25 Mar 2011 08:20:00
By Oliver Yew
Up until a few weeks ago Arsenal were still in four competitions and chasing an unprecedented quadruple. Fans were confident and optimistic about their chances of ending a six-year silverware drought.
Fast forward a few weeks, and after losing the League Cup final to Birmingham, getting knocked out of the Champions League by Barcelona and going out of the FA Cup to Manchester United, everything has changed. Fans are once again questioning Arsene Wenger’s transfer policy after yet another summer picking up bargains and up and coming stars.
Marouane Chamakh and experienced defender Sebastien Squillaci were brought in but they failed to capture the imagination of the fans. Throw in a completely untested young French defender and it is easy to see why Arsenal have failed to kick on from last season. But this is nothing new for the Gunners as this is Wenger’s way, but if they fail to land the Premier League that way will be thoroughly questioned.
IN: Marouane Chamakh (Bordeaux), Laurent Koscielny (Lorient), Sebastien Squillaci (Sevilla), Kyle Ebicilio (Feyenoord), Ryo Miyaichi (Chukyodai HS), Jens Lehmann (free agent)
OUT: Philippe Senderos (Fulham), Fran Merida (Atletico Madrid), Mikael Silvestre (Werder Bremen), William Gallas (Tottenham), Francis Coquelin (Lorient, loan), Eduardo (Shakhtar Donetsk), Sol Campbell (Newcastle), Sanchez Watt (Leeds, loan), Jay Simpson (Hull), Armand Traore (Juventus, loan)
From: Bordeaux
Fee: Free
Position: Forward
Appearances/Goals: 39/12
Chamakh has been a decent signing for the Gunners and at the start of the season it looked to be a masterstroke as the Moroccan seemed to add a different dimension to the forward line. Arsenal’s players were looking to get the ball into the box as they knew Chamakh would be trying to get onto the end of crosses. It seemed to be working as he racked up 11 goals in the first three months of the season. But after the return of Robin van Persie and a case of burn-out, the former Bordeaux star’s confidence took a knock and since the turn of the year he has struggled, scoring only one goal in 19 appearances.
Laurent Koscielny: B-
From: Lorient
Fee: £8.7 million
Position: Defender
Appearances/Goals: 36/3
Wenger gambled on the young Frenchman who only played one full season in France’s top flight before joining Arsenal in the summer. While he has been criticised for some rash tackles and a few costly errors, the centre-back has made a decent start to his Arsenal career. At times he was caught out by the physical nature of the Premier League but over time he has grown in stature and become accustomed to the challenge of the physical side of the English game. He is not the finished article and needs to work hard on his game to improve but a couple of good performances, including arguably his best performance in a red shirt, against Barcelona at the Emirates, has shown he has potential. After another full season under his belt he will be stronger and should end up being a good signing for the Gunners.
Sebastien Squillaci: D
From: Sevilla
Fee: £4m
Position: Defender
Appearances/Goals: 28/2
‘Arsene Wenger signs an experienced international defender.’ It was the sound all Arsenal fans wanted to here last summer, but Sebastien Squillaci has failed to win over the Gunners faithful. A number of errors and gaffes have littered his short career at the Emirates and only four clean sheets while he has been in the back four in 28 appearances tells its own story.
Others
Kyle Ebicilio: N/A
The skilful Dutch midfielder was signed from Feyenoord from under the noses of Chelsea in the summer. The 17-year-old has not been in Arsene Wenger’s squad this season but he is a star of Netherlands’ under-17 team and is another of Wenger’s works in progress.
Jens Lehmann: N/A
Wenger shocked everyone when he tempted his former goalkeeper out of retirement to ease his crisis in between the sticks last week. With Arsenal’s two first choice ‘keepers out of action the former Gunner was signed as cover for Manuel Almunia. The German made an appearance on the bench at West Brom last weekend and with Wojciech Szczesny and Lukasz Fabianski still out of action and Manuel Almunia looking as shaky as ever, you would not bet against Lehmann getting an opportunity before long.
Final Grade: C
Another traditional summer on the red side of north London as Wenger did not invest heavily in his squad. He picked up bargains and untested players to English football and once again it looks to have back-fired.
The same weaknesses have shown as Arsenal have fallen short in a number of competitions and injuries threaten to throw their title bid of track. A failure to invest properly in a goalkeeper, central defender and a striker capable of staying fit have hurt the Gunners as their season went from chasing a quadruple to being left only chasing the league title.
Arguably Arsenal’s squad is stronger than last year but it is not down to Wenger’s signings. The emergence of goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny and Jack Wilshere and the form of Johan Djourou have really boosted the Gunners. But as the wear and tear of the season hits squads up and down the country, they are, as usual, hit harder than most and Wenger’s reluctance to invest is exposed.
The Premier League trophy may still end up in north London but even if it does, it should not paper over the cracks that remain in the side. And fans will be hoping Wenger finally has a change in attitude and dusts down his cheque book to sign two or three quality players in the next transfer window. The financial situation at the Emirates may be looking very healthy but good accounts do not win you trophies.
Read the original post:
Transfer Report Card 2010-11: How good were Arsenal’s signings?