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Move back to south london...
Football moves in cycles, arse will come around again because u have money and decent youth. In the short term, u arnt that far away, striking cover is needed, but not much other than that.
Second tier? I didn't know Arsenal were that high. The second tier of European football are teams like Porto, Benfica, Chelsea, Manchester United, Juventus, Inter... Arsenal are 3rd or maybe 4th tier.
Anyways, how to 'fix' Arsenal. I don't think there is much to fix. Last season, I would have said that sacking Wenger and rebuilding would be the perfect start but this season has shown hat he still has a lot to give yet. For me, I'd change 3 things:
- Sign a central defender that can play out from the back - Arsenal's counter attacking style is beautiful to watch but with Mertesacker, they lack a quick player who can move into midfield. Signing someone with those capabilities will provide that option, even if it means putting them on the bench. Options = strength in depth.
- Back up for Giroud - Self explanatory. Bendtner doesn't count.
- Stop buying #10s or wingers and then try to convert them into strikers or central attacking midfielders. As big a statement as signing Ozil was, you could've bought Tevez and Cabaye, be 15 million better off and seriously be ahead in the title race.
That's my view on it.
Second tier? I didn't know Arsenal were that high. The second tier of European football are teams like Porto, Benfica, Chelsea, Manchester United, Juventus, Inter... Arsenal are 3rd or maybe 4th tier.
Of course Arsenal are second tier. I'd throw them in thee with the like of Porto, Benfica and Juventus. I don't see how Inter are a tier above Arsenal too. Chelsea and United (not anymore) I would say are top tier because they have a realistic chance of being semi-finalists.
I just think this current Arsenal team isn't a team that will impose themselves on other really good teams. The only big teams we've beat this season are Liverpool and Dortmund, one we always beat at home and the other was a very good showing. I generally think Arsenal can win trophies once other big teams start to fear them.
It doesn't help that Wenger never sets his team to counter act the opposition and seems to instill mental weakness among his players.
Second tier? I didn't know Arsenal were that high. The second tier of European football are teams like Porto, Benfica, Chelsea, Manchester United, Juventus, Inter... Arsenal are 3rd or maybe 4th tier.
Of course Arsenal are second tier. I'd throw them in thee with the like of Porto, Benfica and Juventus. I don't see how Inter are a tier above Arsenal too. Chelsea and United (not anymore) I would say are top tier because they have a realistic chance of being semi-finalists.
Inter are 3 time European cup winners and 3 time UEFA cup winners, have had great sides go far on a consistent basis. Their pedigree is very rich in Europe, the only reason they and Juventus aren't top is purely down to who they are compared against in the top tier. Porto, Benfica, and Juventus are way ahead of Arsenal; they've been successful over and over in the competition. Getting into the champions league is only an achievement for Arsenal, winning the thing is the achievement for everyone else. Also, despite being a fan, I think Chelsea aren't quite there in terms of 2nd tier European side, definitely not top tier.
In terms of hierarchy, this is how I think it's structured. Not all teams are mentioned but the big ones are:
Top tier: Real Madrid, Milan, Barcelona, Ajax, Bayern Munich, Liverpool (The finest of the lot. Changed the European game in their time and have had consistent dominance in Europe, are part of the fabric of the European game)
2nd tier: Manchester United, Juventus, Benfica, Porto, Inter (Have produced all-time great sides, success on a very consistent basis. Can trouble the top tier and those below)
3rd tier: Chelsea, Dortmund, Marseille (Have won trophies, consistently through the years. Can be very dangerous and always in the mix)
4th tier: Arsenal, Shakhtar, Galatasaray, Feyenoord, PSV, PSG, Napoli (Always in the mix, sporadic bursts of success. Might have won a European trophy here and there)
5th tier: Steaua Bucharest, Roma, CSKA Moscow (teams that have had a once in a generation squad that's succeeded but hasn't done much else European wise)
This thing is the complete opposite of the topic of discussion, sorry. But squint a bit and it might mean something. Arsenal has a long way to go to reach even the 2nd tier for me.
I'm not talking about how many trophies you've won, I'm talking tiers in the sense of who's most likely to cause problems in current and next years campaign. For example, Celtic have won the CL more times than Arsenal but they are less of a threat to other teams than Arsenal are. Same with Inter and Ajax. If we''re talking legacy Chelsea wouldn't be anywhere near top.
I'm saying I think Arsenal can leap from just competing in the CL to becoming actual threats like we were 5/6 years ago. Just need to fix somethings, could be like Dortmund.
Liverpool on the top tier of European football and City not even in the fifth? Come on now.
Liverpool on the top tier of European football and City not even in the fifth? Come on now.
Id agree with the bindippers, but only in a historical sense. And City shouldnt be near the 5th tier. They are currently Blackburn Rovers. In time they should move up, but they arnt there yet.
I think u forgot to put Spurs into the top tier... 😉
...to become great again.
I've been meaning to make this thread since the Bayern match. I remember a time when every team in Europe would fear to face Arsenal, now we're just another team in the second tier of Europe, like the English equivalent of Valencia or Benfica or something. What does Arsenal need to do to become one of Europe's elite again?
I still think Arsenal can win the league this year if we can get point off City and Chelsea. However, I don't see this happening, we can't beat big teams. The only way we can win the FA Cup is if someone knocks City out for us. Liverpool aren't even that good and they can beat teams like City and Chelsea or at least put up a better fight.
Ever since United fell off there's been a power vacuum for the number 1 team in the country,we need a team to fight off these oil barons. Arsenal should be the one leaping at the opportunity, however it looks like Liverpool are better suited to that position. We have enough money to bring in 2-3 world class players every season and who wouldn't want to play for Arsenal?
So how does Arsenal become elite again? Spend 200m? Sack Wenger? Get a new medical team? Bribe the refs?
Last edited by H Sticks (Mon-3-Mar-2014 08:16:56)