There are an awful lot of people who know a lot about the intimate details of players salaries and transfer fees these days. Which is quite surprising given the wide divergence in the sums quoted by different people on the same subject. What surprises me – and it doesn’t at the same time – is the willingness with which these figures are lapped up, the speed with which an unsubstantiated comment becomes a fact. Just remember that before you quote anything, question how that person got the information, what is their source? Better still, ask what is their agenda for making it public or claiming that their information is right?
Plenty of advice is given to players, quite freely in these columns and by me as well. It was of no surprise to see headlines that told Johan Djourou to find another club, lots of people have been telling him to do so for the past twelve months. Even his national team coach is now joining in and you wonder if that is going to carry a tad more weight than a significant number of other peoples’ words.
Hitzfeld is, from a purely selfish point of view, understandably worried about the lack of matches in which his player participates. Having played 37 times in 2010/11, Djourou might have expected to reach a similar total in 2011/12, especially with the number of plaudits he received for his performances. The signing of Per Mertesacker would have signalled a significant obstacle to that but more than anything, the improvement and consistency of Laurent Koscielny presented the biggest blockage in his path. Koscielny made himself an automatic first choice.
It meant abits and pieces campaign for Djourou. Injuries stopped some opportunities and his obvious discomfort at right back precluded significant runs in the side when Bacary Sagna was missing. That was a step too far in his versatility; the competition for places in midfield, most noticeably the emergence of Francis Coquellin, and Alex Song’s continued fitness mean that Djourou is unlikely to be called upon in that position.
The question of whether to stay or go must rage through Djourou’s mind. He has received a good education at Arsenal but at the age of 25, surely his career demands that first team football on a regular basis be commanded if he is not to be left with regrets when the final curtain is called on his playing time?
But Djourou is a very modern problem. The rules that limit squad sizes mean that he is the type of player that clubs want to retain. Despite what is said of him, Djourou is not a slouch as his thirty or so international caps show. By the same token, he is going to find it hard to displace any of the three centre backs ahead of him on a regular basis such is the consistency of their form. Injuries offer opportunities but unless Johan is spectacular in his own game, he will inevitably be dropped. That is not a modern problem, football’s history is littered with similar players: a step above the journeyman but not able to quite take the next step themselves.
He is a good squad player to have though and this where he becomes a modern problem. As more money flows into the game, squads at the highest level become less threadbare. Quite often in the past, if you scratched below the surface, the substance of playing staff left a lot to be desired. In a lot of cases now, that is still the case. The grass though is greener on the other side; envious eyes are cast to Manchester as City set about signing anything that moves.
Arsenal cannot compile a squad using that much money, everyone accepts that. Well, aside from those who believe that a tubby Uzbek is the Second Coming even though like politicians, he makes the right noises out of power but when on the coalface? Different story.
With Football Manager or Championship Manager played to a startling-wide degree, player management is a simple game. Squad is unhappy at not playing just ignore them, they have a contract; tough, get over it. The real world is a lot different with agents, players and clubs all looking to move players to new clubs for sizeable fees and gold-gilted contracts. Obscure teams emerge from nowhere and a judicious phrase whispered in the right ear makes a superstar.
The squad player is not expected to be a diligent, hard-working player any more. He has to be a superstar in the making or better than the player replaced. If not, if a performance-level drops, a scapegoat is formed even if the player is nothing to do with the goal conceded or chance missed. The squad player does not have the chance to play themselves in over a game or two, more often than not they will have two performances consecutively and then spells on the sidelines until a minor cup comes along.
No chance that those weeks of inactivity will be borne in mind. Years ago, a bad performance (or even an average one) from the ‘reserve’ would be tolerated, forgiven with a good performance in the future. That was the norm although criticism could be sustained. Now condemnation is instant, forgiveness noticeable by its absence; redemption just does not seem possible.
The footballing authorities are to blame for that. Without a competitive reserve league, players lack match time as preparation. It means that they are moved from months on the training ground into a competitive match environment. Even with the best will in the world, the training pitches do not – and can never – replicated a match intensity. Yet players are expected to be instantly ready for this scenario. Moves are being made to rectify that but the focus on the first team is so intense that forward planning by officialdom is utterly forgotten beyond those spheres.
For players such as Djourou it brings on a unrelenting criticism that is not justifiable in the long term. All of the talk of squads is a smokescreen: it’s the first XI or nothing.
’til Tomorrow.
Aman | May 28, 2012 at 10:18 pm
Your reaction is your issue – you expect the worst so you only notice his faults. I could name a number of faults from certain fan favourites that regularly go unnoticed. But let’s just agree to disagree. We can’t all see things the same way.
