Since the departure of Alex Song, Arsenal fans have been looking for the club to sign a new midfielder. Perhaps the answer lies closer to home.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is emerging as a real contender for a midfield role this season. Despite playing wide in most of his games in the last campaign – something the manager likes to do with young players – he played in the centre of midfield during pre-season and when fit could provide another option for the boss to consider.
Although he’s listed as a ‘striker’ on the official website, and Ox’s versatility makes him hard to pin down at this stage, he’s enjoying the more central role and showed he’s capable with a fine performance against AC Milan in the Champions League last season. In a Q&A with the Mirror, he said, ” I’ll play anywhere, as long as I’m playing as much as I can. Whether that be out wide or centre mid, if the boss gives me the nod then I’m overwhelmed. If not then I’ve just got to keep working hard at both positions.
“Last season I did play the majority on the wing when I did play and had a few games in centre mid. But the boss has been pushing more this season to try my hand in a more central position. But I think he always knows I can go out wide as well if needed and so I think that’s helpful for me and helpful for the team.”
And although the youngster might well vie with new signing Santi Cazorla for the attacking midfield role he’s been impressed by the Spaniard since his arrival at the club.
“He’s brilliant. He’s a typical Spanish player: really technical, he’s got a right foot, left foot. He can dribble. He’s a really clever player, he’s only small but he’s physical. So I think that highlights how good he is with his feet and his mind. From what I’ve seen so far of him in training, he’s brilliant. A really good asset to the squad.
“I think we saw on Saturday what he’s capable of. I think he had a good game. There were a lot of clever things he was doing and I’m really looking forward to seeing him for the rest of the season. I played with him in Cologne in midfield and I got on really well with him there. It was me and Francis Coquelin and him.
“You know when you buzz off a player and you can bounce off him and you get good vibes and are on the same wavelength. I had that with Santi in that game. But he has that with everyone because he’s just a brilliant player. It’s really good to have him.”
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So he’s got a right foot AND a left foot?
Wenger has done it again, the wily fox.
MENDOZAA!
ICE TO SEE YOU.
Cube my rudeness, go on.
mendozaa?…ice to see you?-hahaha! As a vegas gooner, waking up with a cup o’ joe and reading the thread has made my morning! Cheers everybody!
Personally I want him to continue his development out on the wing for the time being.
Nope, the ~Bank Manager knows ManC and ManU will pay more for central midfielder from the FEEDER CLUB we become under this SHAMELESS French Liar.
Poor kid, he will be over used like Jack because Arsene don’t want to sign any players in order to make profit for his Yank master.
If you seriously believe that I pity you.
If there’s any manager who can nurture a versatile and young player like ox and help him find footing in a position that would optimise his talents, it’s AW.
By the way, AW stated in the official site : “Last year was a bit more difficult because we lost Diaby and Wilshere [to injury] and on top of that we lost Fabregas and Nasri. …this year, we lost a world-class player but it’s one…”
I reckon the “One” he was referring is the amiable vela…tells a lot on what he think about rvp and song
Tenacious Defence, And I really pity you as a loser and deluded if you EVEN DREAM of competing with this team and Shameless French Liar as a manger. I can’t actually believe you are even allowed to dream competing for the EPL as being a loser to you and making profit is the norm for YOU. Paobing, Don’t be fooled by what this Shameless French Liar says, he talk this bullshit EVERY year and wins FA. The blind sheep, after the world class players have had enough of his bullshit leave, they come here to call bla bla is a… Read more »
Your argument is wank. How is Wenger gonna ruin the the guys career. He’s probably the number one guy in uk if not Europe for developing young players.
It’s no coincidence that aresnal have arguably the two most exciting prospects in the English game. These players come to arsenal to learn from Wenger, no other reason. Everyone else has good facities these days.
Get up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.
