cfdh_edmundo
Maverick
- 30 December 2002
I think Man Utd and Arsenal are rivals, or at least were rivals prior to this. You look at the Premier League and the ages of the teams and areas of weaknesses etc, and I can't really see any team being as strong as Manchester City and I think it would take some sort of implosion or massive crisis for them not to win it. Having won the league last season they will have banished the element of fear (and unfamiliarity) they had last season which saw them crumble occasionally near the end of away games (eg Swansea, Chelsea, Sunderland all had late goals).
Then in my opinion you have a gap to Chelsea, who this summer signed a lot of players. If those players settle then they have on paper a strong squad, with strength in defence, midfield and maybe if either they sign Falcao or Torres rediscovers his form a strong attack. Then maybe they could just about push City for the title race. If the players dont settle or there are doubts about Di Matteo's handling of the squad then they could slip down a little.
Man Utd have strength in some areas (Vidic, Rooney the wingers) but that central midfield is even older this season. I really dont think Scholes has the stamina for a whole season, and the same is probably true of Giggs and Fletcher (given his medical condition). I dont really see a genuine ball winner in there, Phil Jones is a bit like John O'Shea he seems to be more of a defender who might be forced into playing out of position. I still have doubts about the goalkeeper and from the European games (and indeed before his injury around winter time) Lindergart looked a more stable keeper than De Gea. Without Van Persie I would probably expect Man Utd to finish 3rd, but if say Vidic got injured then if Arsenal had a good season they might have the capacity to catch them. I think if Van Persie signs and stays injury free they will have a proven goalscorer and one who can take the pressure off Rooney, so in games like the Blackburn at home game, they will have a quality striker who can win the game for them even if they drop Rooney.
I think selling Van Persie might make business sense for Arsenal, but its created a big weakness in the squad. Maybe Giroud will score goals, but Chamack and Park both had very good scoring records in France and neither have really succeeded at Arsenal - admittedly the latter seems to have been given no chance at all. It also looks like what Ushmanov said about the club lacking ambition is true. Van Persie is just the latest star that Arsenal have sold, if you think about the amount of money Wenger has recouped in transfer fees with the sales of Adebayor, Toure, Henry, Nasri, Clichy, Fabregas etc, there must be getting on for £200 million there. Some of it has been incramentally spent on players like Arshavin, Arteta, Mertesacker, but there hasnt been a stand out signing. Even if some money has gone to repay the stadium, there should still be enough money for Arsenal to make a big signing. Why dont they go in for a player like Falcao, or Leandro Damiao, or Cavani? I have a feeling Kronke is just using the club as a cash cow, it's pretty much what he did with his Denver teams. But the longer Arsenal keep selling stellar players and not replacing them with players of the same quality, the weaker the squad will become. Also, and it's an unfortunate thing to say, but not having these players could start to affect the global fanbase. It seems as though Arsenal are going backwards or at the very best case staying still, instead of competing with Man Utd for 3rd place (the last automatic CL group stage place) they are now being cast adrift into 4th, but other teams like Spurs, Liverpool, even Newcastle, these teams might get stronger and Arsenal could easily find themselves squeezed out of 4th place.
Then in my opinion you have a gap to Chelsea, who this summer signed a lot of players. If those players settle then they have on paper a strong squad, with strength in defence, midfield and maybe if either they sign Falcao or Torres rediscovers his form a strong attack. Then maybe they could just about push City for the title race. If the players dont settle or there are doubts about Di Matteo's handling of the squad then they could slip down a little.
Man Utd have strength in some areas (Vidic, Rooney the wingers) but that central midfield is even older this season. I really dont think Scholes has the stamina for a whole season, and the same is probably true of Giggs and Fletcher (given his medical condition). I dont really see a genuine ball winner in there, Phil Jones is a bit like John O'Shea he seems to be more of a defender who might be forced into playing out of position. I still have doubts about the goalkeeper and from the European games (and indeed before his injury around winter time) Lindergart looked a more stable keeper than De Gea. Without Van Persie I would probably expect Man Utd to finish 3rd, but if say Vidic got injured then if Arsenal had a good season they might have the capacity to catch them. I think if Van Persie signs and stays injury free they will have a proven goalscorer and one who can take the pressure off Rooney, so in games like the Blackburn at home game, they will have a quality striker who can win the game for them even if they drop Rooney.
I think selling Van Persie might make business sense for Arsenal, but its created a big weakness in the squad. Maybe Giroud will score goals, but Chamack and Park both had very good scoring records in France and neither have really succeeded at Arsenal - admittedly the latter seems to have been given no chance at all. It also looks like what Ushmanov said about the club lacking ambition is true. Van Persie is just the latest star that Arsenal have sold, if you think about the amount of money Wenger has recouped in transfer fees with the sales of Adebayor, Toure, Henry, Nasri, Clichy, Fabregas etc, there must be getting on for £200 million there. Some of it has been incramentally spent on players like Arshavin, Arteta, Mertesacker, but there hasnt been a stand out signing. Even if some money has gone to repay the stadium, there should still be enough money for Arsenal to make a big signing. Why dont they go in for a player like Falcao, or Leandro Damiao, or Cavani? I have a feeling Kronke is just using the club as a cash cow, it's pretty much what he did with his Denver teams. But the longer Arsenal keep selling stellar players and not replacing them with players of the same quality, the weaker the squad will become. Also, and it's an unfortunate thing to say, but not having these players could start to affect the global fanbase. It seems as though Arsenal are going backwards or at the very best case staying still, instead of competing with Man Utd for 3rd place (the last automatic CL group stage place) they are now being cast adrift into 4th, but other teams like Spurs, Liverpool, even Newcastle, these teams might get stronger and Arsenal could easily find themselves squeezed out of 4th place.
