David Bentley play for the first team, everything in the background slipped out of focus. I had eyes only for the guy with the spiky rattail thing on his head. He was so brash, so stylish!
Yeah he had lines shaved into his eyebrows, but what of it?! He could lob goalkeepers from 30 yards and play those snazzy “I murked you by looking the other way, bruv!” passes.
I smoothed the goosebumps on my forearm and dared to wonder whether I was watching the promised one – the long-awaited English champion of the new Arsenal way. I didn’t want to burden him with expectation, but I was pretty sure he’d take over from Bergkamp in a couple of years.
Later there was the winger, Quincy Owusu-Abeyie. Already better than what we had in the first team 2005, he was an Overmars, Pires and Kanu smoothie. But ouch, baby! Someone added some spice to the mix because that boy was audacious, outrageous and downright paceous. Speedy enough to be the tracer that would light the way to our new home at the Emirates.
Arturo Lupoli was the best finisher I’d ever seen at his age, and so intelligent for a player so young. I had it his career mapped out in my head – allowing for injuries and adjustments he’d be getting 25 goals a season come 2008, no problem. I tell you, back in 2005 the future was so bright I got a tan off my crystal ball.
Don’t worry; this is going somewhere. Well, sort of.
I got a bit carried away and assumed that a couple of good performances in the Carling Cup augured a fine career. I mean, if that was how well they could play on their debuts then they could only improve from there, right?
Wrong! They’d all leave the club within a couple of years, and have since gone on to do not very much.
But to get to the point at long last – often when a young player first breaks into the first team and plays well, I believe we get a glimpse, not of what the guy is capable of producing every match thereafter, but what level he might be able to reach in a few years with luck, hard work and careful guidance.
Beyond having a fine education, I reckon one of the main reasons our teams have done so well in the League Cup is because they’ve known that there’s no shame in losing to a side with five or even ten more years of experience. And if a youngster happens be thrown into a Premier League lineup – hey, it’s his first day. Slip-ups can be excused, both by fans and teammates, and he should be talked through every step of the experience.
Add to that, a youngster playing in his first few games for the team often has no profile. People may have heard things about their possible loan moves or form for the reserves, but they won’t have the kind of detailed information about youngsters that they already know by heart about established first team players.
Youngsters are also desperate to impress. And when you combine that keenness with the spring in their step brought on by the knowledge that the match is relatively consequence-free, and that the other team probably doesn’t know much about them, you’ll get the exciting performances that we’re used to seeing from our youngsters.
This is where the manager steps in. When he’s allowed to make the decision, I think Arsène Wenger is the best around at knowing which players to bring forward, which to hold back, and which to cast the hell off.
Yes, David Bentley looked good in the few minutes he got for the first team, but got to thinking that he deserved a place ahead of our first-choice creative players. I imagine that he didn’t realise what kind of dedication would be needed to get to a level and maintain it. There’s an inevitable comedown to inconsistency after the high of the first few matches, and this is where players prove their worth.
You can be as cocksure as Bendtner fresh from a day at the salon, but what’s important is the maturity and intelligence to knuckle under when football becomes a grind. David Bentley had lots of skill and abundant swank, but he turned out to be a bit of a swanker.
Assuming you can read around the cracks on your smashed computer screens, I’d like to apply my half-baked thinking to our current young players. Take Aaron Ramsey. In the first months after he joined us he looked like a classy fighter. And then came the grind, with a dodgy homecoming against Cardiff and some inconsistent performances in early ‘09.
Two years ago he was just getting up to a good level when he stumbled into the wrong cave. And as a consequence his journey will be more difficult that it ever should have been. Here’s what we know though – he has outstanding potential and he has the makeup to overcome extreme adversity. At present he’s getting by, but before long he will take another step up. I’m sure of it.
How about Alex Song? At Charlton, during his first run of first team matches in England he looked like a creative midfielder with muscle. Back at Arsenal it seemed he was limited, but thankfully aware of it and kept his game simple. With patience, hard work and changing circumstances, the traits we saw at Charlton resurfaced this season, and he’s now a player who can affect both attack and defence.
duke
i think weve got a chance next year..
if we have a better summer than the last one..
