Arsenal have put two European calamities aside to secure second spot in the Premier League table and booked their passage to the next round of the Capital One Cup after a feisty win over local rivals Tottenham Hotspur. As the latest round of international qualifiers & friendlies have ended, the Gunners are well poised to mount a proper tilt for multiple, major honors.
With the senior squad in a comfortable position, the focus has rightly turned to the Arsenal academy and the next generation of players coming through. Despite the emergence of Hector Bellerin & his rapid integration into the senior squad – the number of genuinely world-class players coming through the U21, U19 & U16 ranks has been reduced substantially.
Frans de Kat, Jan van Loon and particularly Andries Jonker were brought into the fold amidst much fanfare with an eye to radically improve the level of coaching & performance at Hale End after years of above average performances caused by neglect, lack of funds and ever constant pressure on Arsene Wenger & management to keep the club competitive in the Premier League & Europe.
London Colney and Hale End underwent major renovations & upgrades to player performance management, scouting, data gathering & injury rehabilitation with an eye to improve the academy’s output – in line with Arsene Wenger’s constant declarations of “finding internal solutions”.
Jack Wilshere & Kieran Gibbs are two other genuine senior squad converts, who sadly haven’t been able to nail down their spots in the starting XI due to multiple injury issues throughout their careers. Francis Coquelin has experienced multiple stints in & out of the team & a couple of loan spells – but is now one of the first names on the team sheet.
But with the exception of Alex Iwobi, Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Chuba Akpom (currently on loan at Hull City) along with German’s Serge Gnabry (currently on loan at West Bromwich Albion) & Gedion Zelalem (currently on loan at Rangers) – the academy’s ability to produce a steady stream of challengers to the senior squad is under intense scrutiny.
Despite five wins on the run, Arsenal’s U21 side are still only in the Premier League Division Two – a result of poor performances which led to their relegation from the top division. Jonker had irregular injuries, abrupt loan spells and plenty other reasons for the failure, while exits of many academy regulars was also a mitigating factor.
Hopefully a renewed focus on player management, along with the return of Liam Brady and a fresh multi-million-pound investment for a new player centre featuring advanced analytics systems, improved sleeping rooms, altitude chambers and other cutting edge innovations to be readied by 2017 will keep the Gunners ahead of the curve.
