Good bye Nacho

Hey folks! Arsenal Tottenham tomorrow and I know you’re all excited but today we said goodbye to one of Arsene Wenger’s best signings, Nacho Monreal.

Monreal joined in January 2013 in the season which Arsenal lost van Persie and Wenger was forced to rebuild the team. Gibbs was still the starting left back that season, but Monreal played 10 times in 2012/13, 23 times the next and eventually took over from Gibbs.

It’s not a coincidence that Monreal joined Arsenal the same season as Cazorla. The two players quickly formed a friendship as evidenced by the video that Monreal posted on his twitter account of the two of them playing keepy uppies.

In 251 matches, Monreal only scored 10 goals. Folks have rightly remembered him for scoring against both Manchester sides but I will never forget his first goal: against Swansea. I was there.

He wasn’t a flashy player. He didn’t score a lot of goals. He only made 20 assists. He wasn’t a great attacker. He wasn’t the strongest defender. He was just a really solid footballer and that’s exactly what Arsenal needed after 2013. Just solid professionals.

Monreal was the antithesis of the players who had been running Arsenal in the years leading up to that season. Guys like Alex Song, Nasri, Frimpong, Vela, Bendtner, Wilshere, and others who didn’t take football seriously and squandered the chances offered to them by Wenger.

All three points tomorrow, boys.

Qq

33 comments

  1. Nacho wasn’t macho. He just did his job. Which was mostly defending, while contributing some to the attack. Kolasinac has that the other way around. I will miss Montreal. His leaving feels like a significant moment at Arsenal FC. He leaves with the best wishes of most fans. Still, from what I’ve seen of Tierney, he will, in time, be a much better LB. You can never be totally sire, mind you, but we are making a big investment there. Kola? Can he learn rudimentary defending at his age? Will he ever play as well in a back 4 as he does in a back 5? We will see. All the best, Ignacio.

  2. Will miss him dearly. But now I’m worried his deaprture means Emery reverts to a 3 atb tomorrow. Just when we should go guns a-blazing. I don’t trust Kola in a 4, but at SOME point, we have to stop living in our fears and just go after it. If we go 3 atb and lose, I suspect even Bun and I will be up in arms.

  3. Those names you mentioned in the last paragraph, along with Ramsey and Walcott, show how much Arsene believed in the wrong group of player, who ultimately led him to his own downfall. He did try to fix things by signing Ozil and Sanchez, but he never really had a plan for them on the pitch or a plan of following up on their signings by strengthening with players of a similar stature, in terms of quality. They got figured out and couldnt reproduce their best performances because nobody came in to cause the opposition a different problem.

    But Nacho, I loved Nacho as a player. As a coach, I am sure you knew what you would get from him and he was never the type to let you down, as long as you don’t isolate him and exposes him to pace. Which sounds like he might have been weak, but he was good enough to play well in an organised side and against anyone. I had actually hoped that Gibbs would have stayed to take over as the senior left back when Nacho leaves, but he is in that group that didn’t take things seriously.

    Good luck to Nacho, and I will be watching him in la liga.

    1. What is “the wrong group of player?”

      And what do you mean by “Arsene believed in the wrong group of player?”

      1. I meant players, not player, my bad. But by that, I meant, for his style of management, he needed players that were already determined, disciplined and focused in improving, not just themselves, but the team as a whole. Some were not really good enough and while some just didn’t take their time at the club seriously.

        Arsene spent many seasons not really purchasing players because he be lived in the players at his disposal, and they were ultimately not good enough as a unit and as individuals. His belief in his players kinda led to the purchasing of players in the last minutes, without proper planning behind their signings. Players like Mertesaker, Arteta and Ozil were not really planned, they were bought as crisis management. We had a season where we only signed Cech, because Arsene believed in the squad he had, and so on and so forth.

        Arsene believed in his players, usually to a fault. Even Vieira described Arsene’s trust in players as his biggest strength and also his biggest weakness. It works to have a lot of Faith in players like Henry, Vieira and the likes, but it is more of an enabler to players that aren’t that good, serious or focused.

