I went to the game against Hull, and because the game as a whole was dull as ****, from about 25 mins on, I decided I will just watch Alexis and just watching this guy is the worth the admission fee alone. The man is perpetual motion, his movement is unreal because he just never stands still, also moving and always wanting the ball. Some players hide from the game, but this guy is the exact opposit. Playing for a coach like Bielsa has clearly had an immense influence on Alexis because he has clearly learnt a lot on how to play without the ball, he presses the ball intelligently and his qualities on the ball goes wthout saying. He should be aiming for 30 goals plus this season, because he is clearly going play in nearly all games until the end of the season. Thank you Barca, thank you for being stupid enough to sell such a world class player.
Truly world class player. Wenger deserves credit for signing him. Having Sanchez in the team could be the one thing that attracts other players of his quality to come and join us.
I'm gutted we didn't re-sign Fabregas. But Maureen basically lucked out on the back of Wenger turning him down.
Which basically proves that Wenger is a moron. Anyway, back to Alexis, it really did not take a genius to work out that he was being restricted at Barca by having to play second fiddle to Messi, so it really was a no-brainer to sign him. His style of play was also tailor made for the PL.
And then proceeds to play Ozil out wide, while telling that world that he did not sign Fabregas because of Ozil.
Ozil plays out wide and drifts in though, as he did at Madrid. His best position is in the middle, but you can see why Wenger tries to accommodate him and Cazorla when they are both fit. That said, I think he make a bollocks decision not to re-sign Fabregas, especially given Wilshere and Ramsey's injury records.
On the very last day of the transfer market, when we were left sweating with the Bale to Madrid deal and at this point, our only signings were Flamini and Sanogo who we paid zilch for. Come on now. At the time, Ozil was a massive signing but we relied on an enormous slice of luck and besides, that transfer window of Summer 2013 was still quite poor because we didn't strengthen where we needed to -- it showed at the business end of the season when we tailed off in the Premier League. I will give him credit for Sanchez, though. That was a terrific signing. It's a shame he still didn't bring in the required quality for the spine of our team though. And once again, when you look at the pattern of how our season has gone, it is looking to be very bad judgement on our manager's part. Calling him a 'moron' may be a little harsh but negligent and irresponsible? Absolutely.
I agree that he's made some serious mistakes on the transfer front. Not signing a CB even on loan this season was a glaring error. Also we've needed a DM for several seasons now and it's unfathomable why he hasn't signed one. That said, you can't call him a moron and then say that Ozil and Sanchez are great signings.
I didn't call Wenger a moron. Nor did I say Ozil was a great signing, either. Well, not since he's set foot on the pitch in an Arsenal shirt. At first I thought he was but his performances overall & his clear lack of desire have left me bemused. He could still improve but there's no way anyone can possibly think he has justified the fee we paid for him, if we're going by his performances so far.
I was referring to Sanj calling him a Moron. But I still think Ozil is a great signing. Not as extrovert as Sanchez, but still has a massive impact on our games.
Sanchez has justified the fee already. He was pretty much the reason why we got through the Champions League qualifiers which is an extra £40m alone and his performances have been truly exceptional. Even when things aren't going his way, he still works hard and presses the opposition tirelessly. It is amazing to see. Ozil however has shown himself to be weak mentally & physically. In addition to this, he has gone missing too many times when we've needed our 'big' players to step up and raise their game. I am more than happy to give him time but needless to say, he has a lot to do to win me over.
Ozil has not been a great signing by any stretch of the imagination. He is a great player, and his initial impact was great, but after that three month spell, he has not been the player we expected and has not performed like he did for Madrid, and there are many reasons for that. He could still go on to become a great signing, but right now, especially when you consider the fee, he has been a let down. Sanchez was a great signing, no debate about that.
Ozil got 7 goals and 15 assists last season. Those stats rival any number ten at any of the other big clubs in England. It was his first season in the country, in the team, and he started to burn out later in the season, but he still had an influential season. He also played all of our FA Cup games except the draw with Wigan, scoring and making assists along the way. He's had an up and down time of it and has had some injury issues which haven't helped, particularly this season where he has missed a lot of games. But overall he's been a very good signing I think.
Use the statistics however you like, but when you observe his performances, you cannot surely think he has justified the money we forked out on him? Theoretically, if he left for pastures new at the end of this season in another league, the general consensus would be that his time in England was a failure. And it would be hard to disagree, if we're being honest. Do not kid yourself. Ozil has been average overall so far. He's had some bright performances here and there (which you could probably count on one hand) but he has not influenced enough matches a player of his calibre should have. If you do genuinely believe he's been a very good signing overall, that's your prerogative. But if that's the case, then our definitions of what constitutes a "very good signing" are world's apart.
Wenger deserves credit for signing the brilliant Sanchez. But on the other-hand should be called out for not signing Fabs and not replacing Vermaelen or a having a suitable DM. Give Wenger props when he does good and criticise him for when he makes mistakes
