Arsenal 2-0 Stoke - Match Reaction

[Kano]

I

FA Cup final? His injury record is not up for dispute. You were saying he hasn't contributed anything significant recently and you're just plain wrong. We could go back before his injury. 7 starts, 5 goals and 1 assist. 18 games in total 6 goals, 7 assists.

His injury record is awful. I won't dispute that one. That's just a fact. But everything else you say is just plain wrong.

And again, you keep the argument confined to small pockets of activity for Theo to bolster the argument. Because he is injured so much that is the only way anyone can discuss Theo. You have framed this as a debate about his 'recent' contribution but if you actually read back, you'll find I've been talking about his career. It only became a recent discussion when you pulled out a top-line, superficial stat. For a player that has spent so much time out injured, I'm not sure how you can separate his injuries from the argument. It's a huge part of why his career has not progressed both in terms of development and continuing to be a functioning part of our squads. I said in the summer that Wenger wouldn't buy a striker as the Theo experiment was going to now move to this current position. He is a utterly replaceable player, one that fans will easily forget about when he does limp on. I've no fear of him going to a rival because no one has shown in interest in him, which is hardly surprising. The best rumour conjured up was Liverpool. Hardly a step up in his career. So I repeat again, he'll score some goals, get some assists, maybe even have anther good season but amongst all of that he'll break down, miss a lot of games and frustrate the life out of fans on and off the pitch. The years he should've spent working on his game have been spent glueing him back together and those are vital moments he'll never be able to get back, vital time that will always haunt him.