Team of the decade

by imothyt

I know that the decade isn’t over, it’s not officially over until this time next year, at which point we get to do this all over again! But since it’s in vogue, it’s easy for me to pick my team of the decade:

Szczesny
Sagna Mertesacker Koscielny Monreal
Ramsey Cazorla Coquelin
Ozil van Persie Alexis

For keeper, Cech was a great signing, but only for one season. And that one season he was great, he let in more long-shot goals than any keeper in the history of the game. Ok, it wasn’t the worst in history but he conceded 11 goals from outside the 18 yard box. Szczesny is probably more of an emotional choice than a logical one. But I’ve always liked him personally and you can see that there was a great keeper inside waiting to get out. The real shame is that we didn’t provide him with top quality goalkeeper coaching.

Sagna is a no brainer. Mertesacker and Koscielny were the perfect pair. And Monreal is the best all around left back Arsenal have had since Ashley Cole.

In midfield, Ramsey is a legend and Cazorla is my favorite player of the decade. Coquelin is a controversial choice because some people don’t like him but the pair of Cazorla and Coquelin was the best duo Arsenal have had in midfield since Cesc and Flamini in 2007/08.

Up front, I don’t think Ozil and Alexis are controversial but the other choice there is either Aubameyang or Giroud. Giroud served longest but he was a frustrating player. He couldn’t make a regular 5 yard pass but he could make a crazy flick pass. He couldn’t score a regular breakaway goal but a sliding near-post crazy goal? He had that down pat.

Meanwhile, van Persie left Arsenal right when we most needed him and left for career glory. But in the two seasons leading up to that departure, he scored or assisted 65 League goals. That’s a goal every 78 minutes. I like Aubameyang but he’s a goal every 101 minutes at Arsenal. I won’t fight you if you want to pick him instead of van Persie but in terms of all around play, I think Robin was a better footballer.

What about a “what could have been” Arsenal team of the decade?

Szczesny
Sagna Mertesacker Koscielny Monreal
Fabregas Xabi Alonso Ramsey
Ozil van Persie Alexis

Lol.. so it’s just subbing Xabi Alonso for Coquelin and Fabregas for Cazorla. But imagine what the project youth could have been if the club had invested in these players when we still had Fabregas.

Speaking of incredible football I watched Real Madrid v. Paris St. Germain last night and all I got to say is wow – so much talent on the pitch and both teams working so incredibly hard on and off the ball. Everyone’s touch was exceptional, the spacing was usually perfect, the triggers to close down and try to win the ball back were well executed, and overall just incredible football. If you get a chance or you’re bored this morning give it a watch.

Oh hey, what’s your Arsenal worst 11 of decade? Mine?

Almunia
Lich Squillaci Mustafi Santos
Frimpong Elneny Suarez
Park Sanogo Gervinho

I can’t believe we had some of those players and that we used them and that for some of them they became sort of cult heroes. Or that I had to write column inches trying to convince people that they were terrible players. Because they were dreadful.

Qq

57 comments

  1. What about a “what could have been” Arsenal team of the decade.

    Neuer

    Dani Alves, Chiellini, VVD, Marcelo

    Yaya Toure, Iniesta, Xavi, Modric

    Ronaldo, Messi

    I’m pretty sure Wenger’s on record about signing all of them I f it wasn’t for some freakish, unforeseen circumstances at the eleven hour 🙂

  2. Your “what could have been” team is missing Luis Suarez… or Gonzalo Higuaín. But then there wouldn’t have been Ozil and no Sanchez. I feel like we might fall into the Marvel thing about alternative universes.

    Somewhere out in the cosmos is a world where Eduardo didn’t get hurt, we won the league in 2008 and that team pushed on to greater things.

  3. I like this team, Tim. Except for one member. Coquelin does not deserve a place in an Arsenal team of the decade.

    Coq and Santi may have played well together, but apart from it being for a relatively short time, the selection of Coq seems to suggest that no one else would have played with Santi as well as he did. Santi can illuminate anyone’s play, and he raised the level of a limited player.

    If Van Persie, is in there (justifiably), I’d pick his creative soulmate, Alex Song, who was not only sound defensively, but could use the ball and had an amazing understanding with RVP. Flamini The First Coming developed into a superb midfielder (left 2008), but even Second Coming Flamini (2013) I’d have in there ahead of Coquelin. Diaby was a far better all-round midfielder.

    1. I think if we’re talking 2010-2019, Diaby was irreparably injured by 2010 – he had more to him than Coquelin, but not in this past decade.

      If we look at pairings, Mertesacker-Koscielny was a great pairing, Ozil-Sanchez was great and Cazorla-Coquelin a great pairing.

      That said… Arteta-Ramsey was arguably very good also and Arteta needs a shout for his time in the pivot.

