The balance in the Arsenal team could be rocked a
little. Arsenal's Belgian captain is in the news and
according to reports, he is set to reconsider his
Arsenal future in the winter window. Thomas
Vermaelen has been on the fringes of the first team
since he lost his place to French centre back Laurent
Koscielny at the tail end of last season. Expectations
were rife that he would be sold in the summer and
this belief was further reinforced by Wenger's pursuit
of Swansea's captain Ashley Williams. But alas, he
ended up staying but has still found it a tough
proposition breaking into the team. So far this
season, Arsenal have played 12 matches but
Vermaelen has only had a taste of 2 (1 start and 1
sub). This limited role has been due to injuries and
also the impeccable form of Koscielny and
Mertesacker but the preference of Sagna when
Mertesacker was ill during the win against
Sunderland also speaks volume of how low the
captain has fallen in the pecking order.
With Belgium now through to the World Cup which is
their first major tournament in recent times,
Vermaelen will be keen to enjoy regular football so as
to be part of the Red Devils party to Brazil as he faces
a stern competition for a place in the defence. His
quest for regular football has made him reconsider
his Arsenal future.
"I'll have to think about that when it's necessary.
January is still a few months ahead. Of course, never
playing will not be the ideal situation for me to go to
the World Cup, that's for sure.
"People ask me if I panic because I'm not playing a
lot but I'm not. I have spoken to the manager but it
will remain private between us. Things can happen in
a split second and change my situation. That can
happen tomorrow or next weekend. "In that case, we
will speak differently in January. I have to be ready
for that."
With Vermaelen voicing that out, it is obvious an exit
is on the cards should he fail to get decent playing
time in key matches for Arsenal. Capital One Cup
isn't seen as one because it is a cup Wenger doesn't
rate, hence senior players playing in it see
themselves as second rate. Wenger will have to allow
him some Premier League games and also
Champions League games to prove to him that he is
still valuable to the squad. This is one of the reasons
why I want Arsenal to seal qualification to the knock
out phase of the Champions League as early as
possible (Arsenal can if they win their next 2 games
or secure at least 4 points from them). That will allow
Wenger to call on some fringe stars like Vermaelen,
Monreal, Arteta and Podolski and keep key men fresh
for the hectic December fixtures.I won't begrudge him for wanting to leave in January
should regular football still be far-fetched. The 2014
World Cup might be his only chance of going to a
major international tournament as he would be 28
this year and by the next Euros, he would be 31 and
the next World Cup, he would be 35 and maybe too
old to be considered for the tournament. Hence, he
cannot afford to allow this opportunity elude him.
Vermaelen is a player I rate and I am of the belief
that one bad season don't make a player bad
(Ramsey was a terrible player but seems reborn this
season) and loosing our captain in January might
spell doom for the club's trophy pursuit. Hence, we
need to keep him but only regular first team football
can do that. Wenger needs to reassure him of that
and not signing a defender in January will go a long
way in doing it. His desire to even make the World
Cup might be a blessing in disguise for us. He knows
he would need to play well and cut out those silly
errors to be considered for the Belgium squad and
that means better performances for Arsenal.
Those that believe Arsenal should sign new
defenders in January should know that no
experienced defender would be open to a move in
January owing to the fear of getting unsettled before
the World Cup and for those that are not going to the
tournament might just be cup-tied which means they
will be useless for us in the Champions League. Also,
any new player that comes would need an adaptation
period and the player we need is one that can hit the
ground running owing to our trophy targets. The
Premier League is a different proposition which
means even top defenders from other leagues could
arrive there and flop.
What then is the solution? Wenger needs to find a
way of integrating Vermaelen back into the line-up.
Throw some key games his way, that way, he would
feel part of the squad but should he be insistent of
leaving in January to brighten his World Cup chances,
Arsenal should only entertain a loan deal and not an
outright sale. Vermaelen is a very good defender and
his versatility is also key too. He might currently be
suffering from blighted confidence but he can come
back to his best. If Ramsey can, then he could too.
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless handheld from Glo Mobile.
No comments:
Post a Comment