General Reserves Talk

[MaestroCesc]

Afobe's goal was weird, hard to tell it was a fluke or he meant to do it. Pleasing to see him making good runs though and getting the chances.

 

[musicmonkey]

Afobe's goal was weird, hard to tell it was a fluke or he meant to do it. Pleasing to see him making good runs though and getting the chances.

Does look a little bit of both, think he might have pulled off a scoop turn against the 2nd defender but it looks like slipping the ball through the last player's legs looked like luck from an off touch.

 

[akhil]

All the U21's highlights along with the youth European stuff is there for free on Arsenal Player. Just need to sign up.

Akpom and Hayden are worth watching in some of those clips.

 

[jmsmtthw28]

@AFCAcademy 45s
Bellerin has joined Watford on loan until January. Great news that he will gain first team experience.

<a class="postlink" href="http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/bellerin-joins-watford-on-loan" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archiv ... rd-on-loan</a>
:bounce :bounce
Bellerin has joined Watford till January 2nd
If he does well on loan then its possible this loan might be extended till the end of the season

@AFCAcademy 3m
Little disappointed Yennaris, Eisfeld, and Afobe haven’t gone out on loan yet. Still 2 weeks left of the window though, clubs want them.

Hopefully all 3 will go on loan to a Championship side and get plenty of experience.

 

[SiMamu]

Eisfeld's been linked with a loan to Leeds. Can't see where he'll play though. Doesn't really fit the 5/3-2/3-5-2 formation Leeds have.

 

[Giroud]

Eisfeld's been linked with a loan to Leeds. Can't see where he'll play though. Doesn't really fit the 5/3-2/3-5-2 formation Leeds have.

He could play as a second striker as he's very good at finding those pockets of space in and around the opposition defence. Nice finisher too.

 

[SiMamu]

Eisfeld's been linked with a loan to Leeds. Can't see where he'll play though. Doesn't really fit the 5/3-2/3-5-2 formation Leeds have.

He could play as a second striker as he's very good at finding those pockets of space in and around the opposition defence. Nice finisher too.

Well, at Leeds it tends to be:
-------Smith/Blackstock-McCormack
---------------------Austin
------------------Mowatt-Murphy

And Austin's the captain.

 

[clockwork orange]

Eisfeld's been linked with a loan to Leeds. Can't see where he'll play though. Doesn't really fit the 5/3-2/3-5-2 formation Leeds have.

I'ld like our players to be loaned to clubs who play a little like us. Preferably clubs who aim to win titles too.

Chelski now have 6 players (rumoured to go up in January) on loan at Vitesse, who currently are top of the table in Holland. The clubs cooperate (info exchange, etc.) very well.

Think we should find a (few) club(s) we could do similar partnerships with.

 

[Vinci]

I'ld like our players to be loaned to clubs who play a little like us. Preferably clubs who aim to win titles too.

Chelski now have 6 players (rumoured to go up in January) on loan at Vitesse, who currently are top of the table in Holland. The clubs cooperate (info exchange, etc.) very well.

Think we should find a (few) club(s) we could do similar partnerships with.

Yeah, I agree.

Dutch league would be a good environment for our young lads to get some experience. Firstly, not a single club in the Netherlands has money to spend and secondly a few teams play Europa League. Something you won't find in the Championship, except for Wigan this year.

Looking at PSV, for example, they play with mainly youngsters and even have to resort to playing rejects: Toivonen. I think our most talented youngsters are way better than theirs and would get plenty of game-time.

 

[Rain Dance]

What? how low has Dutch league has fallen? Is that serious

 

[Vinci]

It's pretty bad, to be honest.

Ajax sold Eriksen, Alderweireld, PSV sold a bunch, Twente sold Chadli, and all were replaced by youngsters from their academies.

For example, Vitesse got Piazon from Chelski on loan and this guy is tearing up the league. Obviously, he is quite talented, but if he can do that, our best youngsters should be able to do well in the league too.

 

[jmsmtthw28]

Ryo was amazing for Feyernoord but it didnt help his progression into Arsenal first team, I would rather see them go on loan to Championship or PL club than an overseas club.

