Arsene Wenger says the injury to Mathieu Debuchy won’t affect his plans for the January transfer window because he was already on the market looking for a defender.
The right-back was injured after Stoke’s Marko Arnautovic pushed him while he was off his feet and the landing dislocated his shoulder. Right now our information is that Debuchy will need a small operation to pin the joint and is likely to miss a significant period of the second half of the season.
On a day when most players acquitted themselves well, the Arsenal manager said, “The only negative today is that we lost another experienced defender with a dislocated shoulder. That gives us a problem because we are already short of experienced players at the back.
But when asked if the injury would impact on his plans for the January window, Wenger said, “Not so much because we were in the market anyway.
“Monreal and Debuchy can play centre back, but if Gibbs is not here Monreal cannot play centre back and if Debuchy is not here he cannot play centre back. This is a position where we are short.”
With a trip to Man City on Sunday, it might well expedite any potential deals that were in the pipeline.
Let’s see what happens between now and then.
I won’t hold my breath.
I’m sorry Arsene but this season has proved that Monreal is not a centre back and Debuchy is injured (not his fault) and is nit experienced in that position. We desperately need a centre half and a DM. Coq has done well but playing against teams like City is completely different. I’m hoping Arsene doesn’t continue with his legendary dithering and gets the two in that we need (easier said then done I know). If it costs a few extra quid, so be it, to lose a top four place or meekly surrender in this years champs league is much… Read more »
And how would we know Coquelin can’t do it without being seen in such a game? nacho has done fine at CB, not as well as someone that plays the game there regularly, but better than most backups we’ve had over recent years.
There’s a reason Coq has been loaned out the last two years, he was at Charlton a couple of weeks back until we were short in midfield. I’m not knocking the lad, he’s fine as a squad player and put some good shifts in bur is he good enough week in or week out? Doubtful.
As for Monreal, much the same as above, he’s improved a lot this year but struggled terribly against Swansea and against a big physical presence and top strikers he just isn’t a centre half.
Spot on. They’re good squad players, filling in, but not necessarily of the quality for CL, games against the top sides etc.
The reason is because Wenger admitted he needed games, but with the window closed, all he could get was a short loan to Charlton, at which point after one game all the Charlton fans could see he was too good for them or the league. The fact his previous two loans were at the top leagues in Germany (misused) and France (was a revelation for Lorient) indicates. How about you stop being a knob and judge him on his performances? All of which he has been our top 2-3 players in our past 4 games. Bet if he was a… Read more »
The Championship is not so far from the PL you know.. A lot of players in it are easily good enough to play in a PL team. Playing football for Charlton or Burnley? Not a massive difference I’d say.
Agreed, see Charlie Austin, for one.
Not sure why he needs to be big and black but whatever floats your boat
after watching the masterclass by schneiderlin! Yes please
Well fucking said !
I think the one who struggled terribly against Swansea (and Montero in particular) was Chambers not Monreal. Yes he couldn’t handle Gomis for their goal but it’s not his fault the Frenchman is much taller and Montero delivered cross after cross after cross from our right hand side
I remember when Cashley Cole was loaned out to the lower leagues and was on the verge of leaving as he was deemed not good enough. A passport issue with Silvinho and Cole was thrust into action. He took his chance and became the best left back I’ve seen at Arsenal in my lifetime.
I reckon it’s a bit soon to be writing Coquelin off as a squad player; looked great a few years back as a young talent until the injuries screwed him up. Seems he’s beefed up and got rid of his injury record of every thirty minutes. Watching him play now and I can’t think of any other person that I’d rather see there right now. In fact there’s only Jack – despite what Wenger says – that I’d put ahead of him. Before anybody says ‘Jack at DM, omfw, j0 nub’ I refer to his conurrent man of the match… Read more »
Because as a team we have been finishing fourth for many years now.
Both the system and personnel need to improve, especially in defence, for us to start moving up the table!
DM and CB are areas that we can improve and importantly add numbers.
Is “many years” about ten, perhaps?
