Mathieu Debuchy will play at centre-half tomorrow for Arsenal despite the fact he’s never played there in his career. However, with Laurent Koscielny injured, Calum Chambers suspended and Nacho Monreal also lacking fitness, the former Newcastle man will face his old club in an unfamiliar position.
Speaking to the press, the Arsenal manager said, “Debuchy has never played there, I asked him already.
“The solution I have to decide will not be ideal. It will be a gamble. But there is not a massive difference between right-back and centre-back.”
It will probably mean putting Hector Bellerin at right back with Debuchy as the right-sided central defender, and there was no good news over the potential return of Laurent Koscielny who has picked up a calf injury as a result of his ongoing Achilles problem.
“I have to consider the fact he has an inflamed Achilles and nobody can guarantee that will not come back,” said Wenger.
“No doctor says to me: ‘It’s over.’ It can come back. Even with complete rest, you need to rest him for two or three months.
“But he didn’t rest completely, because you have to load your Achilles and strengthen, it is not a complete rest. To find back the strength in the Achilles, you have to load it and work on it.”
Earlier the manager had suggested that if everyone was fit he wouldn’t need to dip into the January transfer market, but admitted that the Koscielny situation would make that a necessity.
So, let’s hope Debuchy slots in well and we do the right business as soon as the transfer window opens.
Hahahaha etc.
Oh Christ. Well, good luck Mathieu.
Gotta feel sorry for the lad..
I don’t think anyone will blame Debuchy even if it goes wrong. I’d genuinely like to see someone suggest to Mr. Wenger – “there is not a massive difference between having a Director of Football and total control of every aspect of the team.” Maybe then he will understand what it does to a fan to hear “centre back, right back, fly-half, left-handed opening bat, meh…. all same to same”. I’m not saying there isn’t a deeper tactical understanding there somewhere. Just… maybe save it for when you’ve taken Mathieu Flamini to a CL final at left-back, not on the… Read more »
I think it’s more a bit of spiel to avoid making Debuchy any more nervous about playing CB.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9n8w9gKXpK4
here you will find a perfect analyse of what is wrong with our defence.
Debuchy like Sagna is a very good aerial player who wins alot of headers. So he got that going for him at least 🙂 i think he could prove to be a good fit at cb
For this game we’ve bigger problems than our injury list.
The ref is that cunt Mason, so expect us to get kicked out of the park whilst he looks the other way.
wow, looking back at the above two comments, you were both exactly correct.
I got Motm playing at centre back for my sunday league side a few weeks ago. You know, in case anybody was looking for some super top quality
#aha
Good on you, sir! Winning a MOTM from CB must be quite the ask,I can imagine. I was once told to switch from right back to centre. I found out that I had the foresight and patience of a drug-addled chicken leashed to an overturned truck of birdseed. The instinct to bomb forward to help the attack and to pounce on a runner and show him his place, is ridiculously difficult to lose when you’ve done that all your playing life. Long story short, we lost 3-1. I did play CB after that. But it took months of practise games… Read more »
“No doctor says to me: ‘It’s over.’ It can come back. Even with complete rest, you need to rest him for two or three months. “But he didn’t rest completely, because you have to load your Achilles and strengthen, it is not a complete rest. To find back the strength in the Achilles, you have to load it and work on it.”” No Arsene, you rest them completely BEFORE beginning late stage rehabilitation. Now we understand you simply couldn’t afford to give him 2-3 months rest, as you needed him, but don’t go on as if you have to start… Read more »
I’m genuinely interested to know what experience you have relating to fitness. I ask because you saying some stuff as though it’s fact, and I’d like to know if you have a factual basis for what you are saying.
If what you saying is true , that’s complete negligence. If wenger is disregarding genuine medical advice, that’s cause for concern, but I am yet to see a case like that.
I don’t want to go into this again as it just looks like I’m being a show-off arse hole, but wander over to the “Ramsey our for 4 weeks” story and read a bit down to see one of my comments where I had to defend my “idiotic comment” by explaining my experience.
Also, I don’t doubt for a second the arsenal medical team tbh, contrary to popular belief, they know their stuff. This issue is, unlike Chelsea and City (and United under Fergie) the medical team don’t have much of a decision making influence and power, instead simply just assisting the coaching staff. At Chelsea and City, the medical team have a greater say (equal say even) in regards to session planning, and player use.
How dare you! To mention the fact this is a long standing injury, known about for a long time due to being run into the ground, suggest that aw should have signed a replacement!
