Tosin Coker
Best Player: Santi Cazorla – He makes everything tick. He was immense last season, knowing that he had a good back-up in Francis Coquelin gave him the freedom to play. If he stays central and fit, we will have more of the same as we did from January 2015. He brings the best out of those around him. Good to see he signed a new contract. I thought we would have lost him when Ozil arrived.
Weak Link(s): Mesut Özil – so much is expected of him, and the longer he fails to deliver consistently and when it matters most, the longer Arsenal will feel like they are playing with 10 men. The crowd is patient, but that patience is running very thin, and in his 3rd full season he has to deliver from the get-go! He is a confidence player. The longer he stays on the pitch and fails to deliver or take responsibility, the worse it will get for him. The rest of the squad is good enough, but we are only as good as our weakest link. If he delivers, we’ll be even better than we are perceived to be. Simple!
Manager: I’m a supporter and always will be. Arsene is stubborn, yes, but he is not often wrong, and he knows his players better than any of us. I still trust him to deliver and think he is still the best man for the job. He needs to put a succesion plan in place, though. He is the elder statesman of the EPL and should act like it. Getting one over Mourinho at the Community Shield was sweet, but let’s move on and not get drawn into petty squabbles. He should maintain his class, and let the others act the fool if they so wish. The public will judge him fairly.
Expectations: This season, we MUST take the Premier League. There has been steady build-up over two seasons. The core of the team has remained intact. We have added some good quality players. Back to back FA Cup wins are good. The next step is to win another trophy and ensure that Europe feels our presence…..semi-final at least! What would be more pleasing is to ensure that we top the head-to-head table for the top 4 or 6….which means not losing to our rivals. We cannot/should not be bullied about anymore.
Thoughts on Transfer Business: A bit disappointed that we prioritised the goalkeeping position. Whilst Cech is a great acquisition and will add certain attributes to the squad, I think we should have focused elsewhere (striker maybe?) as the existing keepers were not bad at all. Arsenal do not spend unnecessarily, so I understand the caution in the transfer market. A back-up option in defence and central midfielder would be good. If a good (world class) striker is available at a decent price, then we should go for him, but I find that unlikely in this climate.
Player likely to break through: Ironically, given my earlier comments on him, Mesut Özil. I believe he will step up to the plate and show his true potential. Quite sad to say that our most expensive player is a ‘breakthrough player’, but it shows what is expected of him and what he has delivered so far. Not sure any of the other young players will break through this term.