Timberrrrrrrrrr!
24 days later
It's funny that the MO on this guy was that he was an on-ball savant with question marks over his defending. So far, he looks like a lockdown defender but's he been absolutely fucking brutal on the ball. Hopefully it's just that he's playing on the wrong side but having a leftback that can pass the ball forward come on to the field was a relief.
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It was apparent from his first appearance at LB, which is why I was so bemused when people had him starting in the position when he hadn't shown anything (talking about last year's pre-season) to usurp Zinchenko or Tomiyasu.
TBF to him, left back is not his natural position, so it favours playing more conservatively and I'm very sure he will be a completely different beast down the right.
Seems to be quality defensively and has the tools to be a one-on-one beast.
Going forward I think his ball carrying is more his thing than passing.
Might become the long term RB.
0 passes completed from right back. He looks like he was born to defend wingers, but it would be nice to have at least one good on-the-ball day at some point.
I wouldn’t judge him too harshly on that as we were down to ten men v best side in the world.
Let’s see what he does v Leicester and Southampton etc
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It was a superb defensive performance.
I thought he looked pretty slick on the ball in terms of dribbling, kept it quite well on the touchline a couple of times. He does seem to get a little lost inverting, doesn't look like he's used to asking or showing for the ball in central areas of the pitch.
DiabyKungFu 0 passes completed from right back. He looks like he was born to defend wingers, but it would be nice to have at least one good on-the-ball day at some point.
Read on opta that apparently Havertz somehow didn't complete a single pass all game which is mind blowing. Like no way is that true, is it?
He's hardly played any football so might be a bit of rusticness but his passing does need to be better.
Dunno if it was just down to injury but a good move using him yesterday ahead of White. White does struggle a bit against nimble wingers whereas Timber has looked rock solid against them.
Big Willie Havertz is less surprising than Timber given that Kai was up on his own and trying to win flick ons etc
JazzG Dunno if it was just down to injury but a good move using him yesterday ahead of White. White does struggle a bit against nimble wingers whereas Timber has looked rock solid against them.
White was injured. And he came on and still
Played second half. Arteta says he’d run through a wall for the team.
I don’t respect White’s game. Y’all know this. Think he’s pretty basic. But, his attitude cannot be questioned. Hope he gets better soon. Timbers versatility is a great attribute to this end. We have done a great job building this current squad despite all the naysaying about Artetas penchant for defenders, which has come in extremely useful as we can now see. The likes of Tomi and Zinchenko can play in the less important competitions or in trash minutes for easier games, and give the first teamers a break.
Saying you dont respect White's game is pretty harsh. I don't think he's that basic, i think he is a good defender who was converted to a RB and has played really well for us. I just think back to Chelsea last year, that was not real basic to me. Does Timber offer something he doesnt? Sure, hes much better on the ball for sure. But Benny has put in a lot of good crosses and overlaps well, especially when Ode is playing and has a good rapport with Saka. And he is a great shithouser, and can defend well also.
White's link up with Saka and Odegaard is top notch, whether it's under or overlapping, he times it all to perfection.
A "basic" footballer wouldn't be able to carry out all the roles Ben White does to such a high level in this football team. And he is the literal embodiment of the "mentality monster" phrase used elsewhere on this forum.
I love the guy honestly. One of my favourite players on the team.
flobaba I don’t respect White’s game. Y’all know this. Think he’s pretty basic. But, his attitude cannot be questioned. Hope he gets better soon. Timbers versatility is a great attribute to this end. We have done a great job building this current squad despite all the naysaying about Artetas penchant for defenders, which has come in extremely useful as we can now see. The likes of Tomi and Zinchenko can play in the less important competitions or in trash minutes for easier games, and give the first teamers a break.
Peak disrespect for a core squad member TBF.
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White will have a crucial role to play - I wouldn't be surprised if we start lining up our back line something closer to this in big CL games or if we need to protect a lead
-------White-Saliba-Gabriel--------
Timber---------------------Calafiori
Let's face it - that backline with that goalkeeper and 11 men will barely give away a chance.
flobaba yeah. But Arteta doesn’t play with flying fullbacks for the most part. He plays with a back 3 oe 4 to shut up shop. And then he uses the midfield and attack to score.
He’s in line with what Mikel likes. Big, physical. Can play inside or outside. Can play as a traditional fullback or a lot in as a third centre back. He’s an important asset on set pieces.
On top of that he has a critical asset that you can’t sneer at : availability. Before yesterday, he had started over 70 straight games. Which other fullback has given us that?