Should we make Walcott our main striker next season ?

The need for a new striker is obvious next season . Giroud has more or less disappointed . It is not his fault as he has done his best . Walcott is a good finisher and has got some pace . Physically ,he has improved a lot and hi game , in general , is also improving . No doubt , next season, he will become a much better player .

If Arsenal fail to sign a top striker , do you think Theo should be given any chance ? If Chamakh or Bendtner had been given opportunities in the past , why not Walcott ?

Theo is at his best coming in from the right. Leave him there and get a proper striker in.

Don't think he has the physical strength to play there - best to keep him where he is in the current formation. If we decided to go back to a 4 4 2 then perhaps.

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Originally Posted by Sterling Archer

Theo is at his best coming in from the right. Leave him there and get a proper striker in.

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Yep. We can experiment with Theo up top sometimes too but we need to buy a proven, world class striker as our main CF.

In this formation there's no way Theo can play up front.

There are no internal answers - we need to buy quality this summer. At least 2 worldies.

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Originally Posted by Alpha

The need for a new striker is obvious next season . Giroud has more or less disappointed . It is not his fault as he has done his best . Walcott is a good finisher and has got some pace . Physically ,he has improved a lot and hi game , in general , is also improving . No doubt , next season, he will become a much better player .

If Arsenal fail to sign a top striker , do you think Theo should be given any chance ? If Chamakh or Bendtner had been given opportunities in the past , why not Walcott ?

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Totally agree with you regarding Walcott, he's a very good finisher with pace and has improved but IMO his best position is playing on the right of a front 3. Without going too much into detail he doesn't quite have all the attributes to make the Centre Forward position his own though I would argue that over the length of a season he would be an upgrade on Giroud.

Onto your second point, if Arsenal fail to sign a top striker? We as a football club have absolutely no excuses not to sign a top striker this summer, the money is there, it's up to us as a club to go out there and sign the best available player within our budget, same applies to other positions in the squad.

I expect a world class striker to be signed this summer.

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Originally Posted by Alpha

The need for a new striker is obvious next season . Giroud has more or less disappointed . It is not his fault as he has done his best . Walcott is a good finisher and has got some pace . Physically ,he has improved a lot and hi game , in general , is also improving . No doubt , next season, he will become a much better player .

If Arsenal fail to sign a top striker , do you think Theo should be given any chance ? If Chamakh or Bendtner had been given opportunities in the past , why not Walcott ?

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IMHO Gnabry is better suit to play as CF than Theo. The former was a CF at Stuttgart and is still a CF for German's youth team. Afobe, Sanogo and Akpom are great talent, one of them should make it at Arsenal.

Giroud , Bendtner..etc to name just a few have all the physical attributes to be top striker but they don't deliver . Suarez is not that big but look what he is doing at Liverpool . Walcott playing at the right was just a learning process . At Southampton , he was playing as a striker and he was amazing to watch . It is just an unjustified fear . Walcott would make a very good striker . He might struggle in the beginning just like everyone in a new business but once settled in that position he can be deadly . We definitely need somebody there but my worry is we might only " get" Sanogo .

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Originally Posted by Alpha

Giroud , Bendtner..etc to name just a few have all the physical attributes to be top striker but they don't deliver . Suarez is not that big but look what he is doing at Liverpool . Walcott playing at the right was just a learning process . At Southampton , he was playing as a striker and he was amazing to watch . It is just an unjustified fear . Walcott would make a very good striker . He might struggle in the beginning just like everyone in a new business but once settled in that position he can be deadly . We definitely need somebody there but my worry is we might only " get" Sanogo .

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When you say they have the physical attributes ? Do you go by being weak and slow ?

You have to be fast and strong. Look at Suarez's goal today. Fast enough to get away, and strong enough to not get pushed off.

For that reason, I wouldn't put Feo upfront.

Suarez may not have the psychical attributes but he has an insane dribbling ability that Theo will never have.

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Originally Posted by Munchies

When you say they have the physical attributes ? Do you go by being weak and slow ?

You have to be fast and strong. Look at Suarez's goal today. Fast enough to get away, and strong enough to not get pushed off.

For that reason, I wouldn't put Feo upfront.

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Physically both ( Giroud and Bendtner) are strong .But Giroud is slower than a tortoise and he always forgets his shooting boot at home when he plays . Bendtner is a bit faster but unfortunately he never had his head with him on the pitch .

