Good Bye Song!

[Fist of Lehmann]

We can do better in every department. His passing never left us exposed and you'd rarely see him get caught in possession. If you want to see an example of that, watch Ramsey with his blind passes across field or silly back heels. Song was the least of our worries in midfield and the fact that Barca have come calling is proof of that. I still won't forget how you backed Denilson over Song. Look at the outcome.

Didn't he pass the ball away leading to Norwich scoring last season?

Anyway, if Saturday did anything it re-inforced the impression that Diaby is no replacement for Song.

Song is a very good, all-round, modern CM. He has vision, and an excellent range of passing. He is strong in the tackle and works fairly hard both forward and back.

Diaby on the other had, is a dribbler by nature, albeit an atypically built one. This means a couple of things, one he tends to play with his head down rather than up. Two, he likes to take 5 touches when 1 will do. For my money, unless he learns to play the ball earlier, and switch his brain on, his career is going nowhere, just like one of his dribbles.

Ramsey, is nowhere near as diligent in his defensive work as Song, nor as tough in the tackle. He also turns the ball over more than anyone in our side. He is a poor replacement also.

Rocisky, possibly. And Le Coq has potential in this role, although it's still early in his learning curve.

Not surprised we are being relinked to M'vila in addition to Sahin. I accept that he is not irreplacable, but Song is a significant loss to the Arsenal spine imo.

[Power n Glory]

Always thought he was massively overrated, sluggish and wasteful. Been saying it for a long time. When he's playing with an average midfield and poor wide-players, we were looking to him and he did ok. But in proportion to the number of attempts, I thought he wasn't good. If Barca want a personality and a pure squad player as cover for CM or CB positions, he's value for his experience at a young age. Does Barcelona's interest act as proof that he's great? I think it shows he's good and guarantees you no atrocious performances. Proof that he's any better than that? Only to the extent that the ball-less Hleb ended up as a treble-winner.

Anyway it seems quite clear that there was a falling out of some sort, Arsenal were happy to get rid and Barca were able to pick up him no fuss. He's no loss if his replacement is a good footballer. If it's Diaby or Ramsey then obviously it's a step down.

He divides opinion and goes unrecognised by the media so I wouldn't say overrated. But he plays in a key position and he's not the reason why play breaks down. The risky passes he goes for (wastefulness)...we need more people to take chances when teams lock up shop instead of trying going safety passes all the time and playing the numbers game. He usually does it in the final third when nothing is happening and we're just tipping the ball about and doing nothing. On fast breaks or key opening moments he makes the right decision and usually executes. It's not like what we've seen with Ramsey or Diaby. I've hardly blasted Song for failing to play through a ball at a key moment.

When he plays it simple, he spreads the ball around with little fuss and you won't see him dwelling on the ball for ages looking unaware of his surroundings. Ramsey and Denilson would get caught all the time. Gilberto was the same. This is a key position and we have to get the right player in. When Flamini was on fire it was instantly noticeable. When he left and wasted our time with Denilson, it was very noticeable. As soon as Denilson was dropped and Song came in, you could tell we were playing with more confidence and looked a better team. Can't underestimate the importance of the midfield and Song was one of our best players in that area.

[Power n Glory]

Didn't he pass the ball away leading to Norwich scoring last season?

Anyway, if Saturday did anything it re-inforced the impression that Diaby is no replacement for Song.

Song is a very good, all-round, modern CM. He has vision, and an excellent range of passing. He is strong in the tackle and works fairly hard both forward and back.

Diaby on the other had, is a dribbler by nature, albeit an atypically built one. This means a couple of things, one he tends to play with his head down rather than up. Two, he likes to take 5 touches when 1 will do. For my money, unless he learns to play the ball earlier, and switch his brain on, his career is going nowhere, just like one of his dribbles.

Ramsey, is nowhere near as diligent in his defensive work as Song, nor as tough in the tackle. He also turns the ball over more than anyone in our side. He is a poor replacement also.

