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Calum Chambers has been stellar so far this season, so I don’t want to make too much of his performance Sunday. He was woeful, but not exactly at fault for the result and shouldn’t be blamed entirely.
I hate to point on Chambers specifically, as the entire team struggled mightily, but he seemed to really find it the hardest on the pitch. Montero gave him a real nightmare down the left and Chambers looked a defeated men when substituted for Sanogo late on.
Everyone is entitled to a bad day every now and then, and perhaps Chambers is just experiencing a dip in form. Perform something personal hindered him, or perhaps he is experiencing a learning curve.
Any player who hits the ground running is sometimes susceptible to a crash. Players sometimes become complacent and as a result their sense of urgency drops.
Chambers could be experiencing this, and it will be up to the veteran names in the locker room to help lift him through if this is the case. I will give him the benefit of the doubt and just chalk this up as a bad day, but it is something to consider going forward.
My predicted XI looks fantastic right about now, as Chambers would have had a much better game in the centre, and Bellerin’s pace could have nullified Montero. Of course hindsight is always 20/20 and it easy to say now given the result, but I truly feel Chambers is more suited centrally and his height and aerial presence could have prevented the second goal. He was never going to match strides with Montero.
The match commentators made the point that Wenger should have switched Chambers and Monreal, for the same reason I mentioned above, and it looks a fair shout given the outcome.
Tough on Chambers Sunday, and I feel for the lad. He is still just 19 and is a top class young player. I believe in him and I’m sure my fellow gooners do as well. I am not in the least bit worried by one bad day at the office, he will respond and rise to the elite level we all know he’s destined for.
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Chambers was unable to cope with Montero, that’s true enough, but to say he’s enduring a dip in form or struggling mightily is unfair and worse, inaccurate. Every player has things he does well and things he doesn’t. some can be learned and some can’t. Pace, can’t be learned. Fitness, yes, Players can learn to take care of themselves and train well and properly, but you never see players get faster.
Chambers isn’t slow. He’s got some pace, but Montero is very quick and he exposed Chambers with his pace. If Chambers is going to play right back against players with that kind of pace, he’ll need help. Against Swansea, he was out on the right alone. This happened for two reasons, first because Alex Oxlade Chamberlain showed no inclination to defend and two, because both Mertesacker and Monreal, the M&M center back pairing, are slow.
We’ve seen the same thing happen on the left when Arsenal plays Podolski and Monreal as left attacking midfielder and left back, respectively. Teams attack down the Arsenal left because monreal can be beaten for pace and Podolski doesn’t come back. With Koscielny in the side, it is less frequently damaging because he cleans up a lot; but without him, a lack of pace and support on the wings is deadly; something anyone watching Arsenal and Swansea could see.
Sadly, at least for a Gooner, it was also a recipe for how to beat Arsenal. Arsenal need an athletic defensive midfielder to shield the back four, they need additional depth in the middle, and at least until Debuchy returns and Jenkinson returns from loan, help at right back. They also need to adjust and play Walcott or someone else on the right willing to do some defensive work if Chambers is going to keep playing there. Maybe Ox had an off day. He was a force going forward, but non-existent as defensive support for his fullback.
The team looks unbalanced at the moment. Welbeck, the center forward, isn’t scoring, Sanchez, the winger, is scoring, and no one else; not Cazorla, Ramsey, Wilshire, Chamberlain, or any of the other first XI attacking players is scoring regularly either. It’s the Alexis Sanchez solo act up top and Arsenal is paying a heavy price for that approach.
People have been calling for Chambers to play centrally ever since Monreal was going to have to play there. Chambers is much better there and, dare I say, Bellerin is a better rightback than Chambers. Honestly, Wengers decision making is costing us a lot of games. For example, he also refused to bring Bellerin on against Anderlecht to see out the game. Absolutely ridiculous. Bellerin is ready, hasn’t put a foot wrong. And Monreal, Per, Flamini and Chambers a getting destroyed out there. Gibbs is the only defensive player that can put in a shift at this point. Putting chambers in the centre mean improving 2 positions in our defense with one blow. But Wenger will not see it.
WENGER OUT