Walcott is not a bad option up front. He got a fair few goals playing a lot there last year and he deputized well when he did this season. However, for two reasons, I say no:

1. We should bring in a real top quality striker, someone who offers more than Giroud, Walcott or anyone else we have at present
2. We should be deploying Walcott wide right. He chips in with goals and provides a constant threat running in behind.

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Originally Posted by Alpha

Physically both ( Giroud and Bendtner) are strong .But Giroud is slower than a tortoise and he always forgets his shooting boot at home when he plays . Bendtner is a bit faster but unfortunately he never had his head with him on the pitch .

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Diego Costa would be a perfect upgrade on Giroud. I've not seen alot of Atletco this season (I only really watch R.Madrid games here and there), but he's pretty fast and strong. In our current formation, we need a player who can hold the ball up as there is only one striker, and to provide a different approach as we also need pace. Most of the goals Sturridge scores, are from a through ball which he has the pace to get onto. We don't have that really, nor does Giroud make any runs.

This is from their most recent game, individual highlights:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWeojIx55zM

Look at what he offers. He runs, runs and runs.

If Walcott will play on the right , where do we play Campbell ? We can not overlook his talent . What about Gnabry ? He will definitely deserve more games if not a regular place next season .

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Originally Posted by Munchies

Diego Costa would be a perfect upgrade on Giroud. I've not seen alot of Atletco this season (I only really watch R.Madrid games here and there), but he's pretty fast and strong. In our current formation, we need a player who can hold the ball up as there is only one striker, and to provide a different approach as we also need pace. Most of the goals Sturridge scores, are from a through ball which he has the pace to get onto. We don't have that really, nor does Giroud make any runs.

This is from their most recent game, individual highlights:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWeojIx55zM

Look at what he offers. He runs, runs and runs.

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I know a lot about Diego Costa . He has become a top striker and I'm afraid we might get outbid on the price and miss out . We miss the opportunity to sign him when he was in Falcao shadow . But next season too many top and wealthier teams might go for him . With our 15m and 1 pound bid , I don't think we stand any chance to have him .

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Originally Posted by Alpha

Giroud , Bendtner..etc to name just a few have all the physical attributes to be top striker but they don't deliver . Suarez is not that big but look what he is doing at Liverpool . Walcott playing at the right was just a learning process . At Southampton , he was playing as a striker and he was amazing to watch . It is just an unjustified fear . Walcott would make a very good striker . He might struggle in the beginning just like everyone in a new business but once settled in that position he can be deadly . We definitely need somebody there but my worry is we might only " get" Sanogo .

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What you are essentially saying is you don't trust Wenger to oversee a successful transfer window and bring in a top class striker? You are not alone Alpha, I don't trust Wenger either & wouldn't be at all surprised if we lined up with the same set of strikers minus Bendy come next season.

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Originally Posted by selassie

What you are essentially saying is you don't trust Wenger to oversee a successful transfer window and bring in a top class striker? You are not alone Alpha, I don't trust Wenger either & wouldn't be at all surprised if we lined up with the same set of strikers minus Bendy come next season.

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Totally agree with you ,Selassie . Wenger was once a great talent spotter . He took advantage of the fact many teams in England did not know about any talent outside the Uk . Wenger would shop anywhere in the world and get talent at a bargain price . But now , things have changed . Even west Ham can buy abroad ( Mascherano , Tevez ). And also , most of our young talents don't improve the way we are expecting . They always end up in other teams . But despite that , Arsene is still living in the past . He doesn't understand it is time to change his transfer policy . The quicker you spot a talent and make a good offer the better .
Most of good players are first linked to Arsenal before ending up in other teams simply because we think they would sell us at a peanut price . Draxler is a very good young player but we are hesitating . Now Bayern is in the mix, do we stand any chance ? We were linked with Diego Costa the whole of last summer , Chelsea have just jumped the queue , what are our possibility to sign him ?
Our Board and Wenger , in particular , must understand we are no longer in the era whera you can get a Thierry Henry for 10m or a vierra for 6m .etc.. You want a top player , open your chequebook . Ozil was a great move but we need two or three more of that caliber .

Costa is a dead cert to Chelsea according to the Spanish press.