MDGunner @ 9:14pm – Possibly the most intelligent of all your postings, I can find no fault with what you say at all. Well said
As long as the players stay, we will be the best team in the PL next season. Well…we are now but we will add the silverware next seasono. What we are looking at is a team that can be the best in the world. All the other teams have quite a few aging players, most of our players are not even in their prime as yet.
Blow wow!
If we keep all the players we currently have and get them to sign their contract extensions, get the rumoured signing of Poldi done and add maybe one more player (but that’s not a must, rather a wild card if Arsène identifies a player of top quality for the right price that will undoubtedly improve us) as well as the usual intake of talented youngster signings (like Oxo and Jenks last year) it will have been a fantastic summer in my opinion. But that’s in an ideal world. I fear that it won’t be that easy. Maybe someone will be looking for a new challenge, others might leave looking for more first team action while some will just be lured away by money calling. And should any of the cases happen, and I sincerely hope that they don’t, we will have to replace those players.
http://news.arseblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Arsenal.jpg
Im a staunch supporter of Wenger, and I absolutely love the feel good vibe thats returned to the club following the recent run. BUT, the true test will come in the summer. We HAVE to invest, our first X1 is undoubtedly a good side, but at the moment we are only playing one game a week. Next season, we are going to be playing 3 games a week for a month at a time, and its during that period when titles are won and lost.
Thats why I cannot reteriate enough, we HAVE to invest tin 3-4 solid players who can do a job. Van P will not be able to play 60-70 games next season, not with this being a Euros year, and its exactly because of this that makes the summer one of the most crucial in a long time. Get it right, invest in the right players, trim the squad in the right manner, get in a good pre season without to many injuries, and we’ll be challenging for the title.
Fail to tie Van p, Song, Walcott etc onto new deals, invest at the last minute in response to departures, and I think we will be back to square 1
Just what shade of purple is SAF’s nose exactly? Or would it be more rightly considered mauve?
Cheers, Passenal!
Irish, blood purple–a special color all Fergie’s own…
When watching the Wigan/Manure game the camera showed a close up at one stage, I swear it seemed to change color right in front of me!! Very creepy. Even more so in Hi-Def.
I’m going with ‘hint of port’.
It’s 7.30 and I’ve been awake for an hour.
Right, first of all, I’m not trying to scaremonger but I do want some of you guys to put my mind at ease because I’m confused.
http://www.goonersworld.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=21858&sid=ce18c09e41530051e14a7d34101baa22
Anyone got any info on this?
I don’t swallow it MGK.
I remember the miserable looking bastard though. I couldn’t stop laughing at his downturned mouth. The very picture of misery.
A good sign is how blatant he’s being, but I can’t think of any other positives.
“Dinner with great company”
I’m really confused because at face value this looks shit on various levels.
Right, I’ve done some more dtective work and hopefully this I think this is the truth
Squid Boy @TheSquidBoyLike
Robin follows this Famlan person, just so you know. So the dude must be a family friend. I think we’re okay, folks. You can breathe again.
Reading Aquid Boy’s timeline on Twitter, he seems to know the whole story.
https://twitter.com/?tw_e=screenname&tw_i=190945739017420800&tw_p=tweetembed#!/TheSquidBoyLike
Apologies for the scaremongering – wasn’t my intention just wanted my mind put at ease.
Oh Gawd. Now just watch as the press get hold of this and the media shitstorm enfolds.
I’m bored just thinking about it.
jonny, bob
Check out the Twitter link above. There seems to be a rational, perfectly harmless reason.
I’m sure if the media do start peddling this, RVP wan’t hesitate to discredit it.
won’t not wan’t – whatever word that is!
I’m sure that is the truth but why did he look so miserable at the match?
Just one of those faces maybe.
You always know a post that starts
“Im a staunch supporter of Wenger, and I absolutely love the feel good vibe thats returned to the club following the recent run.”
isn’t going to be worth reading.
