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Joe Willock: Joening the First Team

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MutableEarth

Reiss' Dad
Trusted ⭐
Got the feeling that Wenger really likes Willock . Nelson probably outshone him in pre season and Joe seemed a little out of his depths in latter pre season games but Wenger has persisted with playing him .
Yeah, Willock would have stood out more to Wenger than Nelson - not because Willock was better but because everybody who's seen Nelson already knows that he's a potentially huge star in this Arsenal team, that's been apparent since he was 15.

Saying that, Joe Willock's had his own hype about him, especially after his Victory Shield performances for England U16s. Some were already saying he's potentially the best Willock. He played as an AM/winger then and was always more of a passer than a dribbler like his brother but he's still handy on the dribble as we've seen.

I'm not surprised Wenger likes Willock as much as he does considering how his development has turned out so far and the kind of player he could shape up to be. He's had a major growth spurt and looks to have hit the 6 foot mark. It's not just the physical and technical aspect to Willock - he looks competitive, willing to put himself about. Doesn't shy away from 50/50s, uses his power quite well for a player with little experience. Add to that his growing physique, his "eat-up-the-ground" dribbles, good passing ability......once he gets comfy shooting and getting into final 3rd situations for the 1st team/U23s, he'll basically give Wenger an opportunity to start his Diaby project again. This is the perfect kind of midfielder for Wenger. The way he develops, he could end up being an excellent all-rounder. Not quite Vieira (who was a freak) but in the same mold.

Very real possibility that one day we see a Willock-AMN midfield at least once. They're both all-round CMs who can win possession and do damage with it.
 

celestis

Arsenal-Mania Veteran
Moderator

Country: Australia
Yeah, Willock would have stood out more to Wenger than Nelson - not because Willock was better but because everybody who's seen Nelson already knows that he's a potentially huge star in this Arsenal team, that's been apparent since he was 15.

Saying that, Joe Willock's had his own hype about him, especially after his Victory Shield performances for England U16s. Some were already saying he's potentially the best Willock. He played as an AM/winger then and was always more of a passer than a dribbler like his brother but he's still handy on the dribble as we've seen.

I'm not surprised Wenger likes Willock as much as he does considering how his development has turned out so far and the kind of player he could shape up to be. He's had a major growth spurt and looks to have hit the 6 foot mark. It's not just the physical and technical aspect to Willock - he looks competitive, willing to put himself about. Doesn't shy away from 50/50s, uses his power quite well for a player with little experience. Add to that his growing physique, his "eat-up-the-ground" dribbles, good passing ability......once he gets comfy shooting and getting into final 3rd situations for the 1st team/U23s, he'll basically give Wenger an opportunity to start his Diaby project again. This is the perfect kind of midfielder for Wenger. The way he develops, he could end up being an excellent all-rounder. Not quite Vieira (who was a freak) but in the same mold.

Very real possibility that one day we see a Willock-AMN midfield at least once. They're both all-round CMs who can win possession and do damage with it.

Yeah I feel that is a real possibility . Would be amazing to see Willock , Nelson ,Maitland-Niles , Iwobi and Wilshere on the team sheet one day .
 

samshere

Why so serieuse?
I'd have loved for us to retain the services of all the Willocks. We could've had an entirely willock attack. The attack of the skillful willocks - coming soon to the nearest theatres.
 

Arsenal1508

Mods are unethical! Özil, come assist me please!
Joe Willock reminds me a bigger version of Fabian Delph. Hopefully he continues to impress in these outings. It is really time we start producing players from the academy now.
 

mavelous

Tinfoil hat aficionado
It's Wenger's ideal too. An XI made up of mostly Hale End/home grown players. It's close IMO.

Yeah I feel that is a real possibility . Would be amazing to see Willock , Nelson ,Maitland-Niles , Iwobi and Wilshere on the team sheet one day .

we could see this in early 2018 if we get a more favorable home tie in FA cup early stages.

