By Matty Sadler
August 10 2016

With our 2016-17 pre-season programme over, and the season opener against Liverpool just around the corner Matt Sadler reviews how the Arsenal squad is shaping up, for what could be, the toughest season to date. So, how is our squad shaping up? Who has a point to prove? Who are the youngsters we need to watch out for? Where do we need to strengthen? Who needs to be shown the exit door? So, let’s start with the current squad.

Season Part 1

The grim reality is that, as things stand, our squad situation this season is near-identical to last season. The big difference is central midfield, once universally agreed as a weak area, but now our strongest position. We started the 2014-15 season with Aaron Ramsey, Jack Wilshere, Abou Diaby, Mikel Arteta, Mathieu Flamini and Francis Coquelin as our central midfield. Ramsey is pretty injury prone, Wilshere is even more injury prone, Diaby was never not injured, Arteta was increasingly injury prone and immobile, Flamini’s only attribute seemed to be his ability to look busy without actually doing anything, and Coquelin was closer to the exit door.

Over the course of the season Coquelin returned spectacularly to leapfrog the two old men, Santi Cazorla reinvented himself as a deep midfielder and we finally cut our losses with Diaby. Arteta and Flamini should’ve been dumped as well, but, for some reason, Arsene Wenger decided to gamble on them being adequate cover for Coquelin during the 2015-16 season. I mean, why not? Worth a gamble right? It was only THE BEST CHANCE WE’LL EVER GET TO WIN A LEAGUE TITLE! Anyway, that proved to be one of a number of failed gambles that season, but he eventually saw the light.

The excellent Mohamed Elneny was a bargain signing in January of that season and, this summer, after years of neglect, we finally spent big money on central midfield and made Granit Xhaka a long overdue marquee midfield signing. With Ramsey, Wilshere, Cazorla, Coquelin, Elneny and Xhaka as our central midfield, we now have possess genuine depth, versatility and, above all else, quality.

Central midfield, our first choice full backs being reliable, consistent performers, and Mesut Özil and Alexis still being the jewels in our crown, are about the only positives.

The centre forward position is a long running issue. Much like last season, Olivier Giroud is still our undisputed first choice, Danny Welbeck is out injured until early next year and our backup is sketchy to say the last. Last season we had frustrated right wing Theo Walcott trusted as the backup, and he failed miserably, while this season it looks like the inexperienced Chuba Akpom providing it, with Walcott also considered a reluctant option.

Centre Back Crisis

Centre back is an issue as well. As good as Laurent Koscielny is, he has his injury problems. Many, myself included, felt we should’ve signed Per Mertesacker’s successor last summer, and not doing so turned out to be a mistake. Gabriel failed to progress in his development last season as we might’ve expected, and Calum Chambers appears some way away from first team standard.

All of the above was before Mertesacker and Gabriel’s injuries, but those injuries have thrown us into a crisis. We looked set to start the season with 21 year old Chambers and 20 year old new signing Rob Holding, who has one season of Championship football under his belt, with 18 year old defensive midfielder-turned centre back Krystian Bielik providing the backup.

The “other winger” position, opposite Alexis, is one of the more interesting. We have a pile of players who can do good jobs out wide, but as I see it, we essentially have four players competing for that position. Young Alex Iwobi broke through last season at a time where we need a lift and impressed with his versatility, drive and maturity in possession.

Theo Walcott finds himself in a bad place, where after years and years of banging on about wanting to play upfront, he has failed miserably in the position and wants to return to the wing, but a starting position there is no guarantee either. The fans are pretty well united against him, but goals, assists and hard work will quickly get us back on side. Let’s see if he is up to the challenge.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has very much stalled in his development. He returned for pre-season strongly this summer, looking fit and sharp, but he did the same last summer and went on to have an awful season. He turns 23 this week and it really is time for him to starting delivering. Joel Campbell impressed at times last season with his work rate and quality passing and vision in the final third, scoring some good goals in the process, but he never really cemented the position. The “other winger” position is there for the taking, ready for one of these four to step up and take control.

There are a number of other players with points still to prove. At the moment Wilshere, despite his potential, is very much Diaby Mk. II, but he turns 25 in January and you have to say that, for the good of his football career, something has got to change.

Coquelin is really fired up by the Xhaka signing and won’t give up his spot without a fight. Kieran Gibbs has very much spent the last season or two as second choice and, turning 27 this season, if his situation doesn’t change it is hard to see him staying. Before his injury I felt Gabriel was one who could progress in his development and overtake Mertesacker. I call this the “Monreal 18 months to adapt to English football” theory. Chambers, having made such a great start to life at Arsenal, has since fallen out of favour and was probably set for a loan move, but this defensive injury crisis could hand him an opportunity.

Youngsters are always an exciting part of Arsenal, so who could be last season’s Iwobi or the season before’s Hector Bellerin? Akpom’s record at youth level for Arsenal and England is fantastic, and this summer, 4 goals in 5 goals meant 11 pre-season goals in total for us. Wenger said he wasn’t going out on loan last season, but Akpom chose to go on loan to the Championship himself, seeking more first team football. He played a lot but didn’t score consistently. It looks like he’ll be retained this season, and he is desperate to follow childhood best friend Iwobi into the first team. Now or never time for him.

Last summer’s youth signing Jeff Reine-Adelaide has impressed since joining and his promotion to the first team squad was confirmed this season. Tall, powerful and skilful, but raw and with a tendency to overcomplicate things, his potential is undoubted. At most big clubs you wouldn’t expect Holding to be thrown in at the deep end, but this is Arsenal and, of course, we’re in the midst of a centre back crisis, so we’ll soon find out what he can do. Wenger has also confirmed that Bielik, a central midfield signing in January 2015, will get first team chances at centre back this season, before deciding at Christmas whether he’ll go out on loan or not.

I feel most of us will agree that we have the makings of a good team here, with a blend of quality, experience and youth, but we’re still some way away from being considered a genuine title contenders. The key to getting from where we are now to where we claim to want to be lies in the transfer market...

End of Part 1

Part 2 Here