If so then the finishes would be: 2-4-4-3-4-3-4-3-4-4
That’s not exactly “4th for many years” is it? You’ve bought into the old “4th Place Trophy” shit, haven’t you? You really must try to think for yourself and not become like the sheep that hate us.
Not sure who’s down voting you or why, that’s all pretty reasonable. Coquelin, as well as he has done, was pulled back as emergency cover for injuries. Hardly confidence inspiring for a trip to the Etihad.
Likewise, Nacho has done alright playing as a CB, but do we really want that to be what we rely on to win a trophy or even achieve top 4? We have obvious weaknesses that need to be addressed, and this is the time to do it, simple as.
Ashley Cole was brought back as emergency cover when he was on his way to being sold (to Palace, if I recall correctly).
If you can point to any of his recent performances as to why he’s not good enough, then you’ll have a point.
yep Silvihno got injured and Cole was call as emergency.
Gibbs was going to be sold too (he was a good left wide youth player at the time) , few injuries at left back and he was move there ,since then he is first team and england international
to be fair to coquelin he wasnt playing much DM on his first few loan , Charlton was playing him there and he was very good for them ( A MOTM performance too)
Monreal bossed it against BvB as a CB. I mean today he was going toe to toe with the stoke orcs with the aerial challenges. Le Coq protects the back four really well and is growing in confidence game by game.
I think monreals time at cb has made him a better defender at least aerially. He was winning a lot of his headers from what I remember last night. He’s tidy on the ball too, I like him at lb over Gibbs I must admit
It’s very disappointing how some people are assessing Coq. There is this pre-connived nothing that he is just a squad player. His performances say otherwise. Judge the guy on his performances. This is the first time he’s had a sustained run in the team and he is taking his chance with both hands. For some of the fans, until Arsene buys a big DM in the Patrick Vieira mold, they’ll never be happy. Forgetting that Vieira was a box-to-box midfielder and not a DM
Good to hear that they are actually in the market, not just ‘making plans’ as it sounded before the window. His analysis there is exactly what we’ve been saying for the first half of the season, so he knows what’s going on and what kind of risk we’ve been taking. He’s not ignorant, he gets the situation and will act on it.
Problem is this a results business, you don’t get rewards for trying, only if you are decisive and close the deal. We had a great first half of the summer transfer window, but he let everyone down in not replacing Verm and upgrading on Arteta. Lets just hope he can find a solid CB and DM or a quality utility player before the window closes again.
It’s a transfer MARKET, not a transfer SHOP.
MARKET forces apply, and the PRODUCT you want to buy decides whether he wants to be bought, and who he wants to be bought by.
As the Rolling Stones said, “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.”
Can we get Jenko back from his loan?
Look at what the Coq is giving us
Apparently a recall isn’t part of jenkinsons deal, because it was a season long arrangement.
What does he give us that Chambers and Bellerin doesn’t already have? I know Jenkinson is a talented lad and a top gunner but seriously I don’t think he is a massive upgrade to the names I just mentioned.
Jenks doesn’t get slaughtered by pacy wingers quite as easily as Chambers. I think it’s fairly obvious at this point that Chambers will become either a CB or CDM, not a RB. So I’d rather Jenks there than Chambers, especially since Debuchy’s injury means he’ll play quite a bit. Ah well.
I agree, Jenks > Chambers especially at RB. Hopefully DeBuchy is only out a few weeks – Rojo missed only about 3-4 games with MANURE when he dislocated his shoulder.
If it needs pinning it’s his clavicle that has popped out, rather than his shoulder joint. Assuming no major tissue damage i think the latter may heal quicker than the former as it doesn’t require surgery to fix. A popped clavicle either gets pinned or stays popped for life (and therefore vulnerable to more serious damage if you’re a footballer, I should think).
If possible, like that idea a lot.