      1. Youre right. Diaby was in the squad past 2010, but by then was more injured than not. His story is a tragedy.

        I wouldn’t pick on pairings. Intelligent players gel well. I would not call Caz-Coq “great” by any stretch of the imagination. Although his defensive record is decent, I think that Coquelin gets the benefit of much revisionism.

        Someone made a case for the super-intelligent Arteta? I’d take him over Coq, even if Coq was a better natural tackler. Arteta read the game so, so well, he rarely needed to be in a position to make a last ditch tackle. Of course, Flamini displaced him as his legs went, and Coq displaced Flamini after playing superbly on being recalled from loan.

  4. I’m no fan of Barcelona, trust me but this had me thinking of how lucky the football world was to see Xavi and Iniesta playing together.

    But we had Cazorla and Ramsey. Not in the same league of course, but that pair had some truly great moments.

    Tim’s 11 worst of the decade is exquisitely atrocious. So much so that I burst out laughing so hard Wife-of-1-Nil entered the studio asking “WtF?”

    1. “WtF” indeed. One manager signed those 22 players, best and worst of the decade. Gotta love Arsene (and I truly do).

  5. This question is difficult for me because certain players fluctuate wildly from one season to the next. For example, 2011 Jack Wilshere would make my team of the decade but not 2012-2018 Jack Wilshere. Similarly, 2014 Aaron Ramsey is a shoo-in (and probably deserves it regardless) but his other seasons weren’t as convincing. Arshavin is another who had one incredible campaign and then tailed off badly (are we counting 09/10 in this??).

    In the “what could’ve been” department, you have to give thought to Vermaelen, Rosicky, Wilshere, Diaby, and Cazorla in particular.

    After that I wonder if I’m supposed to be constructing a team I think could play really well together or just find the generically best eleven Arsenal players and shoehorn them into a generic formation.

    I am over-thinking this, I know. It’s just where my brain goes. That said, here’s the team from the past decade that in my mind could’ve conceivably played together and won trophies together, in a perfect universe.

    Robin van Persie
    Alexis Sanchez Mesut Ozil
    Aaron Ramsey Abou Diaby
    Mikel Arteta
    Natxo Monreal Laurent Koscielny Per Mertesacker Hector Bellerin
    Petr Cech

    I’ve always loved Diaby’s game and when healthy, his combination of skill, range and physicality were awesome. You could put any of Ramsey, 2011 Wilshere, Cazorla or Arteta next to him and I wouldn’t argue. I just think all of those guys needs the sort of physical foil in midfield that Diaby provides.
    Bellerin is chosen because of his width and creativity, something this team would need from the RB position. Sagna was an awesome defender but didn’t offer a lot in the final 3rd. Natxo is there by default as the other options at LB are so uninspiring. Koscielny and Mertesacker had the best complementary skill sets at CB by far. And our three most talented attackers of the decade form the prongs of the trident.

    1. The ONLY reason you get a pass from is because you gave a reason for picking Diaby over Cazorla for unsentimental reasons. Every team of the decade otherwise surely should have Santi.

    2. Solidly argued, but I don’t know about Hector over Sagna. Hector’s defensive nous and positioning are pretty poor, still. Sagna was a beast. Him and Ashley Cole are our best full-backs of the premiership era. Hector’s not even close to him, in my opinion.

      Sagna could join the attack, but was more conservative. His was the goal that sparked one of the most thrilling Arsenal comebacks — our 5-2 against Spurs. For a guy as attack minded as Hector, he doesnt score that many goals, although he often gets a sight of goal. But then again, not everyone is a Dani Alves.

      But hey, if any post is an exercise in subjectivity, it’s this one.

    3. Oh and Santi, please. Having Santi negates the need for a peak Wilshere, because Santi brought secure ferrying (two-footed ferrying and passing too), which is a precious, precious commodity in the deep midfield.

      I loved Diaby, but Jack makes the point upthread that this past decade came too late for him.

      Im glad to see Per Mertesacker getting some love. An underrated player, a great gunner, and great guy all round. I’ll never forget his giving Ozil a verbal ticking off for not going over to acknowledge the fans after a game. And you know what? Per is headed straight for the C-suite, hopefully at Arsenal.

      1. Solid points guys. Like I said this is a difficult exercise for several reasons.

        I also somehow want to shoehorn Rosicky in somewhere just because he is one of my sentimental all timers.

  6. since the thread is titled team of the decade, i’d go with:

    leno
    sagna-mertesacker-koscielny-monreal
    cazorla-coquelin-mesut
    alexis-van persie-aubameyang

    that’s a very balanced team that could do damage. it’s hard to keep arteta out but coqzorla was simply too formidable.

