Country: USA
Player:Saliba
Am I being unfair? Your first paragraph, IMO, epitomizes why the club went 9 years without a trophy. Our team back then was dross (Silvestre, Denilson, Almunia), one or two world class players (Fabregas, Van Persie) and too many guys who were good but not good enough (Walcot, Song, Fabianski). Sure Walcott had his uses and Song wasn't a bad DM but clinging on to those two stopped us from signing better players. I'm not knocking them, they just weren't good enough to be starters for a title winning team.
The club gets way too attached to these type of players instead of being ruthless and improving on them when the opportunity arises. You also know that when the shoe is on the other foot, these same players have no qualms about leaving us high and dry. We're being loyal to the guys we have now but how long do you think it would take Mustafi to get to the airport if his agent told him Real Madrid or Barcelona wanted him?
Walcott did have a knack for scoring in big games and was our top scorer for a season. All that means to me is that we should have sold him for a big fee and got in someone else. The only thing Theo was really good at was finishing and using his pace. Average in every other department. He could have used his skills to become a dangerous Wideman but was too fixated on becoming the next Michael Owen
I don't think Xhaka is a leader. He has way too many lapses in concentration. Was it against Watford last season where he was standing around picking his nose while they scored? He just isn't switched on enough.
Your last paragraph is more of an indictment on our current defence than it is praise for Clichy. There is also a difference between better than what we have and good enough to be where we want to be. Example, Giroud was a far better striker for us than Chamakh. The former still wasn't good enough to be our first choice.
EDIT:
Speaking of players who left us first chance they got. Remember City's tunnel cam? Players are standing in the tunnel. Wenger walks past Clichy and totally ignores him. leading Clichy turns to another City player and tells him, "its only been 9 years" referring to the time him and Arséne have known each other. Clichy's departure was kind of sudden IIRC, something must have happened there for him to leave just like that and Wenger to blank him because Wenger is usually ambicable with ex players.
Don't know about the Wenger/Clichy thing. Relationships are personal and can be affected by matters off the pitch.
As for the rest of your sentiments, I broadly agree. This club had an idealistic misconception of player loyalty based on acquiring and developing players from a young age.
Not only did we get it badly wrong by investing so much stock in FFP, we doubled down by doing so in the HG rule, think that these benevolent directives would supercede wealth and success in a sport governed by corruption and nepotism.
It's 100% the right thing to do, but it is not the job of any authority to level the playing field. We needed to adapt and evolve our tactics, coaching and recruitment model way sooner than we did, but we were too fearful of outside intervention (which came along anyway).
Anyhow what's done is done. Long winded way of saying I agree with you but just to reiterate your point, acceptance of mediocrity became evident as our CL performances deteriorited, and we became top 6 whipping boys. The culmination of falling outside the top 4 was inevitable.
We still have a legacy of that mediocrity that I think you see as much as I do, and that, to me, stems from rewarding players who make the same mistakes and non-appearances season in season out. Look at Walcott now being exposed for his true level.
I believe very much in backing everyone who throws on the jersey and gives 100% on the pitch, but there are some players in critical roles who simply aren't good enough for the level we need to reach.