Chelsea have a world class striker, Anelka, who might be the difference on Super Sunday.
Arsenal don’t have a world class striker. They just have some people who score goals.
But their best players ARE world class : the new captain, the old captain, and the full backs. Sagna was magnificent last season and if he can play like that at Stamford Bridge, Malouda will hardly get a kick.
This is one of those weekends when Sunday is Saturday, when the main action is tomorrow, and that’s no disrespect to Aston Villa, who play Fulham today.
Marcel Desailly was interviewed on BBCs Football Focus today. Garth Crooks asked him about Gallas’s comment that Arsenal’s kids didn’t have the courage for the fight.
Desailly was not being enigmatic when he said, “Don’t criticise too much Gallas. Because he’s right – and he’s wrong.”
He also said “Arsene Wenger is an intelligent man who will change a little bit his strategy to please his fans, his players and his board.” Let’s hope Marcel is right about that. When something which seemed unlikely to happen was mentioned to my dad, he often said, “I’ll buy tickets for that.” And that’s my instinctive reaction to the suggestion that AW will change his strategy : I’ll buy tickets for that.
On the captaincy, I wholly agree with Focus pundit Martin Keown, who said, “Fabregas is the perfect leader for that group of young players.”
As you know, Cesc Fabregas is one of those rare characters who is very grounded and intelligent. He’s an old head on young shoulders. When Petr Cech was a 19-year old at Rennes, he was 19 going on 30. He was as mature as a 30-year old. If you get a guy like that playing for your club, you’re lucky. And Cesc Fabregas is another one like that. He was a leader in all his youth teams. I was amazed last Saturday morning when Henry Winter said it was a mistake to make Fabregas captain. If Stevie G can captain Liverpool at the age of 23, Fabregas can captain Arsenal at 21. He is more mature than Gerrard was then.
Petr Cech, now 26, has trained, played and travelled with William Gallas, so he knows him better than any of us.
Cech spoke to The Sun and said, “I know William and if he says it then it is true. I’ve played with him and know him well. William is a great guy and he is passionate about football but I don’t agree players should talk publicly about what is discussed in the dressing room. William must have felt very frustrated to want to talk publicly about it. As a person he says what he feels. And that’s why people look at him differently because, when he speaks, it comes from the heart.’’
It should be clear to most people that Gallas is a vital player for Arsenal this season. He is a far better centreback that Silvestre, Djourou or, heaven help us, Song. While Gallas is being slagged off by spiteful morons, and while a few dimwit dreamers think you can go out and sign someone of his ability in the January transfer window, that will not happen. That cannot happen. It’s impossible.
I firmly believe that Gallas will have an outstanding game against Chelsea. If he doesn’t, Arsenal have no chance. Not a hope in hell.
Gallas could even score. It’s what Brian Glanville called “the immutable law of the ex.” Footballers score against their old clubs every week. We’ve seen it time and time again.
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