  7. My team of decade choice is:
    Ieno
    Sagna-Mertesacker-Koscielny-Monreal
    Arteta
    Cazorla-Diaby
    Ozil Van Persie Arshavin

    I love Arshavin,His flair makes opponent defense dilemma to mark him,Persie or Ozil.

  8. Guys, how is Ramsey a legend? I mean no offense, but he isn’t even a contender for such a status for me. Maybe I have been blind this whole time.

    1. When you score a goal that ends #TrophyDrought, that goes a long way! The memory of that side foot near post finish and slide on his knees will only become more and more rosy in. The sepia tinged glow of history.

    2. How about turning down Fergie for Arsene as a kid with the world at his feet, having your leg shattered against the Orcs, returning from injury and being booed by your home “fans” while being substituted and the following season being statistically the best midfielder in all of Europe… And then he scored in 2 out of 3 FA Cup final wins making Arsenal and Wenger the most decorated in the oldest competition in world football… and at the same time ending the “trophy drought”.

      When Rambo was injured before the EL final last year, I knew we had no hope in hell of winning it (I actually didn’t bother watching for that reason) and look how shit our midfield is this year without him. Emery and Raul should’ve kept him, forget Xhaka for a moment, the noose around Emery’s neck right now is sending Ramsey to Juventus on a free.

      Rambo is a legend.

  9. You can google Sagna 5-2 and it all comes up in glorious tech. Just for that one game I’d pick the man as player of the decade

  10. For me:
    Szczesny
    Sagna Mertesacker Koscielny Monreal
    Ramsey Arteta Cazorla
    Ozil van Persie Alexis

    No mention of Walcott anywhere folks!?

  11. I loved Theo. In the aforementioned 5-2, he scored 2 of our goals. And he cemented his place in gooners ‘ hearts when, on being stretchered off in another game, he held up 2 fingers to Spurs supporters to remind them of the score. Oh for the good old days when we were better than Spurs (and Theo contributed to that).

    Taken to one world cup before he’d earned his place (and didnt play a minute), left out of the next when he deserved to be there. Played wing, yearned to come inside, tried out there, didnt work out, and then had to compete with Alexis.

    Theo always seemed to lack luck with his timing, but he could be a cultured finisher, indeed a better finisher technically than one Olivier Giroud. Unlike Giroud, he lacked presence. Speaking of Giroud (another player no one has picked in his team), it’s mad that he’s close to being France’s leading scorer, behind only Thierry and Platini.

    Lukas Podolski would be on my bench for cup games, then I’d introduce him late in the fray to rip the blimmin net out with his penalty. In any ‘Sweet Left Foot’ Awards, it’s be a close thing between him and Robin.

    1. Theo scored 108 goals for Arsenal — 65 league, 12 FA Cup, 21 Champions League.

      One of the most memorable of his goals was the 2007 league cup final against Mourinho’s Chelsea as a teenager (slotting it away like his idol Thierry), when Wenger bravely stuck with the kids who got him there.

      Walcott wasn’t Messi class, but he was — and continues to be — a terribly under-appreciated player for Arsenal.

    2. Completely agree, some of our most fluent, exciting performances of the Emirates era came with him in the side. He was a sharp finisher with some fantastic highlights. Very unlucky with injuries though, and once he’d lost that yard of pace he didn’t contribute regularly enough again. Better technically than he’s given credit for as well, if anything he improved that side of his game over time.

      1. He was also our top scorer in 2012/2013, with 21 goals and 16 assists in all competitions. Some anonymity, hey 😊

  13. everyone seems to be in agreement on the back four. sagna was so good and often rotated over to cover the center backs. in my opinion, he’s the best right back i’ve seen at arsenal.

    i was close to putting giroud in the team but no way he gets in ahead of van persie. however giroud, in 6 seasons, is a centurion.

    if arshavin had played in his proper position behind the center forward, i think people would consider him ahead of mesut. i, too, liked arshavin but wenger wasted his talent by sticking him out on the wing.

    am i the only one who has aubameyang in this arsenal side?

  14. …bold move to reintroduce xhaka to the team at the emirates; thought it would have been an away match. hopefully losing the armband empowers him to play with a bit more freedom and he shows a decent level.

  16. Saka’s decision-making, in the frenetic hurly-burly of a final third attack, is really, really composed. Gem of a player.

    Minute 17. Don’t make me look foolish, kid….

  17. xhaka alongside luiz could be a way forward…just no to xhaka as the senior guy in the arsenal midfield.

    1. Nope. Luiz maybe, but I’m watching Xhaka and he doesn’t present himself for the ball of the back four, too slow to move into space. By contrast, Luiz is doing a lot more running and asking for the ball. That is, until he got subbed off.