      2. What is “the wrong group of player?”

        And what do you mean by “Arsene believed in the wrong group of player?”

        When you strip the phrase of its context, you create a question for yourself. When you read it in context, the meaning seems pretty clear.

        Tim: Monreal was the antithesis of the players who had been running Arsenal in the years leading up to that season. Guys like Alex Song, Nasri, Frimpong, Vela, Bendtner, Wilshere, and others who didn’t take football seriously and squandered the chances offered to them by Wenger.

        Devlin:Those names you mentioned in the last paragraph, along with Ramsey and Walcott, show how much Arsene believed in the wrong group of player, who ultimately led him to his own downfall. He did try to fix things by signing Ozil and Sanchez, but he never really had a plan for them on the pitch or a plan of following up on their signings by strengthening with players of a similar stature, in terms of quality.

  4. A real swell fellow. Always felt a little more reassured when I saw his name on the sheet. Really took care of himself, worked hard, kept pretty quiet. We’ll miss him.

    I was hoping we’d keep him for the NLD, as it means we’re now left with Kolasinac. Does this mean we go with a back three?

    Man, we really need an “earlier than expected” announcement on Tierney.

  5. Solid pro and a shame he won’t be around this season to mentor the youngsters.

    Saw some shocking stats as to how deep and passively we played against ‘Pool. Hoping for a 180 degree change tomorrow.

    Great results today to see two rivals drop fairly easy points. That ManUre side has too much quality to be so mediocre. They’ll regret selling their goalscorers.

    3-1 tomorrow please.

  6. A lovely chap from what we could tell. A good, solid, dependable player. Filled in well at CB, and used the experience to grow as a LB. Had great technique too, and an underrated engine. Think that was petering out over the last year or so. But still a player who gave his all.

    It’s not the most terrible decision to let him go (the amount and lack of fuss vs the Koscielny stuff is…strange?) but I am worried about it weakening our squad for the season. Kolasinac is our only fit LB. Tierney will need to get up to speed very quickly right after injury and while settling into a new league. Selling Iwobi and Monreal have been dampeners on the good business we’ve done this summer.

    I read that Bukayo Saka has been training with the first team and that he’s played left back before. Still, I think this makes it likely we’ll play with 3CBs tomorrow

  7. Two things:
    1. He was a slow learner. First season, when he mainly deputised for Gibbs, I thought he looked a donkey in comparison: shaky, unreliable, error prone. His. Name on the team sheet filled me with dread. Second season, there was a complete turnaround and it was Gibbs’s name you didn’t want to see. Thereafter he just became more dependable, more solid, and chipped in with a few massive goals.
    2. I’m really sorry “Nacho, Nacho man” never caught on as a Gooner chant: massive missed opportunity.

  8. I always liked Nacho.
    An honest footballer – tried hard and never seemed to put in a performance below his ability (eg never hid).
    It may be an impact onto the younger defenders we have, that we’ve lost both Nacho and Kos at same time. Hopefully Sokratis and Luiz can be those experienced calm heads (hmmmm…. I like both players but maybe it’d be good if there was a player whose actions were a positive influence against brain farts etc).

    Doubt Emery was happy not having him for the derby – I guess that shows where the influence of the coach is. But I can only assume there’s an agreement with agent or club we don’t know about, as money is negligible and would’ve been a safer sale in January window.

  9. HT: The game’s over. Two penalties in two games!

    Just such sheer stupidity.

    Ah well. See you guys next season! Lol.

  10. Halftime, two down.

    Luiz, Leno and Sokratis all asleep for the fist goal, and Im not even going to talk about Xhaka brain-dead sliding tackle. I’ve said enough about that guy. Funny enough, I spent a lot of time moaning at Lacazette (who couldnt keep the ball), and look what he goes and does.

    On the plus side, Pepe looks some player. And all his dead-ball deliveries have asked questions. The assist capped a good half for him.

    I was there several years ago when we went two-down to Spurs at home. We left the ground in joyous chorus “two-nil, and you f**** it up, two nil….” Pocchetino’s spurs are a different animal, though, and we’d do well to get something from here.