Cygan’s LF Pity ME? I’m a loser and deluded? You need not worry, I’m doing just fine thanks. We’ll compete as we always do. I will dream of winning (I’m allowed) – we’ve won 6 Championships in my lifetime… and we will win again, sometime. And it will be extra sweet. Profit is not what I’m about (especially when it’s not my money), although sustainability would be nice. Your repeated references to Wenger’s “French”ness sounds a little bit racist… you DO know that Cygan is French? I said I pity you because you sound a very angry bitter person. Cheer… Read more »
I’m just gonna take this from another user who put it perfectly: Oh, diddums. I suppose you’re going to kick and scream at everyone until Uncle Arsene gets you the present you wanted.
Fucking baby.
We’ll compete as we always do???. When did you win EPL last under this (Ok, calling your shepherd as a blind sheep French is hurting you) Shameless Liar?? The problem is not that I call you deluded, the bigger problem is you need help like Mr money making manager. And, NO. You are not allowed to dream of winging the EPL. Wining is not your thing any more, finishing top four and putting money in the bank is all you are allowed to dream of, that is all your blind faith in your Shepherd allows you . Now you know… Read more »
You do realise neither Wenger nor Kroenke get any personal financial gain from selling players for large amounts of money? You do realise that right? The money can go towards paying off the huge amounts of debt the club has and securing our long-term financial stability. The only way Kroenke would benefit would be if the club’s share prices were to rise, which would most easily come about by *gasp* winning trophies. Your strange, delusional, and quite xenophobic conspiracy theories are simply moronic. If Wenger didn’t care about competing (and was not a hugely gifted manager) we would not have… Read more »
Hey Cygan’s left foot…. It may help if you refrained from swimming in the shallow end of the gene pool… Put some floaters on, take a venture into the deep end coz the way you are carrying on leads most to believe that you are a mental midget…
Any chance you could learn how to spell and write in english
before you post anymore utter bollocks?
You can sense he’s a level headed lad, hope the new Ox TV doesn’t change that for him.
Physically he can replace Song and add his pace to the package but even on wing he is less on defensive side and his passing is lacking the long pass effectiveness of Song.
By ‘long pass effectiveness’ I assume you mean ‘creating the occasional great goal, but mostly pointlessly sending the ball out for a goal kick and losing possession’. Always though Song (along with Walcott) was our worse culprit for losing possession last season. The Ox I don’t see giving the ball away stupidly every other game…of course everyone makes the occasional error but I think he’ll be much more careful with possession than Song, which 90% of the time is going to be a good thing. Plus, the Ox actually shoots. I think looking at the Ox as a replacement for… Read more »
Ah bit of a correction on the losing posession – Ramsey was the bigger culprit I believe. People just assume it’s Walcott.
Amazing… how Ramsey and Song, operating in the areas of the pitch with the most opposition players trying to close them down and the hardest opportunities to place the ball effectively to an advanced teammate end up losing posession the most.
I am being sarcastic.
Agree, a bit too slucky when with the ball looks too relaxed most of the time and we all know how that midfield needs quick ball movement. But he can be able to spot a pass or a run, may lack the accuracy that’s needed but i’d like to think that will come as he grows into that role.
If he goes to MF then i’ll sure miss the way defenders shit themselves when he runs at them.
Ox!
Ox and DM? Nahhh..
Wherever he plays, I’m sure he’ll be very committed. Here’s to hoping we see more of him this season so he can perform on a consistent basis.
For the last time song was not a DM. arteta is our DM even in this interview chamberlain clearly states that coquelin played the DM role. if wenger was looking to sign sahin it was as a player to play alongside arteta. however wenger is not really looking to have a proper DM he wants to play with 2 deep lying playmakers with either having the ability to play the box to box role if necessary. arteta wilshire ramsey diaby coquelin all have that in them perhaps the ox could play that too. if he does we need some more… Read more »
This is how I would line up for the moment http://footballformation.co.uk/team/4231/230812034029.png
What do you think?
Gervinho on the left, Walcott on the bench, Santi/Ox rotating CAM/RW.
Would also be interesting to see some Podolski on the left and Giroud up front.
I thought Le coq was our middle man, you know arteta and cazorla beside him then him sticking out from there.
Do you really see him as a defensive player?
He’s way too creative for that, and even though Jack played in that position for a season in order to gain defensive experience, neither he nor Jack have a defensive player’s instincts. And make no mistake, Song, WAS primarily a defensive player (cb/cdm).
