Santi Cazorla: My Friend, Is Adios, No?

[hydrofluoric acid]

If you wanted to sell him because his legs had gone in the sense that he's not quick/fit enough to last, I strongly dispute that. He is technically and mentally brilliant, if fit he comes straight into our side and we are a far better side for it.

If you wanted to sell him because his legs had gone in the sense that you felt his body would fall apart, I don't think that is very realistic. Imagine Wenger coming out last season and saying that despite being fit, we are selling Santi because we are worried he'd get injured again. Fans would have lost it, he's that important of a player and that hard to replace that you roll the dice in that situation every time.

The issue with Santi has been that no one else stood up in his absence. Xhaka, Elneny and Ramsey have all been average, that's been the problem. If just one of those players actually stood up, we wouldn't be so dependant on Santi coming back.

I wanted Santi to be sold because he was old and suffered harsh injury in the season before. I thought he would have better chance on prolonging his career in Spain/Italy.

I'm also zero fan of Coquelin-Cazorla partnership and not a fan of Cazorla as a deep midfielder at all.

I'm asking again, do you want to rely on him being fit for most part of next season?

 

[Cudareli]

I'm asking again, do you want to rely on him being fit for most part of next season?

Do I want to rely on him next season? No I don't.

Do I want to keep him in the squad and use him when fit? Yes I do.

I struggle to see how we were stuck 'relying' on him this season when we spent £30m on a player who in theory was supposed to be able to do a similar role within the squad. Without getting into semantics about what exactly Xhaka does, it wasn't an unreasonable expectation to think he'd capable of doing an above average job in that position. After all, that is why we signed him.

If you think selling Cazorla and bringing another player in is going to fix anything, you are mistaking. Because like this season, if that player we replace him with gets injured or doesn't find his feet, we are stuck relying on the same players in midfield who have let us down this season by not stepping up.

'Relying' on Santi this season would have been going into the season with the exact same midfielder that we had last season. We didn't do that though, we added Elneny in January with the view of him settling in for the new season and we purchased Xhaka for a significant fee. Literally none of them and that includes Ramsey has put their hand up and that for me is the biggest problem here.

 

[Hunter Zolomon]

I wanted Santi to be sold because he was old and suffered harsh injury in the season before. I thought he would have better chance on prolonging his career in Spain/Italy.

I'm also zero fan of Coquelin-Cazorla partnership and not a fan of Cazorla as a deep midfielder at all.

I'm asking again, do you want to rely on him being fit for most part of next season?

he doesnt have to start every game, but maybe the big ones. alex fegurson kept giggs, scholes and carrick past their sell by date because they had valuable experience that they could pass on to the next generation.

We dont have to start him next to coquelin we can upgrade on coq. People remember how many players bayern had over 30 that played above us. Plus imagine how that game would have turned out if we had sagna and carzola in the team. Our boys where so scared overawed by the bayern team. Experience is cery important, particularly in midfield. We have wilshere, xhaka elneny and now ox. We have 3 creatives in the list i just mentioned, what we need now is a decent defensive midfielder that is not god awful with the ball at his feet.

Then that way we have decent rotations and we use carxola for certain games but at the same time have younger players as well.

 

[Silvinho's ball bag]

he doesnt have to start every game, but maybe the big ones. alex fegurson kept giggs, scholes and carrick past their sell by date because they had valuable experience that they could pass on to the next generation.

We dont have to start him next to coquelin we can upgrade on coq. People remember how many players bayern had over 30 that played above us. Plus imagine how that game would have turned out if we had sagna and Cazorla (not Carzola ffs) in the team. Our boys where so scared overawed by the bayern team. Experience is cery important, particularly in midfield. We have wilshere, xhaka elneny and now ox. We have 3 creatives in the list i just mentioned, what we need now is a decent defensive midfielder that is not god awful with the ball at his feet.

Then that way we have decent rotations and we use carxola for certain games but at the same time have younger players as well.

Comparing Cazorla to proper winners and leaders like the 3 United players you mentioned?

Santi, lovely bloke he surely is, is probably the last ****ing player our squad would look to for "leadership".

We have no leaders - it's as simple as that.

 

[Preacher]

Santi: "I still have one year left on my contract and my only desire is to return to playing and to compete at the highest level."

I would call it - unusual problems.

 

[Trilly]

If you wanted to sell him because his legs had gone in the sense that he's not quick/fit enough to last, I strongly dispute that. He is technically and mentally brilliant, if fit he comes straight into our side and we are a far better side for it.

If you wanted to sell him because his legs had gone in the sense that you felt his body would fall apart, I don't think that is very realistic. Imagine Wenger coming out last season and saying that despite being fit, we are selling Santi because we are worried he'd get injured again. Fans would have lost it, he's that important of a player and that hard to replace that you roll the dice in that situation every time.

The issue with Santi has been that no one else stood up in his absence. Xhaka, Elneny and Ramsey have all been average, that's been the problem. If just one of those players actually stood up, we wouldn't be so dependant on Santi coming back.

