As a football person it's customary to start off any piece of work with an overused sporting cliche, so 'Football is a squad game'.
If we genuinely want to challenge for major honours this season, then the key word is DEPTH. Depth in every position. United have some mediocre players in their starting line-up, but they do have players they can call upon if injuries hit, players who are perennial winners. City and Chelsea may have huge resources and an army of strikers and attacking midfielders respectively, so it is perhaps unrealistic to think we will be able to match their squad depth, but we often moan about injuries so it's time we sorted out the depth in quality in our squad, and that's what I think Wenger is managing so do. So, here is a position by position assessment of the quality in our squad. Players who can play more than one position are in brackets under their other positions.
My rating system is this:
5 stars - world class, first name on the team sheet
4 stars - top class, first team regulars
3 stars - good, players who are effective in a rotational system
2 stars - players who are not generally trusted but are OK for 3rd choice.
1 star - useless deadwood.
This is based around current ability, not potential. Ideally we are aiming for a 4 star or above as 1st choice, and a 3 star as 2nd choice. I'll also give each player one smiley to denote my opinion of them.
I'm going to start with the more defensive side of the team - the back 5 and the deeper-lying midfielders.
Goalkeepers:
Wojciech Szczesny - A very good young keeper, has all the tools necessary to become world class, very confident, strong, athletic with lightning reflexes. Still has a lot to learn though, his decision-making can be rash and his confidence certainly verges on arrogance. 3.5 stars
Vito Mannone - Was decent against Stoke and 'Pool, but has been poor since and I really don't trust him, especially on crosses. Was bullied by Carroll and has little communication skills. Good shot-stopper though. 2 stars
Left-Backs:
Kieran Gibbs - Has been impressive so far this season, solid defensively and useful going forward, even if his delivery does need some work. Has everything he needs apart from luck with injuries; lets hope the knock against West Ham doesn't become long-term. 3.5 stars
Andre Santos - Not the best defensively but superb going forward, very skillful and quicker than some people suggest. Can play left-wing if needed, and a great character with an infectious smile - the kind of guy you want in a dressing room. 3 stars
Right Backs:
Bacary Sagna - Mr Consistent, the best right-back in England when fit. Solid defensively and a useful outlet offensively. Let's hope he isn't affected too much by two broken legs in the last year. 4 stars
Carl Jenkinson - Has made an immeasurable improvement recently, looks a completely different player to the rabbit in headlights during the 8-2. Perhaps our most consistent player this season, positioning has improved no end, he's strong, quick, and can cross a ball too. 3 stars
Centre Backs:
Thomas Vermaelen - Not convinced he should have been made captain. A good defender but gives away silly free-kicks and his positioning/decision making could be a lot better. Needs to be more commanding. 3.5 stars
Laurent Koscielny - a superb defender, rapid, strong, good tackler, good on the ball. But when he has a bad game, he has a really bad game. 4 stars
Per Mertesacker - An excellent defender. He may be slow, but he sees everything a second before anyone else, his positioning and tackling are superb, and he's become more dominant in the air this season. 4 stars
Johan Djourou - A decent 4th choice defender, talented but always has a mistake in him. Hopefully we won't need him too much. 2.5 stars
Sebastian Squillaci - Can't see him playing for Arsenal again. Unless there's a holocaust on people who can play football. 1 star
Centre Mids (Deep) -
Mikel Arteta - Metronomic passing, leadership, solid tackling, physically stronger than he looks, perfect hair, decent shot, good close control. Generally an excellent and very consistent footballer. 4 stars
Abou Diaby - A very talented player, superb dribbler, powerful, slick, has an eye for goal too. However he does sometimes lack gumption when forced to make a decision, and then there's his injury record.... 3.5 stars
Jack Wilshere - Was fantastic in his first full season and clearly a huge talent, but has been injured for 14 months and will inevitably take time to reach his best. So, taking into account his re-acclimatisation period, 3.5 stars
Francis Coquelin - Very talented and capable all-round young player. Was impressive last season in a variety of roles. Needs to stay grounded and patient though. 3 stars
Assessing our squad - Part 1
posted on 7/10/12
He doesn't need to be the greatest attacking wing back in the world to be a 5.
Defensively (which is the primary role of a full back) he's arguably one of, if not the, best right back in the world which is enough to make him a 5.
posted on 7/10/12
If Sagna can recover from these injuries to a good standard then I would say 5 's as well.
Along side Ivanovic best right backs in the league
posted on 7/10/12
Great article, agree with the ratings.
posted on 7/10/12
Sagna in 2010-11 would be a 5 IMO. But as 8bit said his attacking makes it very marginal because it's not fantastic, and I erred on the side of caution, giving him 4, because of his injuries.
posted on 7/10/12
Full backs for top clubs attack more than they defend, for me to be world class you need to excel at both.
posted on 7/10/12
I hate this notion that you need to excel going forward to be considered world class but I'll respect your opinion of what constitutes a world class right back.
posted on 7/10/12
I think a full backs ability to contribute to the offensive side of the game is far more important now than its ever been. With the types of formations that teams play nowadays (including ourselves) full backs are key in providing width in attacks. Means for a full back to be world class they need a more rounded game IMO, can't simply be good defensively anymore.
Purely from a defensive view, Sagna is world class, but offensively he's quite often plain average. I'd go as far to say that Jenkinson offers more going forward than Sagna does.
posted on 7/10/12
You say that the ratings are not based on potential, but rather current ability, but your ratings for wilshere and diaby are both based on potential reactions to injuries. I'd say wilshere is a 4, and diaby is maybe a 3. Just because we think diaby might find consistency doesn't mean we should assume he will. So far this season, he's had one very good game, and otherwise lots of average ones. That's less affect than Ramsey has had this season or Rosicky last. Assuming Diaby finds consistency after injury (or that Wilshere loses it) is the same as assuming A youngster will be world class before they've really been tested.
Otherwise your ratings look decent.
posted on 7/10/12
Fabianski is second choice keeper, wenger has said this. he is injured at the moment, Fab is a very good goalie, just the weakest mentality in the world.
posted on 8/10/12
Excellent article, very balanced scores and finally not someone scoring our players way beyond their abilities. Given these scores are realistic, It also shows that we are not good enough to compete on the highest level.