Times have changed, we need to pay our players top dollar and I don't buy that Squillaci, Arshavin etc are eating up wages. I don't think the board will offer top wages to anyone even if we managed to clear all the deadwood out of our squad.
With that said Song has his positives and negatives. I'm not going to sit here and pretend he was absolutely awful for us but neither am I going to pretend he was Vieira. His greatest strength also became at times his greatest weakness, his lobbed ball over the top. The two games where that pissed me more than anything was QPR away and Norwich at home, two games where we weren't playing well and Song kept on lobbing balls into row x causing us to lose possession. There is a time and place to try everything and I'm sorry but if by the 5th try something isn't coming off you should know it's neither the time or the place to continue doing it.
It was in his head, every minute of the game he was at Anfield trying to relive that moment. When it did come off however I enjoyed it immensely but the only reason Song did that was because he looked around and saw that our midfield was seriously lacking creativity. I don't know if it was a joint project behind him and Wenger but it did it's job at times.
As for the rumors of his supposed bad attitude, none of that ever came out during the season but instead all we heard was that there was an unbelievable unity and harmony in the dressing room and the team was fighting for each other, Robin was the leader of men and Song was one of the more experienced players. Now that both have left we're hearing stories of RVP and Ramsey fighting after Man City and Song's clowning around and Steve Bould problems? Give me a break, that sort of thing happens in all dressing rooms and it seems to me that someone at the club has leaked this stuff to discredit Song and RVP and soften the blow of them leaving. Now it isn't that we lost a great player in Song, people are saying well if he was a bad influence in the dressing room get him out.
As for his defensive contribution, it will be missed. When Santos and Gibbs went walkabout last season, Song filled in and it was painfully evident against Sunderland that he wasn't there. Sunderland had acres of space to exploit in the first half and they did, Gervinho wasn't tracking back, Diaby was up-field along with Gibbs and Arteta couldn't get over there quickly enough. This caused our center halves to be dragged out of position trying to deal with a problem area where the LB should be. A maruading LB has always been our style of play, when Cashley played for us whenever he went forward Gilberto would fill in for him. We need a player to come in who has that sort of intelligence because if we let Gibbs go walk-about and no one covers, against a better team we will be slaughtered down that side.
Song kept getting "stupid" bookings because he was doing what Denilson failed to do, stop counter attacks before they happened. I know some people like blood and thunder defending, making a last ditch tackle and saving the day but I much prefer stopping problems before they occur and that's exactly what Song did. However when he was attacking and doing those stupid lob passes no one bar Arteta was making those tackles in midfield.
To sum up.
Song is great but he can be replaced, question is of whether or not Wenger will replace him
