Experience Arsenal…inside out

That injury to Diaby during the Chelsea game is a big, big blow to this Arsenal team. One of the main reasons why we were dominating games until then was because we were dominating midfield and we were dominating midfield because we had a delicate mix of players in the centre of the field. Although the spotlight has always been on Cazorla from the beginning, the contribution from Diaby was far too much to ignore. For such a tall man with such long arms, it’s hard to comprehend how he dribbled the ball the way he did and made decisive turns to burst out and open spaces in midfield. That unpredictable nature and the physical presence will be sorely missed.

But it was always in the minds of all Arsenal fans that an injury to Diaby was waiting to happen. It always does. And it did. Now what?  Obviously Coquelin is the most obvious replacement. He’s a guy I trust, mostly because he is very mature for his age. But should he really be the guy who would slot right in?

Maybe, but I think it would only be temporary. Ramsey is a player who is booming with confidence. His performances in the last couple of games have been very eye-catching and he seems to be on course to prove his doubters wrong. Confession: I honestly thought Ramsey might have lost it after his injury. His injury was so similar to that of Eduardo’s that I could not help but predict the same fate for the Welshman. But as of right now, the lad is flying. But the question is- will Wenger continue to play him on the wings? He has been effective but I think Wenger could slot him  to directly replace Diaby, as he has more experience than Coquelin. We got far too many wingers at our disposal if we play Ramsey in there. With Ramsey on the wings, players like Walcott and Oxlade are forced to be on the bench, merely acting as impact subs.

But there was one more piece of good news that Arsenal fans got to savor and that was the return of the teen-sensation, Jack Wilshere(well no longer a teen, but I like to call him that). No one has any doubt that this boy is an absolute gem.  He recently got back to full training and even had his first proper match with the Under-21’s a couple of days back. Even Frimpong, who by the way is also back from injury, recently tweeted that it was as if Wilshere was never gone,when asked about Wilshere’s performances in training sessions.  But Wenger did say today that he will be very cautious to bring him into the Premier League games.

“Jack needs a few games, progressive build-up to get his body used again to competition, to shocks, to fights, but he is doing extremely well, the situation looks very good”

“We have to be cautious, not crazy, because of his talent you are always pushed in a situation where you would like to rush him back, and we have to resist that.The next match should be next week and he is working very hard.”

When this boy is back in our squad, get ready for some major surgery to happen in the midfield. One thing is for sure, Wilshere is not the kind of talent who will be put on the bench for too long. Sooner or later, he will claim his rightful place in the starting eleven. In any case, there is no doubt about Wilshere’s physical presence in midfield. He even gave Joey Barton a run for his money the last time he played against him. This is why, I believe there is no reason why Wilshere cannot continue what Diaby was doing for us until now which was to provide immense offensive burst and also be a physical presence in midfield.

So that’s been your future forecast for the week. Stay tuned for more.