It might not be logical but just like @hydrofluoric acid I had a feeling that we were seeing the beginning of the end for Santi.

Since the summer where we could have sold him he'll have been available about 40% of the time by the end of this season. Next season he'll be older and just as injury prone with only a year left on his deal, he'll probably leave on a free.

 

[Jury]

It might not be logical but just like @hydrofluoric acid I had a feeling that we were seeing the beginning of the end for Santi.

Since the summer where we could have sold him he'll have been available about 40% of the time by the end of this season. Next season he'll be older and just as injury prone with only a year left on his deal, he'll probably leave on a free.

He's had a couple injuries . That doesn't mean he's destined to get injuries all the time. When fit he still offers a lot.

 

[Taylor Gang Gunners]

Yeah, I don't really get the whole Santi-out crowd. He's struggled with injuries recently but there are few better players in our team when fit. I do think his qualities are best utilised in a no.10 role though.

Cazorla is as close to technical perfection as you're gonna get in football terms. It's not just his ambidexterity, his vision, his touch, his timing of passes, his passing range and his dribbling is all top class.

With his style he could easily play at the top level for at least another three years. Already excited to see him back in our colours next season.

 

[WhatAFC]

Says he had a skin graft that came away and has needed another op to correct it. Nothing to do with the original Achilles injury he suffered and subsequently had an operation on.

He offers more than our current crop of CM do so regardless of him picking up injuries throughout the season it makes no sense to push him out over others.

If he comes back fit over the summer then I'd give him a 2 year contract in a heartbeat.

 

[OSBK]

Carzicky

Such a shame, quality player.

Fingers crossed we get him back next season but at what cost to his body

 

[Ewarwoowar]

Santi: "I still have one year left on my contract and my only desire is to return to playing and to compete at the highest level."

I would call it - unusual problems.

"The skin on My ankle had died so had to have a graft"!

Sounds like MRSA, it happened to me on both ankles, except they took flesh from me also leaving me with ****** up nerve endings, whenever I scratch my ankles I feel it in my toes.

 

[Trilly]

He's had a couple injuries . That doesn't mean he's destined to get injuries all the time. When fit he still offers a lot.

Don't disagree and time will only tell who's right. I just see another Arteta situation happening.

 

[Silvinho's ball bag]

"The skin on My ankle had died so had to have a graft"!. Sounds like MRSA, it happened to me on both ankles, except they took flesh from me also leaving me with ****** up nerve endings, whenever I scratch my ankles I feel it in my toes.

I don't understand this thing at all - please explain further.

 

[Jury]

Don't disagree and time will only tell who's right. I just see another Arteta situation happening.

Yours is a pessimistic view though. The player has no known persistent problem that plagues him. Hes just had bad luck. Take away this latest setback where his skin went gammy and we probably wouldn't even be talking about him possibly being finished.

 

[hydrofluoric acid]

Yours is a pessimistic view though.

Are there any others views than pessimistic ones on here?

 

[Jury]

Are there any others views than pessimistic ones on here?

I don't like seeing pessimism where it's not really warranted. Keep the pessimism to the Wenger or Özil threads please.

 

[Ewarwoowar]

I don't understand this thing at all - please explain further.

Skin dies all the time, we shed it all the time incessantly non-stop, but it has to regenerate of it's own volition and rapidly, otherwise it would look like we were inside out. If Cazorlas skin were dying and not regenerating then that points to infection(bug) or some kind of genetic problem. He will have most likely been given a cortisol steroid cream to treat the grafts to bed them in and heal them quicker, amazing how quickly they do, I had to stop the cream after 3 days because the skin was granulating(healing too well), mind you they also put seaweed on mine so maybe a miracle cure but stank like ****.

 

[Silvinho's ball bag]

Skin dies all the time, we shed it all the time incessantly non-stop, but it has to regenerate of it's own volition and rapidly, otherwise it would look like we were inside out. If Cazorlas skin were dying and not regenerating then that points to infection(bug) or some kind of genetic problem. He will have most likely been given a cortisol steroid cream to treat the grafts to bed them in and heal them quicker, amazing how quickly they do, I had to stop the cream after 3 days because the skin was granulating(healing too well), mind you they also put seaweed on mine so maybe a miracle cure but stank like ****.

Lol, OK thanks mate.

 

[grange]

If he really did have MRSA, I think there would be a more serious report. It's no joke and can be a deadly infection.

 

[hydrofluoric acid]

I don't like seeing pessimism where it's not really warranted. Keep the pessimism to the Wenger or Özil threads please.

I don't think its pessimism. I think both me and @Trilly would love nothing but been proven wrong about Cazorla because we are his two biggest fans!

But next season he is coming off two injuries plagued seasons, we will be 33 and not the most athletic player playing in very physical demanding league.

I would love nothing more but Cazorla to prolong his playing career. But I'm not sure he can do it here. But if its to be I would move him away from the midfield position and further up the field.