Rocisky, possibly. And Le Coq has potential in this role, although it's still early in his learning curve.

Not surprised we are being relinked to M'vila in addition to Sahin. I accept that he is not irreplacable, but Song is a significant loss to the Arsenal spine imo.

Yeah nobody is perfect.

But I agree with your post and you've broken it down nicely.

[Syn]

He divides opinion and goes unrecognised by the media so I wouldn't say overrated. But he plays in a key position and he's not the reason why play breaks down. The risky passes he goes for (wastefulness)...we need more people to take chances when teams lock up shop instead of trying going safety passes all the time and playing the numbers game. He usually does it in the final third when nothing is happening and we're just tipping the ball about and doing nothing. On fast breaks or key opening moments he makes the right decision and usually executes. It's not like what we've seen with Ramsey or Diaby. I've hardly blasted Song for failing to play through a ball at a key moment.

When he plays it simple, he spreads the ball around with little fuss and you won't see him dwelling on the ball for ages looking unaware of his surroundings. Ramsey and Denilson would get caught all the time. Gilberto was the same. This is a key position and we have to get the right player in. When Flamini was on fire it was instantly noticeable. When he left and wasted our time with Denilson, it was very noticeable. As soon as Denilson was dropped and Song came in, you could tell we were playing with more confidence and looked a better team. Can't underestimate the importance of the midfield and Song was one of our best players in that area.

Well that's what I mean. Last season we were missing all our creative players of the previous season: Wilshere, Nasri and Fabregas. So we were instantly short on a bit of invention in the front 6 and Song did a reasonable job. If we're going to compare him with Ramsey, Denilson or Diaby, of course he's going to come out very favourably. But that's not the benchmark we should be looking at right now if we want to progress. I wouldn't even class Song as particularly a weak link but he's one of the players that has a limit and he's not capable of being more than a 7/10 performer.

If we want to progress we need more genuine quality on the ball - the type of quality that only the naturally gifted have. And you know when you see one. For me, Song isn't it. I accept he could still do a job in the same way Arteta is (I don't consider Arteta to be one of those naturally gifted footballers) but I don't think a back-seat role is something that Song would be willing to take on. That is, of course, exactly what he'll get at Barca but maybe the attraction of the prestige (and just fancying a change) was too much to turn down.

[Power n Glory]

I wouldn't say he's a 7/10 performer. He's had MOTM performances and he's still young. He's only 24 and has shown that he can get better. We can do better, but it comes with a price tag and doubt we're willing to pay it. Not sure what you mean by naturally gifted because for me, Song is that player. He's not clumsy on the ball, has great awareness, strong, can pass, quick feet....quick enough to turn his man and to play one touch football...there aren't many players of his build that can play such a role.

[Syn]

Not sure what you mean by naturally gifted because for me, Song is that player. He's not clumsy on the ball, has great awareness, strong, can pass, quick feet....quick enough to turn his man and to play one touch football...there aren't many players of his build that can play such a role.

Strongly disagree. But other than trading a couple of examples, I don't think there's much else to be said.

[Power n Glory]

I mean come on....look at the touches, passing and the last dribble.

Nothing left to said, might as well show you.

How can you say that he's not naturally gifted? Crazy talk.

[Master Splinter]

[Syn]

Nothing left to said, might as well show you.

How can you say that he's not naturally gifted? Crazy talk.

Nah, it's stupid to be blinded by Lee Trundle-esque qualities. As I said, nobody's going to convince either that there's a right answer here. You can create Youtube compilations to make anyone look great.

[Cripps_orig]

If you are a member of an Alexandre Song fan club, you should click out of this article right now as the next 700 words will not be pleasant reading. If you are an Arsenal supporter, please do stay because this feature may just cheer you up following a frustrating past seven days.

The above paragraph will probably sound like a paradox because over the last few years, Song has developed into a real fan favourite at the Emirates. So much so that in 2011-12 he finished second behind Robin van Persie in Arsenal's Player of the Season award, as voted for by the club's fans.

