Looking at who has impressed me most this season so far, I am going to surprise a few people and say --- Gael Clichy.
We new we were getting a class in with Aguero, Silva has carried on from last season. Mario is starting to show why he was bought, but the person who has impressed me most is Clichy. When we signed him, I was not sure what we were getting. When he broke into the Arsenal team he was magnificent, but seemed to lose his way over the subsequent years. Yet for us I think he has been quietly outstanding, he has defended well, attacked brilliantly and has won every battle in every game he has played.
Common opinion (me included) would say that Ashley Cole and that bloke at Utd are better left backs, but on this seasons form alone, I would not swap Clichy for either of them.
Gooners - you may justifiably point out, that you told us that Adebayor would be a one season wonder (although personally I think his problem is/was a personal one, with Mancini), what do you think Clichy ?l
Quietly Impressed
posted on 2/12/11
I think from the CC final last season Arsenal forgot about that and started pointing fingers
*****
We dont point fingers Lee, we pretend it never happened!
Amazing amount of City ex Arsenal the other night: Vieira, Platt, Kidd, Toure, Clichy and Dench!
posted on 2/12/11
Your forgetting the City fan who played for Arsenal as well, Mr L Dixon.
posted on 2/12/11
To be honest Judge, I'd go as far as saying that so far this season Clichy has been in better form than Kompany has.
You can't underestimate the help he haves from Gareth Barry being in the vicinity, but so far, he's got forward well and not been turned inside out for 90mins by any opposition he's come up against.
posted on 2/12/11
haven't really watched him tbf. I was in that minority of people who hoped to God clichy would make regular mistakes for you lot. But deep down i knew he would improve.
posted on 2/12/11
I'll let you into a secret.
There was a plan to play both Cole and Clichy as left back and wing half before Peter Kenyon thought he was in the Sopranos!
posted on 2/12/11
But deep down i knew he would improve.
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You'd expect that though.
Ask any player, when he goes to a better team/ Squad he either steps his game up or improves naturally. That's what has happened to Lescott, Clichy, AJ, and to a certain extent Milner but, I'd argue that it has taken Milner longer to see the steps forward.
It's the same for any job really, when you go to a different company earning more money they want and expect more from you than the last company, otherwise you tend not to last too long, football's no different.
posted on 2/12/11
gratedbean, I am with you on both your posts. Milner has also impressed me this season. I think he is close to be called a first team "regular" and I agree Clichy as made less mistakes than Big Vinnie this year.
posted on 2/12/11
comment by TheWalrusandtheNasriator (U8186)
I can blame Nasri. We took him in, put him on the world stage, got him playing for the France first team
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You forgot the "tongue in cheek" smiley.
I'm surprised. I thought all you North London ja606 users love smileys.
posted on 2/12/11
mancWoohoo - you're spot on there.
Just read the first two paragraphs from WalrusandtheNasriator. The first makes it sound as though Nasri is a top quality player. The second as though Nasri is nothing but average.
From my own experience, football fans only really care when a player who they rate leaves their club. I've lost count of the number of posts from Arsenal fans who have said that, in all of Nasri's time at Arsenalm he only really produced the goods for a few months (tantamount to around 10-15 games). Yet it appears the majority of Arsenal fans no longer like Nasri because he had the "audacity" to leave them.
Why is that? Whenever a player left City (who put in a good performance in less than a quarter of the games he played in), I, personally, have been glad to see the back of him.
So I can only conclude that something doesn't add up here. Either Nasri was a good player for Arsenal, and thus Arsenal fans can't handle the fact that he's left them, or Nasri wasn't good for Arsenal, in which case there's no reason to boo him but just rather be happy that he's now left their club.
posted on 2/12/11
OP.
At first I was kind of surprised, but the more I think about it, the more he has really convinced me. he probs just needed fresh scenery and Barry/Milner covering him rather than Nasri/Arshavin.
Also, how about Dzeko? I was very 50/50 on whether he'd improve but despite his very unique excuse for ball control, he has a fantastic all round game. Chuffed.