    On that occasion, there was a stirring comeback led by Sagna, van Persie and Walcott — who Im sure that my friend Vibe would describe as “the wrong kind of player.”

    1. Pocchetino’s spurs are a different animal, though, and we’d do well to get something from here.

      ===

      Agreed.

      I forgot to do a prediction before this game, but at 2-1 now…I’d be be thrilled with a point. What an incredible lunge from Mustaka, though. Throw that on the comedy reel.

  11. Just apropos of this article, how we miss Monreal in this game. Kolasinac is fine, but he looks more suited to a team like Norwich or Newcastle.

    1. He’s been outstanding. That dribble and assist was the highlight, but he’s been so good throughout. A positive takeaway from this game…along with our second half intent and drive. This is great from us. Still see it finishing 2-2 though, and that just puts gaze of shame squarely on Mustaka. Ugh. Just like Mustafi. He plays great, and then does one or two things that makes the team pay the ultimate cost.

    2. Came here to say that very thing. Certainly his best 90’ for AFC.

      My other thought is Pepe wants to score so damn badly, I’m concerned when he inevitably does the release of pressure will vaporize him.

  12. FT: I’ll take it!

    Some takeaways:

    – Mkhitaryan is all kinds of useless.
    – Xhaka…same thing we’ve always said: you can see there’s a good player there, you can see what he’s good at, but he gives away stupid fouls, and he’s not especially quick on the ball or off it; he would have great at Juventus in 2011
    – Torreira still not fully match fit
    – Guendouzi imperious, in the second half especially
    – desperately need Tierney fit; Kolasinac can do a job at LB, but he’s a really limited player
    – Laca’s goal was one of the most satisfying moves and finishes I’ve seen in a while
    – but we were also pretty wasteful with our opportunities
    – a good comeback; we played well; loved Ceballos urging the team when he had that shot saved
    – really important not to lose this game, esp going into the break

  13. If only Kolasinac wasn’t off side, it would have marked an amazing comeback.

    Then again. Xhaka was arguably one of the crappiest captains that we had out there in a NLD. Unforgivable tackle in the box, just like Luiz’s last week. The Mustafi ghost still reigns in the squad that plays. Same too for Micki who played really badly less those backheels and flicks to Kolasinac. Wonder if Ozil would have played any worst than the Armenian who looks to be poorer by the games.

    Two points lost as we head into the inter lull. Hope we find more positives from the game!

  14. Caveat: I was quite distracted in the first half, so reserve the right to change my opinion about the game as a whole.

    Let’s get the negative on Emery out of the way. 1) Our defensive organisation is still sketchy. 2) Ozil instead of Miki might have made the crucial difference at the end.

    But after that. I think if anything, this was the time that player errors cost us. Xhaka of course. I’m a little less sure it was Leno’s error on the first goal after watching the replay. It was just a well timed shot. Catching him mid movement.

    In the offensive phase also players sometimes made the wrong decision. But the good thing was we were creating chances or half chances. Played higher up the pitch(?) and didn’t entirely abandon the middle. Which led to the Guendouzi assist, and a class run and finish from Auba. This was also the first time I think we actually passed out of the back, rather than just pass around the back.

    Guendouzi had a great game. He was everywhere. He was there on the cover. He got forward. Ramsey-esque. More of the same please.

    Pepe tried too hard at times and took too much on. He’ll learn. But is already a great outlet.

    I love Laca!

    In and of itself this isn’t a great result. Quite disappointing in fact. But the performance was (mostly) good, and a few bright sparks. Unlucky not to win it with that fantastic set piece routine as well, which was a nice little surprise. If this performance is our baseline, and we build on it, I’ll be happy.

    1. I partly agree (!) with you about Emery’s decisions, especially Mkhitaryan. Honestly, anybody on the bench would have played better than he did. He must be good in training, because if what we saw today is what he shows Emery week in and week out, then it would be inexcusable not to play Gunnersaurus (or better). On the other hand, Ozil is not a runner (and clearly not with it), and I would guess Emery wanted a player who would continue to run directly at Spurs, particularly as their (average) fullbacks were tiring. He would never have taken off Laca if he wasn’t injured, and that’s a real shame.