Arsenal.com's congratulations to Song exalted: "Over the years, Alex has been an essential anchor at the base of Arsenal’s midfield, providing defensive cover for a free-flowing side committed to attack."

While official websites are naturally positive towards their own staff, never could an analysis be so wide of the mark. The hard truth is that Alex Song is incapable of anchoring the midfield and incapable of providing defensive cover. In the last four campaigns, Arsenal have conceded a whopping 170 league goals. In every one of these seasons (except 2009-10 when Tottenham shipped the same amount), Arsenal have let in more strikes than every other team in the Premier League top four.

The main reason for this is not a shaky back five or Arsene Wenger's tactical naivety – even if both are very significant factors – it is because Song cannot protect his defence.

In modern football where you can count on one hand the number of genuinely world-class stoppers, controlling and managing the midfield is the best form of defence. This is why teams with feeble backlines have still been relatively successful. An example is Netherlands' journey to the 2010 World Cup final, where Mark van Bommel and Nigel de Jong expertly shielded a modest quartet of Van der Wiel, Heitinga, Mathijsen and Van Bronckhorst.
Mark of a great | Song is unable to protect his defence like Van Bommel used to

Song is too undisciplined to be an anchorman. When his team-mates are in possession, he can't resist the urge to join in offensively – thus vacating his post and leaving his side open to punishing counterattacks. When the opposition has the ball, Song's spatial awareness, positioning and reading of the game are poor. These are skills that cannot be taught, you either have them or you don't. And Song's sluggish speed and acceleration prevent him from recovering situations that he fails to foresee.

There are too many games to recount where Arsenal have been fatally exploited due to gaping holes in Song's territory. The most high-profile recent example is February's 4-0 Champions League pummelling in Italy at the hands of AC Milan.

Supporters cite Song's 14 assists last season as evidence of his quality, but the midfielder's job at Arsenal was to prevent goals, not create them. Rogerio Ceni has scored more than 100 times for Sao Paulo, but that doesn't make him a great goalkeeper.

Barcelona's signing of Song is certainly a peculiar one. A much over-looked aspect of the Blaugrana philosophy is their ferocious pressing tactics. Not only is Song slow and cumbersome in closing down opponents, he is often accused of being lazy too. This will not be tolerated in Catalunya if he is to be a success.

The 24-year-old does not move the ball on quickly and seems ill-suited to the Blaugrana's fast one-touch, tiki-taka, pass-and-move game. While Song is certainly a better passer than Javier Mascherano, there are concerns that just like the Argentine he may struggle executing the short and sharp triangles with Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets, Messi and Co.

Song seems ill-suited to the Blaugrana's fast one-touch, tiki-taka, pass-and-move game. He may struggle executing short and sharp triangles

Mascherano was subsequently shifted into defence in an attempt to cover for the persistent injuries to captain Carles Puyol – and he has not looked back since. There is every possibility Song could also be used at the back, but this would be far from advisable in a big game against a Real Madrid, Bayern Munich or Manchester City. In his past outings in defence, Song has looked awkward and insecure.

Song will start his Barcelona career as a squad player, and will certainly deepen a rather thin senior roster. But €19 million (£15m) is a lot of money to spend on a benchwarmer, and Tito Vilanova – who personally requested the midfielder – is leaving himself open to criticism.

While Vilanova's predecessor Pep Guardiola made a few bad signings himself – Dmytro Chygrynskiy at €25m (£19.6m) the most infamous - it is hard to imagine Guardiola ever sanctioning a move for such an overrated and ill-suited player as Song. Not for the first time in a transfer dealing between Arsenal and Barcelona, it is the English side who will get the better side of the bargain.

http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2896/...most-overrated

Cant disagree with any of that. As a DM which was his main job, he was a bit shit but offensively he offered more than Arteta, Wilshere etc