 

[phv]

Spain U19 vs Germany U19. Hector Bellerin vs Serge Gnabry. Who will win ?? Those 2 are in the same group in the Elite Round and only one can qualify for the Euro U19. Spain will be the host nation. The other two teams in the group are Denmark U19 and Lithuania U19.

 

[jmsmtthw28]

Superb Crowley helps Arsenal to thrash Torquay in FA Youth Cup
FA Youth Cup 3rd Round
Arsenal 5 (Maitland-Niles 15, Iwobi 23, 55, Crowley 33, Jebb 72) Torquay United 0
By Jeorge Bird @ Meadow Park

It was always expected that Arsenal would manage to overcome Torquay United and reach the Fourth Round of the FA Youth Cup, but that they did so with such ruthlessness and professionalism will have been of great satisfaction to coach Carl Laraman.

Dan Crowley, who was ushered into the side at the expense of Jack Jebb, was Arsenal’s creator-in-chief for much of the evening, with the audaciously talented midfielder creating several chances for his team-mates and scoring a fine goal of his own just after the half-hour mark.

By that point Arsenal were already two goals to the good courtesy of strikes from wingers Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Alex Iwobi, and the latter, along with substitute Jebb, would also score in the second-half to complete a comprehensive victory.

Arsenal have not won a match in the U18* Premier League since the opening day of the season, but they named their strongest available line-up here, with Josh Vickers and Austin Lipman being included in the squad despite currently being on youth loans with Canvey Island and Boreham Wood respectively.

It was thought that Crowley, given his good form for the U18s recently, would be included from the offset, but it was something of a surprise that Jebb was omitted, whilst Stefan O’Connor passed a late fitness test to start at centre-back alongside Leander Siemann.

Torquay were backed by an unexpectedly large set of supporters, but Arsenal’s technical superiority was immediately evident, with Crowley seeing much of the ball in the opening stages. The 16 year old, who was the victim of several over-zealous challenges throughout the evening, did well to find Iwobi in space, but the latter shot over.

Brandon Ormonde-Ottewill then delivered a typically inch-perfect cross from the left flank, but Chuba Akpom, who is not scoring as freely as he was last season, couldn’t get a decisive touch on the ball. Crowley and Maitland-Niles then went close in quick succession as Arsenal cranked up the pressure, and, after several further half-chances, the opening goal eventually came on the quarter of an hour mark.

Tafari Moore swung a cross in from the right, Maitland-Niles latched onto it, and the winger dispatched an emphatic strike past the stranded Daniel Lavercombe to open the scoring. It was soon 2-0 and Maitland-Niles was involved again as his cross was flicked on by Glen Kamara, with the ball eventually falling to Iwobi, who finished well.

For all their dominance up until this point, the tempo of Arsenal’s play evidently dropped a little after they doubled their advantage, with Laraman imploring his side to pass the ball more swiftly.

The young Gunners soon heeded his advice and they continued to create an avalanche of chances, with Akpom and Iwobi both seeing shots saved before Crowley effectively ended the game as a contest, if indeed it had even been one in the first place, with an excellent finish after he latched onto a superb lofted pass from Gedion Zelalem.

Zelalem has not always been at his most effective in recent weeks, but, operating in a more deep-lying role than usual, he was impressive here, with some of his link-up play with Crowley in particular a joy to behold.

Arsenal sought to increase the scoreline further before the interval, with Akpom being denied again before Crowley’s dangerous free-kick was tipped round the post. Torquay mustered just a single shot on target in the opening period, but, to their credit, they at least kept trying to play possession football rather than entrenching themselves in their own half.

Arsenal were forced into a change at half-time, with Maitland-Niles not emerging for the second half because of injury. He was replaced by Lipman, who is no stranger to Meadow Park due to his loan commitments with Boreham Wood, for whom he has been impressive since joining.

The 18 year old almost made a profound impact on his return to Arsenal action and was unfortunate to see his lofted effort strike a post. Moments later, however, the ball did find the back of the net, and it was Iwobi who doubled his tally with another well-taken effort.

