Arsene Wenger has used his pre-Manchester City programme notes to pick out Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain for a special mention.
- Player’s future is in doubt and his contract expires next summer
- Oxlade-Chamberlain said earlier in the season he would asses his future at the end of the campaign
- Jose Mourinho is a massive admirer of the midfielder
In his programme notes, Arsene Wenger usually talks about the match (which he does and you can read in our LIVE NEWS section) and any major issues of the week. This week, however, he has picked out the Ox for some reason.
“Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was in action for England last week, and lately he has done well,” Wenger wrote. “He’s been more stable, more focused in his performances. I still believe it’s a very encouraging period for Alex, but there is more to come from him.
“The work we do with him now is to get more and more from him, because there is still potential in him that hasn’t been completely exploited yet. That’s normal because he is still an under-25 player.
“That is absolutely normal and I hope this period gives him the confidence, and also the taste to want more.
“Whether he plays centrally or wide, what he gives to the team is being strong in the challenge, he has a good acceleration and in central midfield this kind of potential to go forward gets you away from pressure.
“He can create the difference and serve the strikers, as well as go past people. In the modern game where there is a lot of pressure on players with the ball, guys who can dribble and can go past people have a huge advantage.”
The manager and most Gooners have primarily viewed The Ox as a wide player (logical given his pace, dribbling and crossing ability), but the player has always wanted to play centrally.
Although his range of passing and new found positional discipline are very pleasant surprises, it is perhaps the qualities that have always been evident that present the greatest intrigue when considering a longer-term future in a central role.
For all the passing between the lines of Cazorla and Xhaka, the energy and aggression of Coquelin, the limitless stamina of Elneny or the imagination and goal threat of Ramsey, not one offers the raw gifts of Oxlade-Chamberlain.
None can carry the ball with the same confidence apart from Wilshere, and Jack lacks the pace of his compatriot over both short bursts and distances. Lack of footspeed in central areas at the club has long been a bug-bear of mine, particularly in recent years.
From an Arsenal perspective it is also about balance. Coquelin and Cazorla as a partnership works when it does because you have the technical brilliance of the Spaniard and the Frenchman’s bite and short distance acceleration. All our other partnerships to date lack either pace, creativity or defensive responsibility.
If The Ox can learn the latter, as he has shown signs of over recent weeks, then he suddenly becomes a very exciting proposition, particularly alongside Xhaka.
Allied to this, is his shooting ability, particularly from distance. While sometimes frustratingly wasteful, when confident, he can strike the ball as well as anyone else at the club and already has some great goals on his Arsenal CV.