Would be worse than Auba there

Eddie will come good. Will hit double figures for the season.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/60233889

This guy is the solution

I agree with the idea. I have always felt Pepe was not being utilised correctly. I hope Arteta gives him a more central run. The boy is much better than his Arsenal playing time suggests.

Leave him on the wing,put Martinelli through the middle.

Doesn't really have the qualities to play there.

Would rather just rotate laca and martinelli there.

I hope that this is Arteta's intention going forward, the great TH14 started as a winger and look what he achieved.

Pepe has an eye for goal, is good in the air and has a trick or two with the ball at his feet.

On the right wing he lacks the ability to get telling balls into the box for others, and is only effective when he cuts inside onto his left foot, where most of his goals have come from.

Arteta should at least sub him on for Laca for the last twenty minutes to see how he does.

There will probably be a scenario where we have to do this, but to say you think he could do well there is optimism that i cannot share.

Nothing ventured nothing gained and quite truthfully I don't think Eddie, despite his record at U23, offers anything to write home about.

We need a false 9 for rest of the season. Odegaard or ESR come to mind. If it works out, Arteta will have pulled off a fluke of a move

Good idea, he has a lethal left peg plus he has a few tricks up his sleeve, get him closer to the goal and he could be a nightmare for defenders.

I really hope they do this.

comment by The Logical One™ (destroying trolls as they desperately cry out for help and validation 😅) (U20872)
posted 21 minutes ago
Good idea, he has a lethal left peg plus he has a few tricks up his sleeve, get him closer to the goal and he could be a nightmare for defenders.
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He will have to improve his right foot dramatically though as good defenders just force him on to his right and hes a waste of time on that side.

With Tierney putting in cross after cross into the box, I don't see how Pepe will do anything different as a 9

Think Pepe would do well as a striker. He's probably the best finisher at the club, has excellent pace and can actually dribble and take players on.

What's the worse that can happen?

Just play Martinelli, Pepe and Saka as front 3 with either Smithers or Ode behind them.

comment by (U3265)
posted 2 hours, 44 minutes ago
comment by The Logical One™ (destroying trolls as they desperately cry out for help and validation 😅) (U20872)
posted 21 minutes ago
Good idea, he has a lethal left peg plus he has a few tricks up his sleeve, get him closer to the goal and he could be a nightmare for defenders.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
He will have to improve his right foot dramatically though as good defenders just force him on to his right and hes a waste of time on that side.
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And Auba had a left foot?

Personally I think saka is best on the left, playing alongside Tierney and Pepe where he normally plays.

Issue then in Martinelli

Can't see it working. Pepe is mildly good at one thing, faking to go down the wing then cutting inside for a shot or pass. He's never demonstrated he's got the tools to play centrally, hold the ball up or bring others into play.

If anything moving one of Odegaard or ESR would potentially work although they're both probably too lightweight for the job.

Also Castor, please forget about crosses from Tierney when thinking about a striker. That's just a symptom of when the side has absolutely zero attacking direction and the opposition lets us do it in order to gain possession back. Under a counter attack situation it would be different but we're talking about the multiple times when we pass aimlessly around the box before lofting a hopeful ball. No striker in the world is getting any joy out of that.

Martinelli
ESR Odegaard Saka
Xhaka partey
Tierney Gabriel White Tomi
Ramsdale

Laca can rotate with martinelli depending on opposition or whether it's home/away. Midfield has to stay fit and avoid red cards tho.

comment by King TUt - I Need a Hiro (U3732)
posted 7 minutes ago
Martinelli
ESR Odegaard Saka
Xhaka partey
Tierney Gabriel White Tomi
Ramsdale

Laca can rotate with martinelli depending on opposition or whether it's home/away. Midfield has to stay fit and avoid red cards tho.
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Looks pretty good on paper (bar Xhaka really).

With those four up front though it'll require plenty of structured work in training rather than leaving it up to the youngsters to perform as otherwise those guys will likely start occupying the same areas and not giving outlets to each other.
I doubt Arteta and his coaching staff will be able to make it work. Martinelli's strengths aren't as a hold up striker so it would be a big deviation from the mildly successful stuff we've seen with Lacazette up top

He doesn't have to play hold up. He can just drop deep, help link play and suck defenders in to give more space for the other 3 to do damage. He then has what laca lacks - the stamina, pace and aerial ability to run in behind. He isn't perfect, but he's improved on a technical level so much since his injury.

They're all young players, it'll take a couple of years before they're consistent - but it is what it is. That's the decision we've made. And you know what? I far prefer that than giving ageing crap players ridiculous contracts that we can't get out of. We're lucky auba and Willian had respect for themselves.

Agree on the second part for sure

Just with Martinelli in particular he would need to hugely adapt to succeed, his strength is facing goal, isolating defenders and taking them on. As a CF with those guys in behind he wouldn't get that unless the opposition are playing suicidally high line tactics which you'd have to assume they wouldn't.

Like I said though, completely agree on not giving a load of over the hill players silly wages and extensions because we're desperate.

Come summer I think we'll need what we needed now (at least) a first team CF and a CM/DM to replace Xhaka. We'll also need more than that especially if we're in Europe as the numbers in terms of quality are very low

He won't have to hugely adapt. It'll be a challenge, but he has the skills, he just needs to refine them a little. I think arteta wanted more time to help Nelli become a CF, but we can't rely on laca for the rest of the season. Beggars can't be choosers.

Those saying he wouldn't be good for sure, how do you know that if we haven't tried that? How do you know his link up play isn't good? People were saying same for Henry and look how that ended up. We should try.

There's no harm in trying at this point, but I hope you guys are just trying to make the best of a bad situation rather than thinking that this is a reason why we didn't sign a striker.