By Tony Attwood
Arsenal have moved senior football analyst Ben Knapper over to the new position of Loans Manager.
Ben Knapper has been working for Arsenal with Prozone who gather sports data for Arsenal – having joined the club in 2010. It is said that he will work with director of football Raul Sanllehi and academy manager Per Mertesacker both in deciding who should go on loan and then seeing that the players are treated fairly once on loan.
This in my view can only be for the good for time and again we have seen players going out on loan for no benefit at all – just sitting on the bench or not even being picked.
Of course this won’t stop the fantasy stories circulating about transfers, as with today’s Football.London headline…
“The shirt numbers available to Suarez, Carrasco and Barella if they sign for Arsenal in January”
But it does show just how mismanaged loan spells can be and how vital it is to stay on top of what is happening.
Here’s our list…
Takuma Asano (Hannover 96)
Asano is not getting games. He started off well with Stuttgart when he first went on loan but this season has only played six times for Hanover and as a result of this has been dropped by Japan for its internationals.
Krystian Bielik (Charlton)
On 16 August 2018, he joined Charlton for the season and scored his first goal on 1 September. So far he has played 19 games for them and scored twice. In 2017 he graduated to the under 21 Poland team but has now reached that age, and has not yet played for the full Poland team.
Charlton are currently fourth in the third tier and although a little way off making the automatic promotion places look to have a good chance of making the play offs.
Calum Chambers (Fulham)
Calum has now made 14 starts for Fulham who are having a really tough time in the league, as you’ll know. His priority must be to get back to the form he had when we signed him in 2014.
Matt Macey (Plymouth)
We started the season with too many goal keepers over 21 and Matt Macey was one who lost out and got a loan transfer. He’s been with us since 2014 but not played for the first team, instead getting games with Accrington Stanley, Luton and now Plymouth – for who he has played 24 times this season. So at last he’s the regular choice.
The trouble is that Plymouth are one from the bottom of League One and have conceded 47 goals – the third worst in the league.
League 1
| Club | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD |
Pts | |
| 20 | Bristol Rovers | 26 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 25 | 29 | -4 | 27 |
| 21 | Bradford City | 26 | 8 | 3 | 15 | 31 | 40 | -9 | 27 |
| 22 | Oxford United | 26 | 6 | 8 | 12 | 31 | 41 | -10 | 26 |
| 23 | Plymouth Argyle | 26 | 6 | 6 | 14 | 31 | 47 | -16 | 24 |
| 24 | AFC Wimbledon | 26 | 6 | 4 | 16 | 20 | 37 | -17 | 22 |
Reiss Nelson (Hoffenheim, Germany)
Aged 19 Reiss became the star of our on loan players when having played three times for Arsenal moved to Germany for a year – where he has played 13 games and scored six in the league.
Counting cup games his total is now 16 games for Arsenal and 19 for Hoffenheim. However his career was interrupted when he did not return to Germany after the winter break in that country – for what were described as “family reasons”. The club are currently seventh in the German league just outside the European positions.
Kelechi Nwakali (Porto, Portugal)
After a loan spell with MVV Kelechi went to Porto, but has only played four times for their B team although this season he has played once for Nigeria.
David Ospina (Napoli, Italy)
David Ospina has played nine times for Napoli.
Chambers has been playing as a DM for Fulham rather than CB. According to Mark, my Fulham supporting friend, he has been a star since the positional change. That wasn’t the case when he started the season at CB. Something for Knapper, Emery and the coaching staff to consider when he returns in summer
my “bein” subscription in france entitles me to watching calcio games, and i have to say barella is a very impressive lad, some kind of left-footed torreira twin. their rumoured (i know …) association is very appealing to say the truth, even though i have nothing against granit, matteo, ainsley, …, of course)
as for chambers, very happy to read such good news about him, i have always liked the lad – even if he moved back again to CD, this midfield experience would benefit him a lot
I thought it was mentioned that Chambers had played as a midfielder. But i found this interview.
https://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/jul/28/arsenal-sign-calum-chambers-southampton
Wenger wanted him to be a holding midfielder.
hmmm, some arsenal loanees are looking to have been getting the chances to play at their loaned club sides while others don’t get much chance but a little to play for their loaned clubs. i think asano loan out plight is pathetic while that of nwakali is equally pathetic. for, nwakali is one player i was thinking will within a season or two of his signing for arsenal will break in into the arsenal first team squad and start playing regularly for Arsenal. by the way, what is the nature of the family problem that’s confronting reiss nelson to make him to not return to his loaned club – hoffenheim after the winter break he’s had?
Any way, it has been reported in the media that some gunners who have been on the short injury list at arsenal have returned today Wednesday for training to start training for the arsenal weekend match in the pl away to west ham.
For this reason, i am inclined to strongly believed that arsenal will beat the west hammers to the collection of all the 3 points that will be at stake in the match. but if unai emery start the correct arsenal starts and bench for the match.
thus, this bring me to my exclusive early arsenal 4-2-3-1 formation starting xi and the 7 gunners on the bench that i have as the correct starts and bench for the match which i implore emery to adopt as the correct starts and bench he should use to play the match.
starts:
leno;
bellerin mustafi sokratis kolasinac;
torreira xhaka;
niles ozil iwobi;
aubameyang.
bench:
cech jenkinson koscielny guendouzi ramsey willock lacazette.
the aboves are the correct arsenal 4-2-3-1 starting xi and the 7 gunners who should be on the bench that will beat west ham on Saturday in the pl at the london stadium. so, let emery please not make the mistake about it by having a different starts and bench for the match. save, for the unavoidable reason.