Arsenal FC: Super Mikel Arteta And His Ongoing Team Project In EPL
Introduction
Squeezing 30-60 minutes of my time to make a post has become very difficult in the past months. Maybe it's all because there isn't a task assigned to me to make a daily post or there is nothing in return to expect. But I really think the writing ability is there, and I might want to boost my writing passion someday. A narrow win from the Gunners today looks more like the motivation behind this, but I don't think it really is.
Football has changed over the past few years, I must say. Young talents are springing out from different continents globally, making football more competitive and demanding. Different leagues are expanding in terms of rules that guide them, making room for proper adjustment and flexibility of their league. I must say that every league wants to be the best. The new league that has recently gained the attention of football enthusiasts is the Saudi League. Their strategic means of bringing in Premier League players to their league have increased the league's popularity.
Technology in football is also something special that some people believe has improved every aspect of football, while others think it is causing harm to sport in general. This technology varies from VAR, Goal line technology, chips in balls, etc., and it is very much applicable in the majority of every football league. The VAR technology is very much used in the toughest football league (English Premier League).
Photo by Nelson Ndongala On Unsplash
The English Premier League, preferably called the EPL, happens to be the league that possesses more football quality and fan base support. Week in, week out, matches come with lots of excitement and great competition among teams trying to fight for the top spot or trying to escape the relegation zone. During matches, every team will always want to take their chances because they know fully well of what might happen to them before the end of 90 minutes. Though it is very easy to conclude that there are big teams in this league, it is also important to know that these same big teams lose to smaller teams most times, which might even cost them greatly when fighting for the title challenge.
Arsenal FC has become a proper football club from last season till this very minute. The revolution of this team wasn't a 2-years task, but it literally took 4 years for this team to finally meet this momentum. Mikel Arteta, a Spaniard who once played for the club and later became an assistant manager to one of the greatest coaches in football history (Pep Guardiola) at Man City. Arteta picked the job to be the manager of the club in 2019 and now has built a very good football team around himself.
I can boldly say that picking such a job wasn't an easy task, looking at how Arsenal FC has spent less during Mikel's time. Arteta clearly works with what he has and tries to make a difference with it.
Player's Transformation
Having a team that plays with passion makes you wonder if they were all bought with such great ability, but that's never the case. Players like W. Saliba, G. Martinelli, B. Saka, M. Ødegaard, G. Magalhães, T. Tomiyasu, etc., have all been awesome for the club. These are all natural talents that made great improvement under Mikel Arteta's project.
Ødegaard joined KDB (Kevin de Bruyne) as the highest joint-scoring midfielder in the English Premier League last season after netting 15 goals. His scoring ability, especially within the 18-yard box, is mind-blowing. The two photos below show how well he strikes when the goalkeeper is clearly far from the spot. That's why he is called the skipper.
Gabriel Magalhães, who recently earned himself a spot in the Brazil squad, has become one of the toughest center-backs in the English Premier League. Alongside William Saliba, who is currently making things tough for strikers. Arsenal currently has the best defense in the league, conceding fewer goals than others. Saka and Martinelli are completely indescribable at the moment, knowing fully well that they are young and still possess unmatched qualities.
Elaborating more on the player's transformation should have been done in this post, but I guess I have to skip it due to poor time planning for writing this post.
Additional Quality
After missing the Premier League title last season due to several factors, the club had to make some important recruits that would add additional quality to what is already in place. £100M signing Declan Rice happens to be a very good signing for Arteta this season. His flexibility and good interception are quite impressive, though he isn't a goal-scorer type, but that doesn't mean that he hasn't scored this season.
Jurrien Timber, who was supposed to add quality to the defense of the team, got injured in the early days of this football season, though his recovery process is impressive, and there are rumors that he will make his return in January.
The talking point Kai Havertz is currently the only player that didn't bring any quality from his former club. Arteta saw something in him that feels should be worked on, and he is making some impressive improvement lately. He scored in back-to-back games in the Premier League and Champions League. There is much to be learned and more areas to improve on for Kai.
Photo by Who’s Denilo ? On Unsplash
What's Next For The Team
It is clear that Mikel Arteta wants to get his hands on a major trophy this season. After winning the Community Shield a few months back, playing another last competitive game against a club would be a great deal for the Spaniard. They are currently in three competitions and they are seated at the top of the league and their UCL group.
This competition won't be very easy for them though, looking at the situation of the poor squad depth on ground. Proper signings in January would boost the team and the qualities surrounding them, though I still feel that some players might have to leave for others to come in. Partey and Smith Rowe are possible players to use the exit due to constant injuries affecting them respectively.
The rumors of signing Douglas Luiz, Ivan Toney, Victor Osimhen, etc., are something that would favor the team if any of the deals fall through. Ideally, Douglas Luiz would be a good signing in terms of having a player that can easily play the left-center midfield and also pair well with the left-wing forward.
I wish the team well in their journey to winning a trophy this season.
I would stop here today. To be honest, I don't know when my next post is coming, but please do well to encourage me. Thanks for reading.