Debuchy’s injury won’t influence what we need at RB because we have Calum and Bellerin. However it will mean we should have cover for Metersecker and Koscielny because Calum (and Debuchy) will not be options. Gibbs is brittle so dependence on Monreal is risky. Arteta’s continued lay off may also influence decision. Coquelin has made an admirable step up and Flamini is available but a Cback who has some utility in midfield would be a bonus. It won’t be easy to find this player and match to price albeit not impossible. Knowing Wenger, he has his hopes partly on a… Read more »
Benedict Höwedes is one such player. Essentially a (L)CB at Schalke but was used as a LB during the WC campaign. Linked with us before what adds credibility to the rumors now is that Schalke are strongly linked with Matija Nastasic from Man City. Nastasic is a left side central defender just like Höwedes so signing him would open the possibility for Arsenal to move for the German international. So that is the theory now lets see what happens IRL:)
We’re in the market, we’re in the market…!
There’s in the market and in the market
Hope Bellerin starts against City, looked confident today and we need speed on that flank which Chambers doesn’t bring. Per, Kos and Monreal have enough experience for that back 4.
I think maybe AW should try Chambers at DM in place of Arteta position and leave Bellerin at RB. I think Chambers’ slower pace makes him a risk at RB but could handle the requirements of DM. When he played CB he actually looked more confident and wasn’t exposed for his lack of speed. I really believe he would do well at DM.
We need a backup for RB. If Chambers plays DM than we are sans backup (jerks at WH and Debuchy injured). Better to bring in a potential star at CB and let Bellerin and Chambers platoon at RB.
much rather coquelin than chambers at cdm.
Credit to Wenger, he really is the kind of man you would want running your business. Think about it this way.. Option 1: Buy another RB & have 3 RB’s plus Jenkinson on the backburner Option 2: Buy a CB & that frees up one of the CB’s to cover at RB IF necessary (like Boateng for Bayern) No point wasting money, this isn’t FIFA. Since he already intends to buy a CB, this makes perfect sense. If there are any dislikes for my comment then it pretty much means you disagree with Wengers mantra as per relates to the… Read more »
Well that escalated quickly.
Wenger for tescos
So you mean that fans who questions the way this club are runned are sociopaths? Great logic right there, and what are the people who follow the club whatever they decide to do? Puppets? The facts are that Arsene Wenger has made his worst Premier League season since he joined us now, after 21 games we are at 36 points. Even David Moyes had 37 points after 21 games last season. If Alexis Sanchez wasn’t in the team? We would probably have struggled really badly. Injuries have been an dilemma for ages. At what point are fans allowed to criticize… Read more »
And who bought Alexis?
There simply no quality available at CB. Even the “great” Barceloana end up with perma crock Vermaelen.
What a great guess it must have been to know that Alexis Sanchez was world class especially after watching the world cup. Everyone could see it. The player is class through and through, it’s like praising van Gaal for signing Di Maria when everyone fucking knew that he was an excellent player.
Benatia went to Bayern Münich, Barcelona has been prioritizing offensive positions above defense, much like arsenal actually.
So you shift your argument to now say it’s not good enough to recognize and buy the talent because it is too obvious as a good buy. Typical.
Admit it, Wenger found a world class talent to be available that vastly improved the team, and signed him. As a supporter I think that is very deserving of praise.
What about toby alderwerield? I am the only one who thinks we missed a trick there.. Looks a decent player plus could provide cover in the middle
Except he did pull a hammy the other day. Nevertheless, I’ve seen him before at Atletico and playing for Belgium: he’d definitely be a solid signing in the Koscielny bracket of defenders.
@striker, so refreshing to read your posts, so original and thought provoking…. not….
I really feel for Debuchy, what a crap way to get injured and that clown didn’t even get a card for that. I wish football was more like hockey or baseball where there would be retribution for that cheap shove from a teammate. Two long-terms injuries that are total freak things this season. Luckily Monreal looks in good form to cover Gibbs (who will never put together a run of games without getting injured) as well as Koscielny (not optimal, but has improved with each match in the middle) and it looks like Bellerin is ready to take on a… Read more »
Not just overpaying, tell me how many top class CDM are available in January ?