Lew 1234.
That is about the strength of it
dupsffokcuf
I don’t think Kalou is a bad player to quote Jack Wilshere he is decent but Arsenal need more then decent besides we already have our slightly uncoordinated couldn’t hit a barn door with a banjo Ivorian space in the squad taken up by Gervinho
Djourou is not going anywhere. He is quite happy to be a squad player at Arsenal. In fact, he is more likely to be pushed than to jump. He together with Senderos was supposed to be the future center half pairing. It did not quite work out for both of them, but Djourou is still at the club due to his better mental attitude as well as soft skills (think about his podcast at arsenal.com).
I think he is one of the players for whom the quality/salary relationship is not quite right. But I would link to be proved wrong by him.
Was a sad day when I finally admitted it to myself but still think we try.
beg to differ Passenal, I rarely expect the worst from life or any of our players but when someone does the same thing over & over & over again he kind of forces one’s arm…don’t ya think?…oh yeah, u don’t…..agreed to disagree.
Yes Lew1234,We do And our efforts surpassed all the other teams who also tried.
now Big Phil…I liked & always felt he was instinctively a CB. I was quite sad that his retiring kryptonite stole his will to fight in red & white.
He had more urgency to his game
CORR..his now-retiring kryptonite…
think djorou qualifies has a home grown player. allows us to get another foreigner into the 25 member squad
Don’t agree there George, think Utd are the ones who deserve that for the want of a better word, prize. Winning what they have over the last few years against a free spending Chelsea and lately City with the millstone of the Glazers around their neck sucking as much as £75m pounds a year in interest out of the club has been a testament to Ferguson’s management skills. (I need a shower after writing that). We would be a very close second. (My opinion only)
But they just got the big spending in first .
They pay £250k pw to a player.
They were paying £30 million for players 10 years ago.
Big difference though George is that they can afford to pay £200k pw to one player or £30m for a player 10 years ago through their own resources no Russian Oil tycoons or Middle Eastern Emirates need to bale them out a £100m every year (even with the Glazers interest bill). They earn all the money they spend like ourselves.
The Mirror says Kalou is in talks with Schalke
http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/chelseas-salomon-kalou-is-set-to-sign-851663
yes I agree .
But you cant ignore the vast sums they have paid over the years to keep winning,
And I have no problem with that.
I just don’t think the biggest club in the world ,dominating its own domestic league,is some sort of great management.
Neither would I before the Glazers but £75m a year in interest and constraints in spending (years ago if Barca had destroyed Utd Ferguson would have spend the equivalent of 100m’s) but its apples and oranges I suppose.
Djourou’s case is a tricky one. He may be a squad player for the Arsenal but might make it to the first team of a club which is a step below. First team football could help him make a few tweaks to improve his game.
Should he stay at the Arsenal? That would depend on his priorities and risk appetite – stay at a big club but risk being at the same level as a result of a lack of playing time or move to a lesser club which would give him more playing time and maybe improve sufficiently to get back to a top club as a top CB. Club football or international football? Being low down in the pecking order for both club and country will be hard to take.
As an Arsenal fan, I’d don’t mind seeing him at 3rd or 4th choice. I would like to see him taken as first choice against less dangerous opposition – but it will be hard given that league is extremely competitive and we had very less breathing space in the last few years.
It seems that Djourou has many followers in Arsenal from his eight years of playing for the club, which must be worth something.
To reach the middle of his career he has had many opportunities in that time to prove himself at the club and it is unfortunate that he has not persuaded even his biggest fans that he is anything more than a squad player.
He is tall and athletic possessing what many call ‘a lot to offer’, so it is not surprising that he and his Swiss coach want him to be part of a team that can offer him regular first team action.
I personally would like to see him take up the challenge. It would be better for him in getting more games and it would be better for Arsenal as the statistics tell us we are likely to win more matches if he does not play for us.
Since we have the ideal CB scenario for the first time in a long time, I hope it doesn’t change. 4 now experienced campaigners all with potential to become first choice, 2 currently rated as such and said (by us) to be the best pairing in the EPL, 1 player in his prime arguably very slightly behind, and Djourou taking up the rear but by such small degrees it hardly warrants comment. For Djourou it couldn’t be better performing in such company. I’m sure it has given him confidence for his country too.
Apparently “the government has altered the definition of what is a “hot” pasty”.
So there it is. And Ginsters are one of the sponsers of the England Football team.
What a load of VAT.
http://aculturedleftfoot.wordpress.com/2012/05/29/fifth-is-the-new-third-transfer-giggles/
Today’s cogitation