Good morning, friends. It is my turn to welcome you to a new day on planet Arsenal with a few thoughts on what is going on at the club.
I am looking forward to a proper away day — maybe see some of you on the train up to Preston North End for tonight’s Carabao Cup match? There should be about 5,000 Arsenal fans at the game.
The generous allocation of away tickets for a fixture that doesn’t rank as the most glamorous of the season means this is a fantastic opportunity for people who don’t usually get tickets for an away-day experience. I’ve heard from friends that they, too, are taking their kids as a half-term treat, so it will be a next-gen special off the pitch as well as, hopefully, on it. A handful of youngsters have another chance to press their case and eyes will again be focused on Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly, the most advanced starlets who are showing with each cameo how they couldn’t be closer to the full trust of the manager.
The trick for Mikel Arteta this week is how best to manage his resources. The squad can be split into different categories at the moment — the fully fit, those whose workload needs careful attention, the group who need minutes to build fitness and hone sharpness, the young players on the fringes who are kicking the proverbial door down for an opportunity, and the absent. The pre-match press conference brought huge relief when it was confirmed that Gabriel and Jurrien Timber looked like they had no major problems. Riccardo Calafiori will be out for a little longer, which is frustrating, but at least it is weeks, not months.
Picking the right balance for the Preston game after a few sore and tired legs against Liverpool, with a flurry of tough away games in the league and Champions League on the horizon, is the challenge.
Be strong enough, give game time to those who need it, rest a few — hopefully, the mix will be just right.
Here are a few of the highlights from Arsenal Today.
- Art de Roche had a fascinating chat with academy manager Per Mertesacker. He gave some really interesting insights into the pathway that starts incredibly young nowadays. Nwaneri and Lewis-Skelly began with the club almost 10 years ago in the pre-academy, before the chance to sign officially at under-nines. This from Mertesacker about the competition and need to get the right kids and not just the right families at the age is really interesting: “Under-nine really builds the foundation of your team going forward. I would not call it an under-eight transfer market… (but) it is probably close to that. There are multiple opportunities for talented eight-year-olds, you have to get it right within the system then. Not to promise them too much. Football talent gets you in the building. It’s the person or character that makes it on a consistent basis that sets the ceiling.” There is a lot in the piece that is food for thought regarding youth development.
- James McNicholas was brave enough to bring up Jamie Carragher’s opinion about the Jose Mourinho-like tendencies he sees in Arteta’s Arsenal. Arteta initially dealt with it with a straight bat, but James nudged again, which encouraged the manager to open up about when he was coached by Mourinho at Barcelona. The wider picture, though, concerns a debate about Arsenal’s style that James explores in his piece. “Perhaps we simply haven’t seen Arsenal’s intended style in action yet,” he writes. It’s tricky to have a firm view on Arsenal stylistically this season because injuries and red cards have created the need for more pragmatism. We are all looking forward to a time when, hopefully, the team will have a full squad and show more expression about who they are and how they want to play.
All in all, plenty to get your teeth into before tonight’s match. Enjoy it from Preston, London, or anywhere in the world where you follow Arsenal.
See you at the far post,
Amy
(Top photo: Alex Dodd – CameraSport via Getty Images)
