Yesterday in my post-match report I wrote about my uncomfortability with Alex Song surging forward consistently in matches and leaving the back four vulnerable to counterattack. And many of you out there agree. Le Boss yesterday finally addressed the issue directly stating:
“The teams close us down so much high up because they know we play through the middle,” .... “I push my midfielders a bit up at the start to give us more room to build up the game....“When you come to the ball we are always under pressure, so Song is a bit naturally high up because I want him high up....“I am comfortable with that sometimes it leaves us open in the middle of the park. We want to play in the other half of the pitch and, therefore, we have to push our opponents back....“But my philosophy is not to be in trouble, but to fool the opponent into trouble.”
Well - there you go. Wenger wants an extra midfielder pressing high up to help spread out the defensive congestion that is often in the midfield. Teams know that our short-passing game means that they have to either plug the middle, kick us off the pitch, or sit behind the ball in the final third to stop us. Sometimes they try a combination of all three. Our options in responding are limited because of the type of players we have and the playing philosophy of our coach. Arsenal are not going to beat a midfield traffic jam by booting up the long ball. And that's fine by me.
The drawback to this style of play has been rather obvious and that is...we get caught on the counter attack. While Alex is forward, Denilson or Jack or even Cesc stays back to help cover a fast break. Our full backs are speedy and get back as fast as they can too, but they are as far forward at times as Song. Denilson at times doesn't get out of third gear tracking back and Jack is still learning his defensive trade. And it seems a waste to me having Cesc have to track back as his vision should be used to be creating in the final third in the first place.
Where does that leave us then? I think it really comes down to taking care of the ball. We suffer most on a poor passing day - leaving us susceptible to interceptions and fast breaks. If an opponent gets all the way down to the goal, our center backs are on their own. Sometimes Song et al do make it back in time to help but have fouled at times attempting to do so conceding a free kick which is also a weak area for us.
It's ever so important now that Song have a good day of passing. That Denilson and Jack fight the urge to go forward as far as Alex and read the game anticipating a possible interception or at least push the opponents out wide to the sideline - not allowing them to flow through the middle. These are our options as I see it. I think the other side to Wenger's philosophy coin is that the offense score efficiently to make up for the exposure at the back. At halftime on Saturday, I think we can agree that the score could have easily been 3 - 1 or even 4-1. Our offense can be breathtaking, but it also can be wasteful. Waste Not - Want Not. I think Le Boss would agree with that idiom - he probably has it stitched on his pillowcases. What person with a Masters Degree in Economics wouldn't? All in all, I'm glad Wenger explained things. I guess I'll have to quit yelling at Song through the television.
Team news is that Vermie has been placed in a protective boot and again is not expected back until after the New Year. I have no idea if the fact he is wearing this boot is a good or bad sign. Many on Twitter seem to think it's a bad thing. My only thought is that it has to be better than surgery. With Koz out for three weeks with a concussion, we need as many center back options as possible. Which leads me to wonder if Reserve Squadder Havard Nordveit might be used as a back up. Wenger doesn't want to push Djourou too much in order to avoid any small tugs and pulls, so other than Song, who is going to fill in? He doesn't have to play right away - not in the next three matches anyway. But his presence on the bench would be warranted. He was recently spotlighted on the official site. Coincidence? I think not.
Course, there is the school of thought that our center back woes will be fixed in January when the window opens. Wenger has stated that he is not bringing in any new players because he has no room in the squad. Twitter and the Arsenal-blogoshere has been full of folks thinking that Wenger is bluffing to reduce the possibility of inflating the market. He is a wily coyote, we all know that. But who would he get rid of? The easiest answer would be Almunia. He is still unable to fully extend his elbow even after playing a Reserves game, so he seems a bit like dead weight to me. Perhaps I'm being unduly callous but I can't believe he's happy now either. The problem is that if Wenger did try and loan him out or boot him out, who's going to want a one-armed man/goalie?
The last bit for today is about Mr. Super Samir who has been voted EA Sports Player of the Month. A well-earned recongition for him. Congratulations! The other interesting article about Sammy is that Sagna asserts he is a hit in the locker room. This to me is interesting news considering that Gallas wouldn't speak to Samir for a year and conversely, Sam wouldn't shake his hand at the beginning of the Spuds match. I guess if you're not a moody, gum-chewing centreback, you're okay with with Sammy. The article made me chuckle a bit.
That's it for today. Remember we have a big Champions League on Wednesday. I'll be back later to preview that. Until then, continue to enjoy being on top Gooners! Take care.
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