The momentum then proceeded to drip out of the game as Torquay tired and Arsenal continued to pass the ball around at a dizzying pace. Zelalem played a neat back-heel into the path of Crowley, who shot over, then Torquay, in a rare attacking foray, squandered an opportunity of their own through Jack Mace.

Jebb then entered the fray in place of Iwobi and the 18 year old proceeded to make it 5-0 when he headed home after some excellent work from Akpom down the right flank. All that seemed to be missing now was an Akpom goal. The striker, who was a regular goalscorer for the U21s last season, has only scored three times in ten starts so far this season, but he was highly unfortunate not to find the net here.

He certainly had several chances to do so, including when he was played in by Crowley but shot wide, but Akpom can still be satisfied with his evening’s work in terms of his overall contribution.

As for Arsenal as a whole, they know they will face considerably tougher tests as they progress in this competition, but this game will have provided a much-needed confidence boost to a group of players who have had to endure some difficult results of late.

Attention will now turn to next week’s UEFA Youth Cup tie with Napoli, where a point is required to ensure progression to the latter stages.

<a class="postlink" href="http://arsenalyouth.wordpress.com/2013/12/06/superb-crowley-helps-arsenal-to-thrash-torquay-in-fa-youth-cup/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://arsenalyouth.wordpress.com/2013/ ... youth-cup/</a>

----------Vickers--------
Moore-O’Connor-Siemann-BOO
--Kamara-----Zelalem-----
Maitland---Crowley---Iwobi
----------Akpom-----------

 

[MutableEarth]

A few points:

-Zelalem in a deeper role? That might be an interesting one.

-Crowley sounds like a huge talent. Can't wait to see more of him

-What's happened to Akpom? Doesn't seem to be going in for him at the moment, I had high hopes. I'm sure he will get back in form soon.

-Iwobi and Maitland-Niles sound like prospects aswell - what are their chances of progression??

 

[musicmonkey]

That'll do wonders for them, they need a bit of confidence to try and find some wins in the league.

Zelalem deeper seems sensible, i always thought Cesc was best there personally as he could have more of a passing influence with the added time on the ball rather than dropping that a bit to be more of a goal threat at CAM.

 

[MutableEarth]

That'll do wonders for them, they need a bit of confidence to try and find some wins in the league.

Zelalem deeper seems sensible, i always thought Cesc was best there personally as he could have more of a passing influence with the added time on the ball rather than dropping that a bit to be more of a goal threat at CAM.

Cesc as a goal-threat made sense because he kept slapping them in at youth level despite playing deeper. He always seemed to have that desire to play further forward, and playing under Arsène Wenger simply gave that desire a platform (ironic how Arteta in his later years has seemingly gone full circle).

I do not see the same goal threat in Zelalem at the moment - he seems quite reluctant to shoot, much like Özil at times, though Özil will do so if he is positive of a goal, and usually accurately. I feel if a deeper position would work for Zelalem then it would be best served if he shadowed a player like Arteta in the squad and maybe got a bit more physicality to match his extraordinary vision, technique and passing. He could be a Pirlo type!

Still, early days and it's just one game from deep, but I think his passing game would be great from deep - and it's not like he will only play deep also seeing as we have such an interchangeable midfield at more than one level.

 

[jmsmtthw28]

I personally think Crowley will get switched to the wings as he develops further
Zelalem - Wenger will start him in the CM position like he did with Cesc and then move him further up the pitch if he becomes a goal threat.

-Iwobi and Maitland-Niles sound like prospects aswell - what are their chances of progression??

Progression into the first team? little or no chance.

 

[yuvken]

What about Chuba? was promising with the first team - regressed with the younger team? He's supposed to be scoring in bundles there.

 

[jmsmtthw28]

What about Chuba? was promising with the first team - regressed with the younger team? He's supposed to be scoring in bundles there.

Chuba has to go on loan soon, if he wants to keep progressing hopefully a good club will come in for him