      …and here we go…. Guendouzi is on the flanks playing short passes with Chambers and Martinelli, the middle has been abandoned. Willock is off wide too, playing triangles with Saka. And we wonder why we’re so open. I’m not impressed so far, it seems lessons are not being learned despite a 1-0 lead (I’m writing this at half time)

      1. 1-2… you really really can’t play Guendouzi and Xhaka together. They’re both a half step behind defending. The first Frankfurt goal Xhaka doesn’t help Sokratis contain Kamada and the second goal Guendouzi is just too slow to close down the shooter.

  18. Halftime…

    I’ve been a David Luiz fanboy on this blog, and like Josh, I liked seeing him in the pivot. He’s a very intelligent ballplayer. And, as a natural defender, he can drop back to help.

    Talked about Saka already. Love the kid. Slows the game down in his head, which is something Willock, for example, needs to learn to do. Would have been interesting to see Willock and Guendouzi under Arsene’s quick sharp passing methods. Both hang onto the ball a tick too long. And Willock, not showing enough positional awareness, took a chance off Aubameyang.

    Good to see Xhaka back, but he looks rusty. It is said of footballers with bad first touches that their second touch is a tackle. So it proved for him, in a move that injured him. Let’s see if he shows for the 2nd half.

  19. I hate to see fans holding up “Emery out” signs. Hate it. That’s not what ypu’re in the stadium for.

    1. i certainly would. there’s no way you can tell me that a decent manager can’t prepare a team as talented as arsenal well enough to beat frankfurt at home.

      emery is the wrong answer.

    2. Right now, why would anyone want to watch this team? Not me. I need a break. I’ll pickup again in the New Year.

  22. when the going gets tough, the tough get going.
    who would you want next to you in the trenches?
    in 2007-08 some wanted arsene out.. now see what that toxic attitude has caused the gradual decline of our club…
    is it the owners? is it finance? is it the players?..
    look in the mirror….. Did I help Arsenal when times were bad? … or did I stick the knife in.. and twist it?

  23. we also need to get behind the hillsborough 96 today, that could have been us.
    some things are bigger than football rivalry.
    we were treated like animals during the eighties.

  26. Welp there it is. I think we could all see it coming. Good luck Freddie, let’s make it fun again. Back to basics. Give Ozil the keys. Love you all x

      1. The Arsenal fan can throw out their receipts because there will be no refunds or returns on this first third of the season.
        Unai Emery was a marked down purchase, an open box item.
        Arsenal will also be giving away for free with any item purchased on Black Friday from the Arsenal store an Unai Emery signed USB drive.

        1. The USB drive will be numbered to guarantee it’s authenticity and one day will be regarded as a collectors item.

  30. Don’t Cry For Me Arsenal

    It won’t be easy, you’ll think it strange
    When I try to explain how I feel
    That I still need your love after all that I’ve done
    You won’t believe me
    All you will see is a coach you once knew
    Although he’s dressed up to the nines
    At sixes and sevens with you
    I had to let it happen, I had to always change my lineups
    Couldn’t stay all my life down at heel
    Looking out of the window, staying out of the sun
    So I chose freedom
    Running around, trying everything new
    But nothing impressed me at all
    I never expected it to
    Don’t cry for me Arsenal
    The truth is my stamp may never leave you
    All through my wild days
    My mad existence
    I kept my promise
    Don’t keep your distance
    And as for winning, and as for trophies
    I never invited them in
    Though it seemed to the world they were all I desired

    Unai Emery

  32. Something I never really considered before was the role of the language barrier. The tweets enthusiastically in support of him from among the players are from native Spanish and Portugese speakers. It makes me wonder if “miscommunication” was more literal than figurative in this case. I can speak German decently well, but I could not explain the difference between heart failure with preserved versus reduced ejection fraction. I would also struggle to convey my personality or to engage in humor. In other words, I would be a shell of myself personally and professionally until my linguistic skills caught up. Maybe that was a bigger issue for Emery than we credited.

    1. 100%. Reading some accounts today, Emery would conduct long team meetings to go over tactics and because the players had trouble understanding him they would tune him out and worse, started to make fun of him. As someone who had half my university engineering courses taught by teaching assistants from China or elsewhere, I can completely sympathize.

      I’ve wondered though how other managers without a command of the language managed. Pocchetino was successful at Southampton and Spurs before he had a decent command of the language. There have been other coaches who’ve managed to overcome the language barrier. Perhaps they were more introspective and used interpreters, limited their exposure, kept sessions and instructions short and sweet.

      1. That said – I hear Allegri’s English is pretty poor although he’s been taking lessons. For that reason alone I would say “no”.

      2. i remember poch refusing to conduct an interview in english until he felt. comfortable with his command of the language plus the accent…preferring to use interpreters.

Comments are closed.

Related articles

Read more stories on our homepage