Next you’ll be saying he doesn’t prepare the team properly, tactics non existent, all good things all him all bad things everyone else
Were after super super top top quality and from what I’ve seen of monreal at cb, even lb that’s going to take some doing to improve on him
we cook from what we have in the fridge
Except we chose to shop in the nobel peace prize shop rather than, you know, somewhere that sells food.
and who purchased the merchandise for the fridge?
Dad did. But I’ll be damned if I picked a fight with him, while the guests are seated in the parlour and dinnertime’s approaching fast. We’d better rustle up some mean thingamajig before that inevitable break in events, when one of us can quietly slip out and get us all a mean dessert and save us some face!
It’s still a fridge and we still gotta eat.
You can grind your teeth down and froth at the mouth, I’m going to have a few and enjoy an entertaining football match. You know, for fun.
We are where we are, it’s all I can do. And it doesn’t sound so bad to me.
Yeah but we have s really nice American fridge, with some nice features and great storage. Problem is the guy in charge forgot the groceries….
Very wise and true words. But the problem here is…the bloody fridge is empty.
I played as full back in all my years, and have recently moved into the centre as of my lack of pace/stamina, and I play 100 times better there. Yes I am clutching at straws
It’s the best possible solution. Speaking of injuries though. What is up with Walcott? He came back from injury and now he is just out. Is it just one of those things where he is in and out of the squad for the rest of the season?
‘Small Groin’ injury w England. Close to back, but not quite in time for the match.
I hope this injury doesn’t affect koscielny for too long, he is one of the most underrated and best centre backs I have ever seen. Hate Listening to Jamie carragher talk shite about defending and never has he ever talked about koscielny. If he played for Liverpool, carragher would be boasting that hes world class, which he is but for whatever reason doesn’t get the recognition he deserves! Get well soon koscielny
Wenger looks more of an arse with every press conference. If he had done his job properly in the summer…the one he’s paid £8m a year for….we wouldn’t be fucking around with full backs playing centre half for most of the season. And he wonders why fans are exasperated! Rubbish…total rubbish.
Everyone is wrong, he is right. He is arrogant and stubborn..
It’s more stubborness than arrogance, he just thinks he is right and, I know people won’t agree (10 years with no title blah blah blah), but he’s right more often than he’s wrong.
Being wrong about Monreal being able to play CB is being VERY wrong though.
Love the way he doesn’t say sorry for not signing a CB.
You seriously expect an excuse from arsene wenger? He clearly does not respect the fans sufficiently to go ahead and say that. He is arrogant, everyone else is wrong he is right. He will never admit a mistake.
Why do you think you deserve an apology?
He owes an apology to the fans because he fucked up once again.
“But he didn’t rest completely, because you have to load your Achilles and strengthen, it is not a complete rest. To find back the strength in the Achilles, you have to load it and work on it.”
I’m no doctor (that so much is obvious), but am i misunderstanding this statement? As I would think you should rest completely before beginning to rebuild strength in any area of body and, well, i don’t understand… :”(
This season is getting worse for every fucking day. Some people from the medical team seriously needs to be handed the sack for letting koscielny get back to training too early. It is not like it is the first time things like these happends.
Wenger probs forced him to do it but still, the medical team got a responsibility not to let him back unless he is 100% fit.
And how on earth would you know that? Do you spy on Arsenal’s training? Do you have a microphone in Wenger’s offices? We all get that you hate Wenger, but please don’t just make stuff up off the top of your head.
I said, probably*
Same thing happend with Giroud. How can you say in a press conference that Giroud is 4 weeks away from playing and then 3 days later he is suddenly all fit and ready. If that doesn’t say anything I don’t know what does.
Everyone is thumbing you down but you are ‘ah ah ah ah staying alive, staying alive’. Coming for more. It’s strange
“The solution I have to decide will not be ideal. It will be a gamble. But there is not a massive difference between right-back and centre-back.”
LMAO
I’m glad we recalled Coquelin, but we really ought to do the same with Jenkinson.
I get the feeling Arsene’s character is such that he would find it shameful or indecent to do so, simply because: a) he agreed a season long loan b) West Ham are doing better than us, and Jenkinson is an important part of that. c) his development as a player would be interrupted.
I say screw all of that and recall him, otherwise we’re looking at a ‘buy now’ type of player like John O’shea, or, heaven forbid, Philippe Senderos.
In the coquelin article comments a fellow Gooner pointed out that the FA rule book prohibits calling back a long term loan.
Hands up if you miss Tony Adams
Come in Winston Reid … Big Sam is bluffing.
