Squad Assessment.

First things first - Yes, I do have way too much time on my hands today.

The idea of this article is to give a rough idea of where our squad is strong and where it really needs work. I’ve given the best two players for each position a score out of 10 then averaged the two out.
*No player can occupy the top spot for more than one position.

---------------------------GK: 8---------------------
-------------------------Cech: 9---------------------
-----------------------Ospina: 7---------------------

RB: 6 --------CB: 7----------CB: 5.5---------LB: 6.5
Debuchy: 6---Kos: 8---------Mert: 7----------Monreal: 7
Bellerin: 6--- Gabriel: 6-----Chambers: 4----Gibbs: 6

-------------DM: 5----------CM: 7--------
-------------Coq: 7----------Cazorla: 7---------
-------------Arteta: 3--------Ramsey: 7-------

-----------------------CAM: 8------------------
-----------------------Ozil: 8--------------------
----------------------Cazorla: 8---------------

------RW: 7.5-------CF: 6.5----------LW: 6.5---
-----Walcott: 8-----Giroud: 6-------Sanchez: 9
-----Ox: 7-----------Walcott: 7-------Welbeck: 4

Goalkeeper, 8: Sorted, I’ve left Ospina in as he’s still our player but if he leaves (likely) Szczęsny can provide cover.

RB, 6: Again it’s looking good. We’ve got two fairly solid players and it’s not a hugely crucial area of the pitch in our current set up.

CB, CB, 6.25: Tough call here. Kos and Mert are decent enough but Chambers simply isn’t ready to fill in for more than a game or two and Gabriel is unproven although promising. Fitness wise there are concerns over Kos and Mert limits our play.
I’d say if the right player became available then go for him but otherwise we’re just about adequately covered and the Kos-Mert partnership is generally very solid.

LB, 6.5: See RB but add that Monreal is slightly better than our other fullbacks.

DM, 5: A contentious position for sure. I’d say most supporters are in agreement that the Coq is good enough and I’m certainly in agreement there but it’s whether we have adequate back-up that divides opinion.
The way I see it is this, if you put up a midfield 3 of: Arteta, Cazorla & Ozil against anything but the weakest of opposition you’ll be destroyed.
One mid-to-long-term injury to the Coq and we’re facked. Signing needed.

CM, 7: In reality we actually have 4 very decent options here in: Cazorla, Ramsey, Wilshere and Arteta. This position is very well stocked although all those players rely on having a tough and energetic tackler to play alongside them.

CAM, 8: Again looking good. Ozil, Cazorla, Wilshere, Ramsey can all offer good quality here.

RW, 7.5: A fit Walcott backed up by a fit Ox is very solid indeed. However the Ox has major fitness worries while it’s well known that Walcott wants to play CF and speculation is that Wenger might be ready to play him there next season.

CF, 6.5: Walcott is unproven but he might just be the player we’re looking for. Giroud is a good plan B but just doesn’t suit his teammates style enough to be considered a viable plan A - particularly of a side looking to challenge for the title.

LW, 6.5: Sanchez is a beast and although he suffered from fatigue towards the end of last season he appears capable of staying fit throughout a campaign. After that we’ve got Welbeck who is poverty. Walcott and the Ox can obviously play here but that leaves other areas without anything but a CAM out wide and we all know that leads to trouble.

The forward line is actually very hard to judge IMO. For one thing, two crucial elements in Walcott & particularly the Ox are horrendously injury prone which only leaves Sanchez as a reliable wide forward. Also potentially the best RW and CF is the same player in Walcott.
My conclusion is that we need a signing here but the position depends on where Wenger sees Walcott next season and whether Walcott can actually stay fit:
Either a pacey Winger to come in for Walcott going to CF.
Or a top CF to move Giroud into number 2 while Walcott stays out-wide.

Thoughts?