Patrick Vieira. Emmanuel Petit. Gilberto Silva. Cesc Fabregas.
Players who can be considered as great players for Arsenal, and impressive midfielders who stamped their authority on games week after week.
However, right now, do Arsenal have a midfielder of that ilk? Are any of Aaron Ramsey, Granit Xhaka, Francis Coquelin, Mohamed Elneny and Satnit Cazorla ever going to live up to those expectations?
The answer, judging by each player’s current form, is no.
Xhaka is probably the most similar player we have to Vieira, Petit and Gilberto, in that he’s a big guy who likes to defend, can tackle, and can play a 10 yard pass or ping it from one side of the field to another on a sixpence.
However, it would be fair to say that the new recruit hasn’t quite lived up to expectations so far. Yes, there have been a few displays where he has absolutely ran the middle of the park, but those came against the likes of Sunderland, and Swansea. He is yet to show that level of performance in a big game, and I think he can fairly be accused of under-performing against higher-placed opposition.
He’s sometimes rash, as seen by his red card against Burnley where he flew in with both feet off the ground and studs up and then looked perplexed when the referee sent him off. He can be a bit slow to react when the other team are on the counter as he seems to jog back a lot of the time, and although we haven’t been punished so far, when we play the likes of Bayern Munic, if he isn’t workng hard to get back in front of his defenders, Arsenal will be punished. But, it is his first season in the Premier League, he is still getting adjusted. I think it’s important as well to consider that he hasn’t really had the opportunity to build a relationship with someone in the middle of the park yet, due to injuries, suspensions, and rotation. Despite this, he has shown enough for us fans to think “Okay, we might just have a player in there somewhere.”
Coquelin is also similar to Vieira, Petit, and Gilberto in that he LOVES a tackle. However, where the former Gunners stars tackled with authority, cutting off passing lanes before playing the simple pass the majority of the time, Coquelin, does not. He flies in to tackles, often risking injury, he charges around the pitch like a headless chicken, chasing the ball with little thought to keeping the team’s shape, and overall, he just looks clumsy.
In spite of all his shortfalls, Coquelin is an invaluable member of Arsenal’s squad. His passion for the club and his passion for the game are rivalled by few. How many times have we seen him celebrate a goal either by jumping six feet in the air, or screaming so hard it looks like he might pop a vein in his neck?
He’s been at the club a long time, so has the Arsenal way of doing things ingrained in him which is vital when youngsters join the first team. He seems like a nice guy and is seemingly liked by all the players. On the pitch, he does indeed have his limitations, but although he is brash and often mindless, it does actually come off a large majority of the time. He has put in a series of impressive displays over the last few weeks, and in all fairness to him, he has the capability to be a solid second choice midfielder but to say that he deserves to start week in, week out, for Arsenal, is wrong.
Ramsey splits the Arsenal fanbase in half like no other player I’ve ever seen. Some love him, some hate him. Those that love him still have the fond memories of the 13-14 season in their minds, and the performances he put in for Wales over the summer.
However, those that hate him, have memories of, well, this season! He has failed to produce displays even close to those of the 13-14 season, when he genuinely looked world-class. Since then, he seems to have over-complicated his game, trying these audacious flicks and shots and passes when they’re not the best thing to do.
He said that the reason behind his impressive form was that Wenger told him to “keep it simple.” He really hasn’t played anywhere near to the level we expect of him over the last few months. But, in truth, the last couple of games prior to the Watford display showed us a different Ramsey. He seemed to be comfortable being next to Xhaka in the pivot, benefitting from the knowledge that there was someone to cover him defensively when he pushed up. The duo’s display against Sunderland comes to mind, as does his lovely Rabona cross against Burnley to Olivier Giroud which would’ve produced a spectacular goal had it not been cut out. If Ramsey can get fit and strike up a partnership with Xhaka, and re-produce his 13-14 form, there is no reason to believe that Arsenal couldn’t have one of the most formidable midfields in world football.
Cazorla, whilst obviously a brilliant player actually has to be fit from time to time. Yes, it’s not his fault and Arsenal have coped pretty well without him, so much so I think his injuries may have walked him out of the Arsenal starting XI even when fit.
Reports emerged last week that the club were extending his contract by a further year, but I think this may just be to secure a fair price for him in the summer. With Xhaka and Ramsey hopefully securing the starting roles in the pivot and with Coquelin and Elneny as back ups, added to the fact that Jack Wilshere will return in the summer and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s emergence as a possible central player, an ageing Cazorla might be tempted to go back to Spain for a few years before either moving to the MLS or to China.
The club would probably sell him for around £20-25 million in the current market. Whilst it would be sad to see him go, as he has been a brilliant servant to the club, on and off the pitch, I think his time at Arsenal may be shorter than most people anticipate.
So, when asked the question “where does the Arsenal midfield go from here?”, I think the answer is to stick with Xhaka and Ramsey for this season, and then bring in Jack Wilshere and drop Ramsey in the summer.
Xhaka and Ramsey bring a nice balance to the midfield when they’re both on song, and with time, they can form a dangerous partnership. However, if they’re not performing well, it can be sometimes a detriment to the team to try and shoehorn them in.
Wilshere has shown that he can play brilliantly in the pivot role as that’s where he plays for Bournemouth. He’s excelled this season because he knows that he has the trust of his manager and the freedom to roam around, with the comfort of having someone to cover him whilst he gets back into position.
As long as he stays injury free, the prospect of Arsenal having Xhaka, Ramsey, Wilshere, Coquelin, Elneny, and hopefully the Ox as their central midfielders, well, to be honest, should be enough to scare any team in the world.
