JM goes on to say he blocked the Ba move to stop him linking with Ozil. http://www.express.co.uk/sport/foot...esut-Ozil-would-make-Arsenal-title-contenders
Just a striker away from a title challenge according to Jose, and he'd know, he coached Ozil. Great praise, and Wenger must have thought Ba was a cert, and was left immensely frustrated as he didn't have time to bring in another striker. He should have still acted FAR earlier on the striker front, but this shows he knows it's a clear & pressing need.
The big question is how much will Ozil's influence be over our team and how much better will our forward line perform with him behind them? Personally I think Walcott would get better but will Giroud? For us to challenge, Giroud will have to up a level to do this. He is good but we need a CF that can pull off something special when we need it. But for me the more important question is maintaining our consistency. To win the title we have to maintain a very good level of performace throughout the season. We can't go from a Villa to Spurs kind of performance. The Spurs performance was the kind of performance that could win us the title. We need to maintain our intensity, continuously close down and harry players when we aren't in possession and definately not over commit like we've done in the past. We seem to have learnt alot of leasons from the second half of last season and if we defend as a unit, I can see us being in the top 3.
TBF to Giroud if he maintains his start of the season form throughout that will be more than enough he has stepped up a level in terms of finishing, first touches, strength and hold up play. I guess it goes back to what you say on consistency. If he maintains his form then that is good enough (maybe even great)
He has had a really good start and his overall game has been benefical to us. But sometimes when you're struggling to breakdown the opposition, can Giroud pull something special out? Is he good enough to push us to being contenders? How good is he and how good are we making him? We will soon find out come christmas. But as i've mentioned before, Walcott could factor in more than Giroud. Walcott could outscore Giroud and even be up there with all the top scorers in the league. This is known as the Ozil effect.
According to John Cross of the Daily Mirror,Ozil was anything but a panic buy http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/mesut-ozil-transfer-how-arsenal-2248285
Although I agree we would be better with a TOP class striker I still think we could be successful with Giroud. The big Frenchman has improved alot technically and is hard working and effective. Of course I would have loved a World Class finisher like Suarez/Lewandowski but Bayern Munich have shown a TOP class midfield and a workhorse upftront can be an effective combination.
According to John Cross of the Daily Mirror,Ozil was anything but a panic buy http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/mesut-ozil-transfer-how-arsenal-2248285
From Mesut's agent and father, Mustafa, on Sky Sports: It just goes to show how important still having Wenger is. Further proof, should it be needed:
We all know that Wenger is a top coach, but he's too involved in the financial aspects of the club. Hopefully now he can put 100% into the coaching side of things and go back to the early days.
I think Giroud is going to surprise people. He was top scorer in France playing for Montpellier. This guy is no slouch. No doubt he is better this year. He has a great attitude and most people don't really say why they think he isn't a great striker, they just say he isn't. He is very similar to RVP but he has size and strength as well. He is better now than RVP was at the same age. I said somewhere else that he must be pinching himself. He now has the rest of the year with Ozil behind him to become a hero. If ever anyone got a gilt edged chance to be a superstar this is it; No pressure, no competition.
Well No I would'nt go that far. He does'nt have anywhere near the same level of technical skill as someone like RVP. You have to be crazy to think technically he's on that level. But.. He's big, powerful, hardworking and great in the air and has improved the technical side of his game since he arrived. And like Bayern Munich I think our midfield now has enough talent to get the most out of Girouds assets.
I like Giroud but he simply isn't in the same league as RVP in regards to skill. RVP has been unlucky early on in his career with injuries which has forced him to play for us less, also not forgetting we had better players back then. Giroud is more of a workhorse than a classy striker like RVP, who could fashion chances out of thin air. He literally carried us to 3rd place in the 2011/2012 season. Thankfully for Giroud, we now have our best midfield since the 07/08 team which will give him a lot of service, so it will be expected of him to score a lot of goals.