Or in 2018-2019 Carling cup. saving face for the failed British Core project )))
 

logic DC

Well-Known Member
don't need nothing special from Joe just need him to continue doing what he currently is doing, he is composed and matured on the ball, the strength and being difficult to push off the ball will come as he continues to grow physically.
 

celestis

Arsenal-Mania Veteran
Moderator

Country: Australia
There is so much upside to Willock and it's kinda annoying that people don't see it.

Put it in context , you have to be extremely highly rated to be put in CM away from home in a place like Belgrade and his positioning was top notch and he controlled the game as well . Since pre season he has improved in every game he has played .

I'm actually excited for these kids , early days ,but due to circumstances at the club the stars seemed to have aligned for them to have real development at the Club with Europa league .

What do you think of that Sheaf kid , he's got something about him not shy about getting forward is he ?:lol:
 

Country: Iceland
Very talented player. Will only get better as he grow into his body and gets older. People know that even if passing is his stronger side he is very adaptable dribbler. But it is very hard to task such a young player to dribble. It is all about learning the game now but as older he get and the more experience he get I fully believe he will become a very good midfielder.
 

MutableEarth

Reiss' Dad
Trusted ⭐
Put it in context , you have to be extremely highly rated to be put in CM away from home in a place like Belgrade and his positioning was top notch and he controlled the game as well . Since pre season he has improved in every game he has played .

I'm actually excited for these kids , early days ,but due to circumstances at the club the stars seemed to have aligned for them to have real development at the Club with Europa league .

What do you think of that Sheaf kid , he's got something about him not shy about getting forward is he ?:lol:

He didn't look nervous at all, looked extremely comfortable. Didn't help him that Coquelin was having a shocker but he was just coming back from an injury and looked like it. Again, I must remind anyone reading this that Joe Willock wasn't even an U23 regular last season, he was firm fixture in the U18 squad. That he's literally skipped ahead and is now starting games for the first team in Europe no less (albeit the EL not the CL) speaks volumes to how well his development is going. He's doing all the right things at the moment and when he gets more comfortable at this level we're going to see his game evolve more.

RE Sheaf, I've talked about him quite a bit in the reserve thread but he's originally a box to box midfielder with very good technical skill. So he is comfortable in advanced positions and has played everywhere bar striker but since last season, he's been converted to CB mostly and he's looked extremely comfortable there, and he looks like he really enjoys defending. He's basically a taller version of Maitland-Niles, very versatile. He's better as a defender than AMN is but both are also very good midfielders, AMN having more of an edge in the middle.

Very talented player. Will only get better as he grow into his body and gets older. People know that even if passing is his stronger side he is very adaptable dribbler. But it is very hard to task such a young player to dribble. It is all about learning the game now but as older he get and the more experience he get I fully believe he will become a very good midfielder.
Making very smart decisions for an 18 year old who barely even has U23 experience. The right passes, getting into good tackling positions and generally providing really solid all-round midfield play. He's gonna be really good IMO.
 

BobP

Memri Fan
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Looks like he has a keen eye for talent.

Part-time scout.
 

MutableEarth

Reiss' Dad
Trusted ⭐
I thought he was very encouraging tonight. Fought for every ball, passed confidently and looked very good in comparison to his midfield partner Coquelin. There's real and tremendous upside to him.

I will add one caveat though - I don't think he's quite ready for the Arsenal first team just yet. He's done really well and looks like he will be better than the likes of Elneny and Coquelin - however there were a few times where he looked like he was catching up to the game a little bit rather than bossing it completely. At the most, he was very competitive. But that control - being ahead of the game. It's not quite there, nor would I expect it to be. Which is why I think he should have more time to cook at U23 level. He needs more time to really sharpen his game there. I love that Wenger is actually playing him in his projected position though, which should do him the world of good.
 

logic DC

Well-Known Member
he is a good talent and it comes easy to him but at least another 4 years until he is ready.
 
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