On this week’s Daily Cannon Weekly podcast, episode 215, host Matthew Wade took a look at why Matteo Guendouzi might be annoying opposition supporters, and why we love him for it.
I think it’s very apt that Matteo Guendouzi was getting some serious social media love this week from Cesc Fabregas, because, quite apart from both being young midfielders who try to drive an Arsenal team forward, both are a bit snide!
Guendouzi is one of those players that is probably quite hard to like if you’re an opposition fan.
I mean, he does like a bit of a tumble. He is a bit spiky. He’s not quite one of those players who leaves his foot in to hurt people, unlike some others, but he’s going to try and piss you off.
He’s a bit of a wind-up merchant.
We all loved it when he was giving some to John Terry last week.
Guendouzi is just incredibly competitive to the degree where it crosses the line sometimes and he will get in trouble for that occasionally.
That competitiveness might be better if it was slightly more focused than it is at present, but it is something that this Arsenal team lacks and has been lacking for a good while now.
That’s why he has so many fans among Arsenal fans. People love him.
Because, as Fabregas pointed out, the thing that is so easy to love about Guendouzi is even if he’s playing like sh*t, he never hides.
He’s always trying to drive the team forward, make something happen.
He’s a 20 year old, so he’s inconsistent at times and he doesn’t track runners religiously and makes stupid fouls. His first touch is a bit inconsistent, but he’s always…they talk about personality don’t they? Personality. He wants the ball, he wants to make something happen.
Occasionally, that means he’s lacking a bit in positional discipline, but you know, he’s trying.
He’s not afraid to bollock all the players. Even after the goal against United, they were celebrating and he’s the one tapping his head telling everyone to concentrate.
How can you not love him if you’re an Arsenal fan?
To hear what else was said on this week’s podcast, you can subscribe to the Daily Cannon Weekly podcast in your podcast app of choice or you can listen here.