Let him learn the defensive ropes of his game by all means, but trusting an experienced 19 year old attacking player to shield the back four is not an option IMHO.
Agree. We should be looking to get best use out of his offensive abilities, be that in central midfield or out wide keeping Walcott honest (should he stay).
Nuri sahin showing miles of ambition
Dumbass
He’s on a one year loan, he couldn’t give a fuck about the fate of whoever he is loaned to.
*Arsenal kill Sahin deal due to Jose being a massive prick*
Media; “Arsenal show little ambition as Liverpool beat them to world class signing”
*Manure turned down by Hazard, Moura, and Shitteh told to fuck off by De Rossi”
Media: “WTF SO MUCH AMBITION”
Seriously guys, I’m not being an optimist here. Missing out on Sahin will not be a blow if we have other alternatives.
Paying 5 million pounds + wages for a year with no buy-back clause is just plain stupid. Not to mention RM bought Sahin for 8 million and are basically using Liverpool as a stepping stone for Sahin. Small club mentality.
More reasons why Liverpool are a laughing stock.
Using the Ox to protect the back four would be a mistake, not only because of his lack of expierence but would also curb him using his pace and attacking flair, surely Arteta who has less pace but much more expierence, and with his passing would help switch the play from defence into attack effortlessly
Just how many players can our central midfield accommodate wilshere, Arteta, diaby, coq, cazirola and now aoc..
I like this kid alot. He seems intelligent. I really hope he has a stunning career with us. Wherever he plays. There’s alot about wayne rooney about him. Apart from the fact he’s intelligent and does look like he’s got a shredded wheat sewed onto his head.
One thing we lacked last season was recovery pace in our midfield. Once we lost the ball, which was quite often, our two deepest MFs were way too slow in getting behind to provide bodies in defence. Both Arteta and Song are fairly slow, Ramsey/Rosicky aint too quick either. Hence, AW’s intention to bring in M’vila or capoque even while Song was here. Right now our wide areas are a little crowded with limited-players who can just run with the ball and take on defenders unlike the Nasris and the Pireses, who offered more. It means it is not feasible… Read more »
slight grammatical correction for you mate, sorry for being petty:
Nasris and Pireses
should be
Chinless Fat Ass Cunt’s and Pires’ (no es)
The ox is amazingly versatile. I see more as a central mid though. Playing a midf trio of arteta cazorla and the ox would be classi but the lad is jst 19 and we’ve got other experiaenced-talented cenctral midf vying 4 d same position. I’d say we continue playing out wide for now
Your argument is wank. How is Wenger gonna ruin the the guys career. He’s probably the number one guy in uk if not Europe for developing young players.
It’s no coincidence that aresnal have arguably the two most exciting prospects in the English game. These players come to arsenal to learn from Wenger, no other reason. Everyone else has good facities these days.
Get up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.
http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/xcU3DKH9JGHw6pFH9c0frQ–/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9aW5zZXQ7aD04NzY7cT04NTt3PTYzMA–/http://l.yimg.com/os/388/2012/08/21/150535618-jpg_033414.jpg
he is starting to doubt the direction mufc is taking
You’ve got to admit he looks good in tablecloth, though.
Cygans left foot, stop your crying. You seem to be aggrieved by the fact the club makes profit ?? Well, when you are 500m in debt i think you have every right to be a lil prudish. What would you have wenger & the board do ? Bankrupt the club in pursuit of trophies just to appease ungreatful fans like you ? You are the one who is blind son, open your eyes.
We have some of the whiniest fans in the league … Fact !
i think we have the most frustrated fans….not so long ago we were the best side by miles (2004)…but now we always seem to be 2 or 3 players away from being a great side again, and watching helplessly as the best players walk out the door at the end of every season only increases that frustration…
Sort it out Arsene… COYG
Cygyan’s Left Foot only shows up every month or so, when it’s convenient for him to be a whiny cunt, spewing his deluded “VENGA OUT” bullshit. Sod off mate, don’t you have some bin bags to buy?
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i see him as an attacking player and hopefully he will learn a thing or two from Cazorla!