Probably I understood what Cuellar thinks. Oxlade is playing very well on midfield because has the quality to be in this role, but like Coquelin, like Elneny, like Ramsey he can’t be the brain of our build up possession.
Oxlade should be a fantastic half winger (like Ramsey) but on midfield we need a brain like Santi Cazorla and Mikel Arteta.
We can’t control the game with BRMs and BTBs.
Do you know why Ozil is pkaying differently than the past and Iwobi is a regular starter? Bevause the african winger has a good first touch and good passing qualities which can help the midfield to have an alternative to pass the ball and keep her.
Mustafi has an high number of forward passes because he hasn’t a reference in front of him.
Can Xhaka be the brain of this squad? I don’t know. He has very good qualities but isn’t mobile.
If we can get a proper replacement i will sell him to whoever pays the higher price but sell him to then start looking for a better player, i dont think so.
PEA, Reus Isco, James or someone of that caliber would be great.
I think if you deny he’s played well over the last few games then you either have an agenda against him or you haven’t watched the games.
I don’t think he’s a long term option there but he’s certainly taking his opportunity which has often been most people’s biggest problem with him - when given a chance he fails to seize it. He looks a lot more at home there than out wide.
Chamberlain has been bang average in CM for us so far. He’s succeeded in not being as bad as everyone thought he might be. If we have many more games with him as CM we will be dropping points fast.
No he hasn’t been “average”, just because he’s playing better than most thought he would doesn’t mean he’s been average at all.
He was likely our best player against Chelsea and now has been very good in three games on the spin. I wonder if he plays against Bayern and does well again it’ll still be “he’s been bang average”.
Saying his level will drop is moot, we’re simply talking how he has played so far which hasn’t been average at all.
Why would a good performance against Bayern change my perspective of his previous performances recently.
Beleive me his performances have not been good enough to be optimistic of a solid run of form incoming. The only thing you can say is everyone has found it impossible to play well alongside Coquelin so maybe Xhaka and Ox together will see some improvements.
I don’t see why you’re conflating whether he’s been good and whether the form will continue.
To say in isolation that his performances have been average is way off the mark IMO, the question as to whether the form will continue is a totally different matter.
Watching him play in CM he’s been growing into the role and the numbers back it up, you can say it was against Hull but then it can’t be disregarded he played just as well if not better against Chelsea previously.
Having pace and a dribbler in midfield is something we’ve lacked since Vieira left and Diaby’s ankle was shattered. It’s a massive weapon to have, Man City’s titles titles were won on the back of Yaya’s surging runs.
The Ox is never going to be the best passer in the world but it’s looking better from deep than it did on the wing and his burst of pace in the middle is something few midfielders have and it isn’t easy to deal with.
The way some have been talking about Ox lately, you’d think he was the second coming of Cazorla or something!
Don’t get me wrong, I think he has been decent there, but our expectations on him playing CM were so low that it was fairly easy for him to put in performances that would impress us.
:bellerin: