Just when you thought Arsenal’s season couldn’t get any worse, the North London side was sent crashing out of the FA Cup by a Blackburn Rovers side, who spent all afternoon looking nothing more than ‘dirt-average’.
Beyond an organised defense, the Rovers demonstrated no quality, no endeavour or exertion moving forward. The fact that they were able to do this and still send the Gunners packing, is revealing. Blackburn’s only meaningful foray forward resulted in the game’s only goal. Arsenal on the other hand, had a plethora of corners and more than a few chances to put the game out of Blackburn’s reach.
They failed – and then some. Missed chances, bad decisions, poor crosses were the story of the Gunners afternoon. Those fans who felt that Arsenal didn’t do enough to strengthen this January may well feel that they’ve been proven right.
But this article does not seek to join the many out there that are concerned with berating Arsene Wenger, individual players or the team as a whole. It seeks to prevent Arsenal sliding back into it’s old ways.
Believe it or not, Arsenal have taken a few steps forward this season. It’s not easy to bully this midfield. So, whoever Arsene looks to bring in this summer, he should ensure that the player’s character is part of the evaluation process. No more. weak-willed, tackle-dodgers, who pull out of challenges and bounce of other players.
This brings me to The Metro‘s claims that Carlos Vela is set for a ‘shock return’ to the Emirates. The horror!
For me, Carlos Vela typifies the old Arsenal. One that shirks responsibility, favours style over substance and never seems to come up with the goods when needed. When I think of Vela, I’m reminded of a cheeky-chappy, who’s chipped goals were really rather lovely, but only really arrived during dead-rubbers. He’s not exactly the kind of player you’d bring off the bench to try and win a game, but isn’t that exactly what Arsenal need?
According to The Metro, Vela’s Real Sociedad contract has a £3.5m buy-back option written into it. The player himself has confirmed the option exists: “They have a clause to buy me back – you put that in the contract for a reason. I don’t know if anything will happen, it is out of my hands, but I know Arsenal have come to see my games.”
But surely bringing back a player who only scored 11 times in 3 years for Arsenal would be a mistake? Especially considering his not so great record in Spain.
What’s your take? Should Arsenal re-sign Carlos Vela?
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Never believe the Metro. Poor newspaper (its free too). They somehow form a report on a player tweet.
What a load of rubbish,Arsenal were stopped! Blackburn weren`t that means Blackburn defense were better on the day, Have you never heard the expression a miss is as good as a mile, well that also applies here, Rovers scored Arsenal didn`t,so that means their forwards were better as well, end of!
“For me, Carlos Vela typifies the old Arsenal. One that shirks responsibility, favours style over substance and never seems to come up with the goods when needed… He’s not exactly the kind of player you’d bring off the bench to try and win a game, but isn’t that exactly what Arsenal need?”
How often was he really given the chance? He was never given any responsibility to “shirk”! He was always superb in the league cup and was the main reason the youth team did so well in that competition, getting them through ties against PL opposition. Without him they would have had no bite in attack and wouldn’t have gone through so many rounds, it’s as simple as that. And what was his reward? Sitting on the bench while Arshavin took a spot up front and 10 minutes at the end of a game if he was lucky.
It’s no surprise to me that he’s impressing in Spain because they ARE giving him the chances and now his talent is shining through. He has his faults, but he was a youngster really at Arsenal and was poorly handled. I like Walcott, but Vela has 10x his footballing ability, and we had to suffer through 3 or 4 years when Theo was nowhere near 1st team level while Vela (once he had returned from loan) had to sit out the important matches, despite showing himself to be head and shoulders above the other young players at the time.