Youth team development: Page 46 - The Arsenal discussion forum and community: One More in the Tolly

Youth team development

Klaus

Penalty again to United which they score easily. 3-0 to them now.

goon

Think he's generally just really bad at sorting his feet, gets caught flat footed a lot, even in other situations. Always tripping over too. Odd player.

Jed

Great saves from Okonkwo but on the other hand conceded very soft, avoidable goals. Mixed bag for him.

Klaus

goon wrote:
I'll saw one thing about Balogun, he's good a really good first touch and is able to trap a ball quite well.

I was thinking about this earlier too. I think he gets complacent because his touch buys him so much time. He has received the ball really well 3-4 times in this game only to fire off a bad shot; getting too little power or accidentally hitting the ground first, or going straight at the keeper. The one time he used it to his advantage was when he laid off the ball to Möller who got off a cracking shot. I wonder if he's actually going to prove to be better as the deeper of the two strikers.

It was the same with his dribbles he posted to taunt the first team wasn't it, they happened deeper, in the space left behind a more advanced striker.

goon

Maybe he'd do well in a Laca type role then, with guys like Pepe, Martinelli, Saka and Auba making runs beyond from the wing.

DKGooner

Watched part of the game yesterday and see no reason why we shouldn't try out Lopez as LB in some of our first team games. Has his flaws, but don't see much of a downside compared to playing Cedric who is much better suited to the right.

Klaus

goon wrote:
Maybe he'd do well in a Laca type role then, with guys like Pepe, Martinelli, Saka and Auba making runs beyond from the wing.

Yeah, maybe, but I genuinely have no idea if he's going to be good enough for a club like Arsenal. He's nowhere near that level in the present at least, that's plain for everyone to see. I think he's got a first touch and a physical presence that are good enough to guarantee him a decent career somewhere, much like guys like Chuks Aneke, Benik Afobe and Chuba Akpom in the past, but I really don't know at what level. Could be Premier League, or he could end up being one of those guys who score a lot in League One and the Championship but can't handle the step up.

I'm not sure he's on the same level as some of the other talents we've gotten hold of in recent years though. Bloke doesn't look like a patch on ESR or Nelson (who are only 1 year and 18 months older than him, respectively), doesn't seem to be in the same stratosphere as Saka and Martinelli (who are the same age as him), and I think he's behind Eddie too; both where he is now and where he was at the same age. You can't blame Arteta for not using him more based on what I've seen. Maybe he needs to get out of U23 football to grow. But then again he only has himself to blame for not signing a new deal and going on loan somewhere.

goon

Who knows, I thought he looked genuinely at home in the first team in the EL cameos, more so than the U23 games funnily enough. He's one of those that might benefit from having better players around him.

DK Gooner wrote:
Watched part of the game yesterday and see no reason why we shouldn't try out Lopez as LB in some of our first team games. Has his flaws, but don't see much of a downside compared to playing Cedric who is much better suited to the right.

Lopez has no future here mate, barely a top level footballer. Cedric isn't great but he's probably three times the player and that's being generous.

banduan

why do people think Balogun posted his goals to taunt the first team? Kids post their goals all the time.

goon

I thought so too at first but the facepalm emoji and posting the clip immediately after we just got knocked out is at the very least really poor timing and daft, and I don't think assuming it's a dig is that far fetched either.

Klaus

Of course it was a dig, and I bet it was perceived as one too. He hasn't been seen training with the first team since then.

speedy

Klaus wrote:
Of course it was a dig, and I bet it was perceived as one too. He hasn't been seen training with the first team since then.

The moaners

AMN, Saliba and Flo are all in no man's land. If anyone of them knuckled down they could make something of themselves here. Super intelligent players like Saka just get on with it and progress.

I was chatting to a lad that played with holding throughout the youth sides (he's from Manchester area). They were saying he wasn't really super talented but he stayed back after training every single day and just worked and worked. He never went to just piss around with the lads after. 100% focus, determination and will to graft. Nothing of what he has is God given the lad has just sacrificed for years and earned it. These other guys have twice the talent but they wanted it handed to them on a plate.

Claudius

speedy wrote:
Klaus wrote:
Of course it was a dig, and I bet it was perceived as one too. He hasn't been seen training with the first team since then.

The moaners

AMN, Saliba and Flo are all in no man's land. If anyone of them knuckled down they could make something of themselves here. Super intelligent players like Saka just get on with it and progress.

I was chatting to a lad that played with holding throughout the youth sides (he's from Manchester area). They were saying he wasn't really super talented but he stayed back after training every single day and just worked and worked. He never went to just piss around with the lads after. 100% focus, determination and will to graft. Nothing of what he has is God given the lad has just sacrificed for years and earned it. These other guys have twice the talent but they wanted it handed to them on a plate.

Thanks for sharing. It’s evident even now. He just seems like a guy of average talent (by Premier League standards) who gives it his all. And that’s great. Cos you see someone like Nelson who has extravagant talent but it’s not clear he will ever have the career Holding has.

Bring Back Kerrea Gilbert

Yep. Nelson really pisses me off. Why didn't he even go out on loan last month?

Ray

That’s all well and good but I’m sure Saka would also be moaning and on his way out if Arteta point blank refused to play him, and that shows ambition, slightly worried that Nelson is happy to just sit in the reserves and coast along. All Saliba and Flo are asking for is game time. Arteta needs to manage these guys better, and they won’t be moaning.

Claudius

I think to put this all at Arteta’s feet is unfair. It’s like the Saliba situation. Take Saliba. We’d just bought a 22 year old defender who was going to be the centrepiece of our defence. I can understand why Arteta was before about also taking on an unfit 19 year old. And the other kids have been trying to break into a massive squad that has been struggling for consistency. Just tossing even more kids in doesn’t feel the easiest answer. We are dealing here with squad management issues. This is shit above Arteta’s pay grade.

Rohit

Yeah. Plus these decisions aren't easy for 20 year olds to make which is why they have family, advisers and agents. I remember there were people accusing Foden of lacking ambition too. Now some may say he had belief. Nelson should have gone on loan in my opinion but he had lifted his game earlier in the season as testified by Arteta. His injury came at the worst time. He has backed himself, not sure if it's the right decision but it's not related to ambition. This gets thrown around too loosely.

speedy

Ray wrote:
That’s all well and good but I’m sure Saka would also be moaning and on his way out if Arteta point blank refused to play him, and that shows ambition, slightly worried that Nelson is happy to just sit in the reserves and coast along. All Saliba and Flo are asking for is game time. Arteta needs to manage these guys better, and they won’t be moaning.

If you work hard you get that chance if you moan in public you don't.

Klaus

The more common scenario this season has been that you work hard and when match day comes around a twat like Willian still gets picked over you.

speedy

Klaus wrote:
The more common scenario this season has been that you work hard and when match day comes around a twat like Willian still gets picked over you.

Pepe could complain about that. But he's got his head down this season for the first time and he's now in the side a lot more .

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