I don’t know about you but I’ve never felt the need to reassure anyone how much I support the club and all of it’s staff. Isn’t that a given?
TRSB
What post is that?
Stop peddling fucking crap
Frank
I assume you’re talking to me. If so, read all of my posts again – hardly promoting the idea rather trying to discredit it / get more info to put my mind at ease hence my post at 8.56 and subsequent tweets.
If you still feel I’m peddling crap rather than updating ACLF’s on what is already doing the rounds practically everywhere else then apologies and, well, fuck you.
Heh! Morning Frank!
Like carpenteraaaaaaaa11
I am a devotee
of Tomáš Rosický
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Who’d have thunk it. Arsenal have a squad!
Brazil.
Show me a left back like Santos and I’ll show you a liar.Thanks finsbury for the videos.
OOU very nice post though I am a day late in reading it and very nice comments from most of the commentators.
commenters rather
I watched the City game again last night,without the nervous squirming that accompanies the live game.
I noticed a few things.
Firstly,how useless I am at analyzing a game whilst watching live.I was screaming at the TV for Santos to hold the LB position and stop thinking he was a fucking forward.Yet on a re-look He came on and vastly increased out attacking options.
And Rosicky was ten times better than I noticed first time.He is truly a magnificent player.
Oh balls! The wrong scousers won!
George
I really think Santos has been amazing for us. Never heard of the fucker and maybe he was only signed once Arsene felt Traore wasnt up to the task, but whatever, he is a top top player and a geezer too, judging by his comments about Balotelli.
How sweet that jonjon thinks there cannot possibly be any skullduggery involved in this country. I wish I was so naive. Must be wonderful to have a child like outlook on life!
Im a staunch supporter of Wenger, and I absolutely love the feel good vibe thats returned to the club following the recent run.But Wenger really has to start thinking like me.
We need an English CB ,a DM and a striker to cover for RVP .Also we must sign that Hazard lad.
We could fund this by selling the deadwood ,Arshavin ,Vela ,Diaby,Denilson ,Rosicky and Bendtner.
And as well we need a change of shape .I think 442.We alsays won stuff with that set up.
Oh and I forgot ,we need a playmaker as good as Fabregas.And AOC should start every game.
Santos is a major, MAJOR acquisition to the 1st team.
We could use a new goal keeper to George as I really don’t think this Szcezny fella will cut it in the long run.
There’s no sense denying that there is a lot of work to do this summer, however. Finding loans/sales or deciding to keep in the squad players out on loan this season, negotiations or decisions to sell players with one year left, strenghthening where needed or possible and managing all of this with typical fiscal constraints and squad rules. Very complicated with so many factors involved and each aspect influencing other decisions to try to end the summer with strength and balance in the squad and decent pre-season preparation despite Euros and Olympics. Takes a genius–luckily we have one.
Morning everyone!
I hope Arshavin comes back to us this summer. I think we could have done with his magic vs QPR. Next season he won’t be as concerned about playing infrequently as there isnt a Euros/WC to worry about.
Top player, we definitely should hang onto him.
Yo Paul N!
Who the feck do I want to fin the FA cup now? Such a pisser that the racist half of scouseland won today. Perhaps a chavs win with them finishing 6th?
Yea would like to see AA back at some point. I have to admit to being very disappointed in Chamakh and Park. Between the two of them this year, they have really made me appreciate NB52!
I wouldn’t go that far Irishgray!
http://aculturedleftfoot.wordpress.com/2012/04/14/arsene-on-good-technology-fact-dive-or-seven-types-of-ambiguity/
A lot later than originally intended but here’s a thought or two for today.
Dex, mi bredin! wah gwaan?
Limestone
Yeah there’s lots to do in the summer, but there’s still plenty to do now! We keep this winning run going and end the season on a high and then we tie down the captain, Theo and Alex. That will be a successful summer for me, any additions will be a brilliant bonus! I think 2 or 3 signings will arrive, but the new contracts are more pressing for me.
Irie Paul!