Arsenal: Still missing pieces in the jigsaw

The typical end-of the season flourish meant that St.Totteringhams day did get celebrated this year after all, just that it took much longer than Gooners hoped for. A look back at what was a topsy-turvy ride for the club, the coach and its fans.

Season Overview

In comparison to 2011-12 – Arsenal collected more points, conceded lesser goals, finished only 5 points off runners-up Manchester City (16 lesser than last time) and all of this without THAT devastating left foot that scored 37 goals last term. Of course, it is not possible to ignore the fact that Arsenal finished one place worse off than last year. So, which set of stat speaks the truth? Did Arsenal have a better or worse season this year as compared to last?

The Good

Arsenal finished the season with the second best defense in the league conceding only 37 goals. This number seems all the more significant when compared against last year’s staggering number of 49! Steve Bould turned out to be the right man for the job as the club managed to strengthen the area which was not up to the mark last season and finally stopped looking like they would concede through every set-piece.

The final run-in of 16 games in which the club lost only once and picked up a point haul of 39 from a maximum of 48 was what really sealed things in the end. The grit and determination from both players and the coach to not concede to the jaws of defeat was admirable. What looked like an insurmountable 7 point gap to Spurs with 10 games left in the season was overturned by this rich vein of form that the club maintained across a long period.

The Bad

Theo Walcott held the club to ransom as he delayed on signing the contract extension and practically forced the coach to play him in his favored position. The fact that he didn’t bomb terribly as a center forward helped, but the fact that the club had to bow down to his wishes doesn’t exactly bode well for the future.

Had their last game against Olympiakos in the Champions League group stages not ended in defeat, the plot could have been very different for the Gunners. Arsenal would have stood a much better chance of reaching the quarter-finals being in the winners’ pot rather than the runners-up pot. In the hindsight though, it did more good than bad. Rather than delaying the inevitable, the defeat removed all distractions from securing “The 4^th place trophy”.

Lack of goal-keeping options meant that an injury to Sczesny (and Fabianski) resulted in Vito Mannone behind the posts for 9 matches this season, which included key fixtures against the Manchester clubs and Chelsea in the first half of the season. A more reliable back-up plan would have resulted in a few very valuable points for the club.

The Ugly

Abou Diaby’s resemblance to Patrick Viera ends at the facts that they both hail from France and are of a similar physical build. After playing for a grand number of 31 games in the last 3 seasons and contributing a solitary goal, this season has again seen the coach’s trust being misplaced in him. Neither an enforcer nor a playmaker in actuality, Diaby is not a viable option to play a part in the Arsenal campaign, especially for an entire season. I do hope that this season is really the final nail in the coffin for the Frenchman.

Wenger’s exploits in the transfer market have continued to be ugly for long enough to merit a place in this category. The list is really a long one – holding on to Robin van Persie to prove that the club didn’t need the money, not wrapping up the Cazorla transfer faster and inability to ship out the dross early enough in the window to have a well-settled team. What a pre-season with the full team in the training grounds trying to get into the groove before the start of the season is something Gunners will never get to know till Wenger changes his working ways in the transfer market.

Ins and Outs

Arsenal lost 2 influential players – one of them being last year’s captain and top scorer in the league the previous season. The other one being Alex Song , can’t really blame you for forgetting him! The season started with a forward line-up which hadn’t played a single match in the Premier League, in the form of new boys Olivier Giroud and Lukas Podolski.

In a shrewd piece of business, Santi Cazorla was bought in for a club transfer record from cash strapped Malaga – a replacement that was in all honesty a season late. But Cazorla was indeed the signing of the season as he hit the ground running and seamlessly fit into the playmaker’s role that was vacant after Cesc’s departure and Wilshere’s injury. His on-field love affair with Podolski at Anfield was indeed something very special and that partnership is something that fans can look forward to with a lot of hope.

Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud impressed in their respective roles, flipping around as and when injuries and contract situations materialized for the club. While neither of them was as impressive as Cazorla, they definitely put in useful shifts with a tally of 33 goals and 22 assists tally, that still fell short of the number that THAT man contributed last season.

Nacho Monreal has been another valuable addition to the team and slowly proving to be more than just a reliable back up. With Gibbs being injury prone and Andre Santos error-prone, fans breathed a sigh of relief when the team eventually zoned in on an alternative. Monreal’s comforting presence in defense and not-so-bad attacking runs should reduce the worries about the left flank for the time being.

Best part of the club’s transfer activities last season: Nicklas Bendtner, Marouane Chamakh, Johan Djourou, Manuel Alumnia, Andre Santos and Park Chu Young were all taken off the books, though some only for the time-being.

Player of the Season

As an attack, Arsenal was the only club in the EPL, which finished with 4 players having a double digit number of assists and goals (Walcott, Cazorla, Giroud and Podolski) across all competitions. Despite being a solid defensive unit, the lack of stability in the back 4 meant that there was no single stand-out performer in defense. There was a huge 37 goal shaped hole that Arsenal had to fill at the beginning of the season and the fact that no one filled that shoes easily meant there was no real slam dunk for this season’s plaudits.

My vote for this year goes for the diminutive Spaniard who came into the team and took up the challenge of making things happen. Santi Cazorla was truly the inspiration and spark that drove the team this year. In what is indeed an amazing piece of data, Santi has played every single game for the club (in the EPL) and spent a staggering 3308 minutes on the field. The numbers that matter also speak for it as he finished only 1 goal short of top scorer Walcott. Unlike Arshavin, who had oodles of talent, but lacked the commitment, Santi was always playing his heart out for the club whenever he was on the field. Given his age, this was one player that Arsenal has managed to buy at the prime and ready to perform at the highest level. The prospect of Wilshere and Santi pulling the strings for Arsenal next season is definitely a mouth-watering delight for fans across the world.

While Theo Walcott was never as eye catching as Santi, his numbers stand out and they can’t really lie. But, the December showdown on the contract left a sour taste for everyone involved. It was at a time when Giroud was slowly starting to hit the groove and had to be played for a few key games because of the contract stand-off. While he did score goals, it was not the typical center-forward performances that came from him proving why the coach never really trusted him for that part completely. Despite all the results that he delivered, this tantrum of his alone weighs heavily against him for me.

2013-14: Surely, an opportunity to fill the gap?

2012-13 was not a season to be delighted or dejected about, but just another typical Arsenal season – a roller coaster ride that you survived. But, Arsenal are going to be the only club in the top 4 this season who will not have a change at the helm for the 2013-14 season. This should really be used wisely by the club to grab what has been elusive for 8 years now – silverware

With rumors of a £70million transfer kitty at the coach’s disposal, the question once again is, will he finally find “value” in the market? Will the departure of an old nemesis ignite the urge in Wenger to prove that he is not yet past his prime and still has the magic of old times? Who will be the club’s competition next year and for what – the two Manchester Clubs and Chelsea for the top spot or the North London neighbors for the coveted 4^th place?

There are definitely a lot of questions to be answered and a lot of decisions to be taken over the summer. But, one thing that the fans can rejoice about – there is no looming threat of a “Star” leaving over summer.

Here is hoping that by this time next year, I would be writing the review for the champions of the 2013-14 Barclays Premier League!