      If there’s one positive about the upcoming international break it’s that it buys us time to get Laca and Tierney full fit.

      About the defensive organization, I have a little more patience. We wanted to go at them more. It’s a NLD at home.

      1. Yeah, I got the logic of Miki. We had them pinned in their half at the time, and Miki would be more likely to help with keeping them there than Ozil. Still, it was a less aggressive move than he might have made and that is disappointing.

        I do not have faith in Emery to be able to coach a good defense. At least while maintaining a decent attacking balance. So, I’m not so patient. But whatever. Spurs were there for the taking today, but we could have easily lost it as well. Draw a fair result.

  15. When Guendouzi adds goals to his game (he’s 20, lots of room to grow), he’ll be a 100m player. Workrate, tackling, ferrying, head up distribution. I like hime a lot, but I don’t think’s ever had a better game for us. Plus, he’s got a bastardly edge too. Dont let the tresses fool you. My word France has got a glut of excellent midfielders, but he’ll be senior team regular in 2 years.

    Very disappointed by Sokratis’ performance today. Luiz and Leno both made errors for the first goal, but he totally switched off after the Leno save, stopped playing, was ball-watching and — basic, basic error — did not track Eriksen’s blind side run. Sokratis was also hot headed. Starting a scuffle with the ball out of touch and picking up an unnecessary yellow (which will cost us at a critical time), and putting his hands on the Olympic diver that is Harry Kane, in the box. He was terrible defensively, but unlucky not to have scored the winning goal.

    Pepe is a clever footballer with good close control, and can hit a dead ball. Early, but I really like what I see. Mhki was a study in awfulness. Bsall bounced off him like he was a brick wall, passed (badly) when open for a shot, and made a string of bad decisions. Reiss or Mesut would have been better sub options.

    I agree with Shard, and Auba, in his post-match interview. Two points dropped.

    We were excellent 2nd half, and responded well. I still think that they have edged ahead of us, but as I said, I expected us to win this. We looked a much, much better football team today. Plus, their start to the season has been problematic, so we missed an opportunity here.

    1. I didnt mention Xhaka. I will Squaka do the talking.

      “Granit Xhaka committed seven fouls against Tottenham, the most by a player in a Premier League game this season.”

      “Granit Xhaka has given away five penalties in the Premier League since making his Arsenal debut in 2016, no player in the competition has conceded more in that timeframe.”

      I miss Dr Gooner’s Huckabee-Sandersesqe defence of Xhaka.

    2. Sarri is that you? 😆

      Why should a CDM add goals to his game like Sarri wanted from Kante? He had a great assist today and thats all we should expect from him not goals from his starting position deep in midfield.

      1. Man, this is a very dim comment by the standard of dim comments.

        Read what I said again. Slowly. And employ comprehension.

        1. The only dim comment here is yours buddy… reread this drivel

          “When Guendouzi ADDS GOALS to his game (he’s 20, lots of room to grow), he’ll be a 100m player. “

  16. Xhaka had a good game but the odd mistake had to come hunt him once again. The error was reverting to a 4-5-1 with Mhkitaryan on the left. It seemed like an arrangement to get a draw instead of a win.

    I said UE is risk averse a few days ago. Perfect example shows by his use of Mhkitaryan instead of Reiss Nelson.

    It was the NLD but we played better football, definitely a better performance than the previous game.

    1. Did you see Nelson against Newcastle, though? No, you didn’t, because he was basically non-existent! Sorry, but as useless as Mkhitaryan was today, you would have expected better from him, and that’s even taking into consideration that my expectations of his quality have been significantly lowered in recent years! Like I imply above, the decision to take off Laca was not a tactical one, and Emery’s ideal would have been to play PAL through to the end.

  17. Claude beyond the penalty xhaka had a good game.he was the only CDM tasked with starting attacks and defending.he started some good moves all through had some interceptions won some arieal duels.all just overshadowed by d penalty but I tell you that Socrates Luiz kola were worse

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