He’s EPL hard and only 26. Just do it for fook’s sake Arsene.
… we are cursed by injuries. Rambo scores goal of the century and fucks his hammy.
WTF did we do to upset the football gods. Win the FA Cup?
DeBuchy could be as a good as Monreal who was surprisingly solid at CB. But the Geordies will know to target him.
Hold your fucking breath time.
Winston Reid is so obvious as an answer that it will never happen. When’s the last time Wenger made any signing you expected him to make?
Well, you will have to pay market value for good players, something arsene wenger is reluctant to do. Sure you could argue with the sanchez and özil signings. But those were bargains. he never pays above the odds to get a player.
We are reaping what we sow…wenger gamble at the beginning of the season and didn’t buy anyone. I won’t be surprised if he gambles again in jan. And doesn’t buy any one….why is he not playing Rosicky
In Wenger’ system, nobody is a specific position, everyone is a free-roaming player capable of attacking at whim as well as defending on call. That is why he doesn’t think we need reinforcements, our system of play is designed so that Yaya Sanogo can eventually be converted to what is referred traditonally as DM. We have enough numbers, more than enough.
On a serious note, I think Debuchy MIGHT be better suited to play CB than Monreal, at least his pace will help him chase those 2 on 1s and rein in his attacking instincts bombing forward
He could do a sagna. Remember he is better at heading the ball
I feel better with him there than Monreal, that’s not saying much though.
So now you know more than arsene? Aye? That’s the problem with the modern world.
Wenger has lost the plot
Why not just play someone from the youth teams in their proper position. As for RB being similar to CB, good luck with that!
FWIW, I just had a new ACL installed a month ago and the protocol had me doing limited strength work four days later–this is under the care of the MedSport team at a major R1 university. My point is, re: speculation on Koscielny’s rest vs rehab, unless you’re his physician or PT team, it’s all useless speculation.
Who ever plays, the twelfth man should be heard!!
COYG!!!!
Can they play in defence?
Wenger talks as though he inherited this defensive nightmare from a previous manager; it’s never his fault. The dereliction he has displayed to the balance of the squad is shameful.
What a load of bollocks. He’s never said that and never even implied it.
He talks as though we’ve been bloody unlucky with injuries, which we have, but that’s not helped by us being a CB short (which he is culpable for!).
Of all the things that at some point before the contract runs out, the awful injury record is most likely to cost Arsene his position. Because the uterrly ridiculous, absurd number and recurring nature of the injuries we have affects everything else…results, which affect confidence, which affects table position etc. etc.
I wish for a time where Arsene has a press conference to discuss a solution to the actual injuries and record rather than a solution at center half because of said injuries.
Very shad indeed.
nc
Although I’m ‘kind of’ with you on this, it’s not really a discussion they should be having in public. It’s something AW, Bould, Shad and the rest of the back-up staff should be having in private, whilst hoping that they find the answer and some other team gets the problem..
As much as I hate saying this we need to copy what mourinho does. They have so few muscle injuries in comparison to us
With a makeshift defense, our players will at least refrain from going forward carelessly and letting the defense exposed. The whole situation is quite depressing knowing we will lose other soldiers in the hectic Christmas period. We lost Walcott in this period last year and he is still not back.
Basically we need 3 players for every position for depth CF Giroud Welbeck Sanogo RW Walcott Ox LW Alexis Podolski Gnabry AM Santi Ozil Rosicky CM Ramsey Jack Diaby DM Arteta Flamini Coquelin RB Debuchy Bellerin LB Gibbs Monreal CB1 Per CB2 Koscielny Chambers GK Szsc Ospina Martinez Obvious lack of depth at CBack where I might remind you Per is deep into the red zone for injuries. In midfield, all our central mids/link are injury prone. DM Coquelin has a chance to make an impact but if Arteta’s injury is very serious, we are thin on quality. At RW,… Read more »
Campbell.
Wonder if Rosicky is injured?
Surely a good player to replace Ramsey beside Flamini?
I mentioned Debuchy to start next to Per. Not ideal but he is the most experience and Wenger has left his deck short Bellerin at RB will need support from Debuchy who can cover with speed Debuchy also has one advantage, he should know the Newcastle players movement and habits. Otherwise we are again in a weak position of our own making and this is the root of frustration for WOB I believe. Wenger keeps shooting himself in the foot for a race against thoroughbreds. The short fall is exaggerated though. Chiefly it is at Cback. I would possibly argue… Read more »
You dont have to be 6ft 4 to play cb he is strong quick and good in the air he will do fine