Matteo Guendouzi: Lad of Luscious Locks

[Camron]

I rate him but goodness, you're overplaying him here. Or alternately, you're underrating Özil and Cazorla's abilities.

Judge me in May.

 

[celestis]

Judge me in May.

We will

 

[Zaza]

Neither do I , kid has great ability to hit sweet passes but there is so much more to midfield than that but the staff obviously rate him so who am I to say . To me ANM has all the tools to be WC.

Agreed. I think AMN is more talented.

 

[MutableEarth]

I think it's very difficult to get a read on how high Guendouzi's ceiling actually is. There are a wide variety of things he does to a high standard, which bodes extremely well. Slight moments of inexperience belie his ability - the occasional dwelling and the almost systematic use of the ball in certain situations. I feel like he's better progressing the ball from deep, but in the middle third, his final 3rd entry passes are usually long diagonals to the full-back in space. This is fine for me, especially given it's probably a directive from Emery. But the dwelling is a bit of an issue - sometimes he could take on a quick pass rather than take a few touches. It's the main problem with Ramsey, and I hope it isn't one that Guendouzi assumes as he develops. If he manages to progress play quickly consistently and retain his composure on the ball then we can assume that he is indeed very capable of reaching the higher echelons. As it stands, he's still a very good talent who could easily be a first team player more regularly.

I think AMN is further ahead in his development than Guendouzi is, but perhaps is less trusted. I don't think he lacks in ability at all and I believe he has a very high ceiling. They aren't dissimilar either - both predominantly #8s, no real weakness, just a few intangibles away from true dominance. AMN almost has similar problems in fact - the one area I feel is that AMN is less systematic in his passing but they both dwell on the ball a lot despite having the dribbling skill to get away from players.

 

[dashsnow17]

Wenger would 100% like Guendouzi, which is good enough for me. I imagine Wenger would say that it doesn’t matter so much at 19 if he doesn’t have the physical or tactical attributes, what matters is that he has the technical attributes, because those can’t be taught. If he has a good mentality and good coaching then everything else will follow.

 

[Trilly]

His vision is Özil-esque. His movement and control in thight spaces is Cazorla-esque. He splits defenses with his through balls every game. With his passes he pretty much forces other players to act forward. World-class potential definitely.

Bloody hell.

Hopefully I get to watch him have more than a substitute appearance then. Big claims you’re making!

 

[Trilly]

Didn’t realise he’s 19. Just the fact he’s playing so often at this level is quite impressive.

 

[Sanchez11]

This kid needs 2 seasons to show how good he really is, then you can judge. Hes young and naive as hes raw and came from ligue 2. The more games he gets the better he will become.

 

[TheArsenalis]

Is AMN back from injury?

 

[Tsl]

Wenger would 100% like Guendouzi, which is good enough for me. I imagine Wenger would say that it doesn’t matter so much at 19 if he doesn’t have the physical or tactical attributes, what matters is that he has the technical attributes, because those can’t be taught. If he has a good mentality and good coaching then everything else will follow.

I think Guendouzi has a lot of raw talent, and I highly agree with above. Some of the things Guendouzi is capable of is not something you can learn. His drive with the ball and his eye for the passes is impressive. And with his mindset and the right coaching, I'm sure that he is gonna learn the things he lacks. After all, physical and tactical attributes are not something you expect to be perfect for a 19-year-old coming from Ligue 2.
I'm not here to judge whether he is gonna be world class or not, time will tell. But what I do think, is that he is a highly interesting player, and I think that his type of personality is rare in modern football.

Furthermore, I don't think we have seen enough of Maitland Niles on his favorite position to judge him either. I don't know who's the most talented player of him and Guendouzi, but I don't think it matters either. They're two different players with a different style of play. Both talented, and it will be interesting to see how far they both can go.

 

[Mark Tobias]

Needs a little break I think. Feel he is one mistake away from a serious dip in form. This league is intense. Hope he keeps going.

 

[Maybe]

Needs a little break I think. Feel he is one mistake away from a serious dip in form. This league is intense. Hope he keeps going.

This is based on what? So far young players like Guenduzi and Torreira are the most stable players in this team while experienced players are performing without any consistency and are also making some criminal mistakes, especially in defense.
I have a feeling that every time we have a bad game and Gundo is on the pitch, people will blame him just because he is an easy target.
This BS is even worse than Özil thread, and there is some serious stupidity in that thread with people complaining how he doesn't play defense and he can't tackle.
I watched the game against Palace twice, from the first minute both Gundo and Torreira looked most comfortable in our team except for the time when Özil left the pitch and everyone dropped.

