What Granit said after the debacle against Newcastle sounded like a lack of trust into Arsenal project. Maybe Arteta / Edu may want to go ahead.
That’s why signed Vieira and now want Lisandro Martinez. Both can do (maybe better) what Arteta demanded to Xhaka as n.8. Lisandro is very similar to Xhaka when has the ball. The way he treats, way he makes long balls, looks very similar.
Both could upgrade the left side of the team in terms of vision, passing, agility, mobility.
Granit can get the fuck out. He’s lucky he had a rookie coach talk him into taking a pass on Hertha so he could stay here and have the privilege of lowering the collective IQ and talent level of our midfield for another season.
A lack of trust? Don’t make me laugh. The club haven’t finished in CL places since Mr. Housekeys rolled up and he thinks he’s not part of that?
I cannot wait to be rid of him.
wrt Xhaka being replaced or dropped I’ll believe it when I see it
One of the aspects of the doc i’m looking to is his interaction with the squad and manager after Newcastle
One thing is certain and that’s if we sign Lisandro, I don’t think it will be for one place specifically.
He looks like he has a really good technical level that I think he can play three positions; CB, LB & a DM. Not sure what Mikel has in mind for him but I like that you have a guy that will be solid across the defensive line by default and also has scope of shuffling into the midfield if need be whilst still (I think) doing a worthy job.
I like this transfer a lot for a few reasons;
1). We have valid cover across the backline should someone drop out without it affecting us too badly.
2). Also offers great cover for the deep defensive midfielder, without much of a drop off in quality again.
3). On the contingency that we do indeed sign Tielemans, we then have a full deck of players that can be fully linked from back to front and having the firepower up top to bag goals.
I can’t see Martinez coming in and being a starter straight away. I can see him initially providing competition for Gabriel at CB and possibly cover at LB. The positive from this signing is that we would have two strong ball playing CBs in Martinez and White, with Gabriel being a more physical presence, and I assume Saliba would fall into this category as well. Gabriel and White compliment each other because of their different skill sets, but I could see Martinez becoming first choice in the future. Either way, we would have 4 strong CB options next season.
I’m a little bit surprised that you’ve said this guy, a CB by trade, could come in and start ahead of Tierney, who is our first choice LB.
Think of Tomiyasu.
Didnt he primarily play as RB in Italy though?
I meant as roles. Tomiyasu doesn’t play like a traditional full back. He doesn’t overlap often, he often tucks in and becomes an extra midfielder.
Lisandro can do the same on the left.
The main difference in those 2 comparisons being that Tomiyasu was playing as RB and bought as a RB.
Martinez plays as a CB, hes not going to come in and displace our 1st choice LB back Id suspect.
We are interested in him because he can play there though, plus his arrival will most likely mean Nuno(a left back) will be allowed to leave.
The 24-year-old, who is said to be keen on joining Arteta’s side, would also provide cover at left-back for Kieran Tierney, similar to how Takehiro Tomiyasu is also able to play both positions on the right side of defence.
A deal would increase the likelihood of a loan for Nuno Tavares,
Oh of course, a versatile player is worth his weight in gold, just that you wrote he probably starts in front of Tierney if he was to arrive here.
Yes. Because for what Tierney was tasked to do last season, Lisandro is a better fit.
Hmmmm
OK then
Do you not think Tierney’s role was different last season?
He used to be our main outlet from the left in previous seasons and we relied heavily on his crosses, don’t think that has been the case this season, probably a big reason(along with his injuries) why his form dropped.
I think he will be used the same way
I think we play differently on the right and the left side.
The left side we get forward, the right side is almost inverted and sits more centrally with possesion.
Most of our attacking play goes down the left.
Yeah last summer they deliberately sought out an attacking LB to serve as back up. One thing I love about KT is his aggressiveness in getting the opposition byline and taking people on.
Would really dislike fully replicating Pep’s City system, the barstard version will never be as good or efficient with Pep.
And now he is most likely leaving.