If the right money are put on the table, anyone can be made available.. It is about being able to afford it, or the willing to spend the money required to get the player you want. Send a £40m bid for Javi Martinez who can play both CDM and CB and we got the situation solved. An investment like that is always profitable in the end because with players like this you know what you get.. = Success. Which is why you now see Manchester United purchase players for crazy sums because they know that success will raise the revenue.… Read more »
If the £30m Man City is paying for Wilfried Bony results in them winning the league again then that will turn out to be an excellent piece of business.. Our £35m for Alexis Sanchez looks like a fucking bargain and he has already made the club earn shitload of money with his contribution on the pitch and off the pitch.
what about citys 35 million for mangala
Mangala is a young player.. Besides he was bought from Porto, they have to charge big money for their talents.
And also I should add that people use City’s financial situation to their own advantage when doing business with them.
Coquelin is finally showing signs of what was expected him when he first broke in to the first team years ago. He had a good loan spell in France and played some really good matches for Arsenal even before. In Freiburg he didn’t really live up to the expectations mainly because he was played as a LEFT WINGER and a full back. He has also bulked up a bit and reads the game well. Has been one of the best players in all the games he has played now. Let’s see what he can do against City. Should he continue… Read more »
A 40m option to rotate with Diaby and Walcott. Whoah, high 5!
Whether you are pro-Wenger or anti-Wenger at least we can unite in being thankful that Striker isn’t manager.
Not sure why all the downvotes for this, he’d be my absolute dream signing. Would happily pay the same as Alexis for him- reckon he could potentially be the final piece of the puzzle. Anyone who pays more attention to the Bundesliga than me know whether or not it’s likely he’ll get his place back in a hurry?
If all he said were the one sentence about Javi Martinez, there probably wouldn’t be that many downvotes.
You have fallen into the trap of thinking that all destinations are equal and that the only determining factor is the amount of money each club is willing to pay. Players aren’t sheep and they have opinions on where they would like to play that override simple things like the amount a club bids for them. We could offer double the money for a top player and see him go to Man City because he thinks they have more chance of winning a trophy than we do, or because he thinks they can pay him more money than we do,… Read more »
that was a dirty play, FA should be investigating. Everyone could see that he shoved a vulnerable player, what else would you expect from the Orcs?
Hope we get the business done soon, but Arsene is usually very coy about transfer business. Anyone else think it’s odd that he’s admitting (the obvious) that we’re in for a CB?
It’s a bit obvious anyway so what’s the point of hiding it.
Anyway, if you are a CB and you hear that all Arsene Wenger needs to complete his squad is a good CB then you are likely to think that you would be valued at Arsenal
Of course, when some arab bloke’s cousin offers to have free solid gold toilet seats installed in your parent’s bathroom back in “NAME OF HOME COUNTRY GOES HERE” you may decide the hidden extras at “Some Club up North” would be a better bet.
Or Is it just me?? Arnautovic does look like a clit…
That fucking shit faced Orc cunt needs to be punished retrospectively by the FA. There was clear malice in his push and he was intent on hurting Debuchy. I hope he gets suspended. But I won’t hold my breath. The Ref was a twelfth man for Stoke City Rugby Club today.
Wish I could give 10 thumbs up for your comment. No card on that was bullshit!
It was really bad and he should get a retroactive suspension for it but he won’t. There was no reason to push Debuchy there except to push him – i.e. you can assume it was intended to cause injury – and doing it on the edge of the field is the definition of a reckless tackle likely to cause injury. A textbook red according to the actual rulebook, but you’ll never see the refs do anything about it because they don’t actually go according to the book.
Coquelin played well today and is coming on well, he broke the play up well and his passing has definitely improved. Would like to see him start with city and see what he can really contribute.
bring in Sissoko and Reid
Andy Reid?
I don’t get while people always feel Coq isn’t the real deal. He has been given the chance and he has taken with open arms. Someone even said if he continues to perform well like this, we may not need a cdm in Jan but wait till Aug then buy the permanent replacement. No, I say, if Coq continues on this level of performance till season ending, that’s time enough to conclude on his class, then what permanent replacement are we looking for. Am sure if we buy a new cdm and he plays at this level, many will be… Read more »
Here here.
I honestly think if he were a 6’4 beast, they wouldn’t be so much moaning.