Theo coming in from the right and making runs is a good option for us and i'd keep him there for the time being. However, whenever he has played up front, he's actually done well and scored goals (bar codes at home last season, this season against spuds in the cup where he didnt score but was a real threat). I have no doubt that had he been fit, he'd have started instead of Giroud over the past few weeks (If Sanogo was given a go then Theo would have started for sure).

I also dont buy this myth about strikers needing to be big and strong to make it in this league. Look at the top scorers this season and you'll find that they are all smallish and nowhere near pysically imposing (Aguero, Suarez, Sturridge). Giroud is big and strong but what has that done for us? he's constantly on his arse complaining to the ref.

[QUOTE=AFC Leveller;384307]Costa is a dead cert to Chelsea according to the Spanish press.

Theo coming in from the right and making runs is a good option for us and i'd keep him there for the time being. However, whenever he has played up front, he's actually done well and scored goals (bar codes at home last season, this season against spuds in the cup where he didnt score but was a real threat). I have no doubt that had he been fit, he'd have started instead of Giroud over the past few weeks (If Sanogo was given a go then Theo would have started for sure).








True . A good striker doesn't necessarily need a body of a boxer , a wrestler or a rugby player . The brain and the heart are the most important parts . An intelligent and fearless player can make a very good striker if they can use their tiny body wisely .

No - biggest reason for me is that he is injury prone. If we had the right midfield in place then there's no reason why its not an option but he lacks the aggression & close control of someone like Suarez. The other danger is that he is isolated, if he runs into the channels do we have others that are just as quick to get into the box. Rather see him in his wide role, feeding into a world class striker. I'd like to see Ox on the other side instead of this CM role that Wumger has planned for him.

the Ox has the potential to be a box to box CM but right now he's still developing his game and offers us more from the right hand side.

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Originally Posted by Alpha

Totally agree with you ,Selassie . Wenger was once a great talent spotter . He took advantage of the fact many teams in England did not know about any talent outside the Uk . Wenger would shop anywhere in the world and get talent at a bargain price . But now , things have changed . Even west Ham can buy abroad ( Mascherano , Tevez ). And also , most of our young talents don't improve the way we are expecting . They always end up in other teams . But despite that , Arsene is still living in the past . He doesn't understand it is time to change his transfer policy . The quicker you spot a talent and make a good offer the better .
Most of good players are first linked to Arsenal before ending up in other teams simply because we think they would sell us at a peanut price . Draxler is a very good young player but we are hesitating . Now Bayern is in the mix, do we stand any chance ? We were linked with Diego Costa the whole of last summer , Chelsea have just jumped the queue , what are our possibility to sign him ?
Our Board and Wenger , in particular , must understand we are no longer in the era whera you can get a Thierry Henry for 10m or a vierra for 6m .etc.. You want a top player , open your chequebook . Ozil was a great move but we need two or three more of that caliber .

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Yep totally agree.

This summer is so crucial, we have money and we also have holes in the squad. It's world cup year so it's quite likely that the market is going to be inflated. Now I am not proposing we spend like City or Chelsea but we simply have no excuses not to bring in sufficient quality. If it means overpaying slightly then so be it.

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Originally Posted by selassie

Yep totally agree.

This summer is so crucial, we have money and we also have holes in the squad. It's world cup year so it's quite likely that the market is going to be inflated. Now I am not proposing we spend like City or Chelsea but we simply have no excuses not to bring in sufficient quality. If it means overpaying slightly then so be it.

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Only overpaying if they are crap, which given some of the deadwood we should be moving on JFDI.

On topic, we have glimpses of Theo the clinical finisher usually followed by the treatment table, even if he is given the chance he needs a partner to play off and cover...

We should have been playing Theo up front or on the left years ago. We've left it too late and now it will take him a long time to cope with the physical demands of that role. He's done well on the right but won't realise his full potential there.

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Originally Posted by selassie

What you are essentially saying is you don't trust Wenger to oversee a successful transfer window and bring in a top class striker? You are not alone Alpha, I don't trust Wenger either & wouldn't be at all surprised if we lined up with the same set of strikers minus Bendy come next season.

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This is it. Most sensible Gooners that I know would never ignore what Wenger has done for us. But the cold hard fact is that despite our almost unequivocal support, he has not shown, in any area, that he still has what is needed to win the league. And his transfer policy over the past 8/9 years is his biggest indictment.