This is not meant for you personally, but if we can't start to appreciate these technical players, then just enjoy football with Ramsey, Xhaka and Elneny playing Europa League games somewhere in Azerbaijan.

 

[Mark Tobias]

This is based on what? So far young players like Guenduzi and Torreira are the most stable players in this team while experienced players are performing without any consistency and are also making some criminal mistakes, especially in defense.
I have a feeling that every time we have a bad game and Gundo is on the pitch, people will blame him just because he is an easy target.
This BS is even worse than Özil thread, and there is some serious stupidity in that thread with people complaining how he doesn't play defense and he can't tackle.
I watched the game against Palace twice, from the first minute both Gundo and Torreira looked most comfortable in our team except for the time when Özil left the pitch and everyone dropped.

This is not meant for you personally, but if we can't start to appreciate these technical players, then just enjoy football with Ramsey, Xhaka and Elneny playing Europa League games somewhere in Azerbaijan.

I'm a massive Guendouzi fan and this has nothing to do with blaming him for anything. No idea where you get that from...
My comment is based purely o0n the history we have seen in this team with fast tracking youngsters to the first XI without much competition. Bellerin, Wilshere, Holding (to some extent) are all prime examples of this.

 

[kraphtous]

Right now offers no protection for the back 4 and gets way too easily brushed off the ball. Needs to improve defensively and physically.

Thankfully he‘s just 19 and has a lot of time to work on that.

 

[Sanis]

He‘s megatalent, very composed on the ball and confident, even against active pressing, never panics (he‘s better at that than most of our experienced players) good passing skills including long range.
What I like the most is that he‘s constantly looking for forward passes (and has good vision) that was breath of fresh air, as for a long time now we had DM‘s only good at backpasses.
He’s also good at interceptions and positioning.

 

[Big Poppa]

This is based on what? So far young players like Guenduzi and Torreira are the most stable players in this team while experienced players are performing without any consistency and are also making some criminal mistakes, especially in defense.
I have a feeling that every time we have a bad game and Gundo is on the pitch, people will blame him just because he is an easy target.
This BS is even worse than Özil thread, and there is some serious stupidity in that thread with people complaining how he doesn't play defense and he can't tackle.
I watched the game against Palace twice, from the first minute both Gundo and Torreira looked most comfortable in our team except for the time when Özil left the pitch and everyone dropped.

This is not meant for you personally, but if we can't start to appreciate these technical players, then just enjoy football with Ramsey, Xhaka and Elneny playing Europa League games somewhere in Azerbaijan.

Judging from Mark Tobias' previous posting, I don't think that's what he's getting at but I am in agreement with you that Guendouzi and Torreira in particular have been a breath of fresh air and one reason we've not sunk like a lead balloon from our haphazard defending that's carried over from the last few seasons.

In particular with Guendouzi, he's upgraded our transitional play and lateral switching from the back vs the flawed pairings of Xhaka-Wilshere, Xhaka-Ramsey, Xhaka-Elneny, Elneny-Ramsey that we witnessed in Wenger's final season.

We can't rely on him but he is both a superior all round CM, and makes the team more fluid than to the aforementioned and that alone is good reason to persist with him as long as he is fit.

Dips in form will be inevitable, and that's why I'd have welcomed a seasoned player like Nzonzi with open harms while Matteo beds in.

 

[Big Poppa]

He‘s megatalent, very composed on the ball and confident, even against active pressing, never panics (he‘s better at that than most of our experienced players) good passing skills including long range.
What I like the most is that he‘s constantly looking for forward passes (and has good vision) that was breath of fresh air, as for a long time now we had DM‘s only good at backpasses.
He’s also good at interceptions and positioning.

I agree

 

[vijay]

i would like to see him and elneny play together.

 

[Mark Tobias]

Dips in form will be inevitable, and that's why I'd have welcomed a seasoned player like Nzonzi with open harms while Matteo beds in.

Thanks for that input. In agreement with all of that. Particularly this last bit.

 

[pigge]

Great cynical foul vs Palace, looks like he has a tactical head on his shoulders as well