Never seen so much moaning over a player playing so well. Probably the same bunch of people calling Flamini a great buy after his first game against Spurs when he ran around and shouted a lot.
To me, he is at least a solid 2nd DM. Over the last few matches for me he has earned the start until performance says otherwise. If we go and get that Big Deal DM, on current form I think I’d still keep Coquelin on as 2nd choice, for those matches you want 2 sitters, and to close out matches.
AW won’t be replacing our Captain during out this window, but I do expect a change this summer. He’ll concentrate on the CB for the 1st team and any decent youngsters that may be available for the future.
Yeah, I don’t think Arteta should be off, but I haven’t heard a return timeframe for him so in the meanwhile Coquelin is my pick. Actually the pair together when we need to absorb and lock down the midfield would be quite nice.
Now if by some divine intervention that Pegacorn DM that fulfills every gooner’s criteria and wishes (ha.) should descend from the clouds during this window that would leave somebody out. Somebody in addition to Flamini that is.
Kind of, it isn’t all about your size, its about your skills and cool-headedness, the way you control a game in silence, Coq as been immense up till date
Give him a run against top clubs and we will see what level he stands at I’d say.
Click-bait headline…
Le coq has been great compared to flamini who’s a Sunday league player! Monreal is a slight step above Santos as a lb but is needed cuz Gibbs is another softie! Its a no brainer need a legit dmid and a quality cback to put mertashocking on the bench!
There is great need for a CD, and if wenger can get one with the ability to fit into other defensive role that will be a big plus. I have always liked the Coq because of his marking ability: closing down quick and breaking opponent passes. Wenger need to put more faith on him to attain that level expected by our supporters. Sanchez has raised the bar,we need to see Ozil do the same now that he is back and stop lazying about when he is not with the ball.I want to see fighters in that midfield.
So the prime requirement to be an Arsenal player is to run about a lot?
At this point I think bellerin is really stepping up and deserves his chance. I think we are covered enough at right back with coq as well so get that other centre back in please! I shat myself when koscielny started limping
on whether that influences transfers…
“Not so much because we were in the market anyway. Monreal and Debuchy can play centre back, but if Gibbs is not here Monreal cannot play centre back and if Debuchy is not here he cannot play centre back. This is a position where we are short.”
CBACK.
That’s where we are short.
People have to stop dreaming. We don’t need to think about DM. Coquelin is doing just fine. Flamini is much improved. We need a CBack.
I came here expecting outrage at yet another assault on one of our players by a Stoke Muppet , yet everybody is taking about transfers. It was a deliberate act which injured another professional footballer and yet the FA and the press seem not to care enough for some sort of action to be taken .
Im aware that hurting Arsenal players is sanctioned by the FA but why aren’t we going spare over this , stoke need to fuck off out of the premiership as far as I’m concerned
The answer Wenger gave was related to transfers. That is what this article was about. A number of people have mentioned their disgust at the push, and have been thumbed up for speaking out about it. However, there really isn’t much point in us all yelling at eachother and getting into a frenzy over it here. The FA doesn’t come here to see if we need them to take action on our behalf.
If Arsenal or Wenger demand retribution then that will no doubt get reported here. Then we can all have a little rant together.
It was a premeditated, totally unnecessary shove that served no purpose other than the usual intimidation tactic, an act of blatant thuggery. It wasn’t a “barge” as some commentators say, but a shove with the hands from behind while the player was off balance. I too am utterly perplexed that the club and its fan base aren’t up in arms over this assault.
Could we recall Jenkinson and bring one CB in?
As has been mentioned many times before, no we can’t. It’s a year-long loan with no recall clause.
Sounds like Debuchy sprung his clavicle. When I did that they told me it can be more trouble to fix it than to leave it sprung, but then, I am not a professional sportsman so I don’t have as much chance of falling on it and doing worse damage. Give him a month and he’d be pain free and a sprung clavicle wouldn’t really affect his lifestyle. The operation will add a fair bit of time to that, but it has to be the best option for him. I mean, what dashing young half-French half-Mohican football star wants to go… Read more »