New position for forgotten man
After a number of seasons out of the side, Mathieu Debuchy looks to have been brought in from the cold. Injuries halted his early Arsenal career and he then lost his place due to Héctor Bellerin’s progression. Since then the 32-year-old hasn’t featured until recent injuries have limited options in the squad. Debuchy made his first start for some time in the Europa League clash in Belgrade and is likely to start again in tomorrow nights game against Red Star. He has been playing on the right side of the back three, a position which Arsene Wenger thinks suits him. Wenger said:
“Maybe his future is as a centre back. He has the attributes because, despite his size, he is very good in the air. You think he couldn’t play centre back because he’s not tall, but if you look at the number of balls he wins in the air it’s impressive.”
As an experienced back up Debuchy has so far filled a need but it remains to be seen if he can compete in the big games.
Parlour believes going unbeaten now is harder
Ray Parlour has said that if Manchester City were to go through the season unbeaten then it would be a greater achievement than when his Arsenal side did it. He means no disrespect but the comments, similar to Kevin De Bruyne’s yesterday reflect more the competition in the league now. Parlour said:
“I’m not disrespecting our team, it was a brilliant team, but I just think it’s so much more competitive now. You look at the top six or seven teams in the Premier League. When we did it in 2004 you had Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea, and then after that the other teams weren’t as good as they are now. So, for me, it’s much harder to do it now. Manchester City at the moment are looking so good, they’re great to watch and great going forward. But it’s when they get that little bit of a blip, have they got the players to dig in in those moments and get a point out of the game?”
It is a long season still to go though and chances are that someone can provide a challenge for City, starting with Arsenal at the weekend.
Nelson reveals why he picked Arsenal
Arsenal youngster Reiss Nelson revealed that he spent a short time at Tottenham before moving to his preferred club Arsenal soon after. In a recent interview the 17-year-old said:
“I was nine years old, I used to play for a team in Catford. I would get up every morning with my brother, get on the train and travel to Catford three times a week. I was there for about two months playing for a team called Moonshot FC. I got scouted for Tottenham, I was at Tottenham for three or four weeks I’d say, and then the phone call from Arsenal came in and I went to Arsenal’s training ground. The first session they wanted to sign me so, happy days, I didn’t look back. I’m an Arsenal fan, everyone in my family is Arsenal, so it wasn’t a hard decision. Alex Iwobi has really helped me. He’s always making jokes, seeing if I’m okay. Lacazette as well is a nice guy. Ozil, Hector as well, those are the boys that I think are great and have really taken me in as a person, and a footballer as well.”
Nelson has broken into the first team this season in the cup games and hopes to continue his development at the club.
Sanchez on Kolasinac
Alexis Sanchez gave an inside view on what it’s like to play and train alongside Sead Kolasinac
“It’s tough because he’s strong and he’s hard to get around! He’s a very experienced player and he’s really strong. When it matters, he finds me and makes good passes so I can score. He is an intelligent player who can create good goalscoring opportunities. He’s already demonstrated his quality. He’s scored goals, provided assists and shown what he can do both in European and league games.”
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