Morning all.
Not so much occurring this morning, however Arsenal’s Participant of the Season – as voted by supporters – was revealed to be Martin Odegaard. It’s the second successive season he has received it, and I don’t assume anybody can argue that he doesn’t deserve it. He’s such an instance to the remainder of the group when it comes to how he performs, the proper mixture of intelligence, approach, dedication to his work on the pitch, and there are issues he can do with the ball that go away you breathless at occasions.
I additionally assume it’s truthful to say that if it had been Declan Rice (who completed second) or William Saliba (third), it’d be onerous to argue with that too. Each of them had excellent campaigns, and will simply have merited prime spot. There have been so many gamers acting at very excessive stage, you could possibly transcend that too. Personally, as a lot as I really like all three of these guys – and I actually, actually do – if I’d voted I’d have gone with Bukayo Saka as my alternative.
Maybe it says one thing about what we’ve got come to anticipate from him {that a} season during which he scored 20 objectives and made 14 assists didn’t see him crack the highest three. Let’s be sincere right here, these are unbelievable numbers for a 22 12 months outdated to provide in a season, and I don’t need to hear something about how objectives have been boosted by penalties, as a result of it’s not as if it’s a free objective. He nonetheless had step up, maintain his nerve, and slot that ball residence in key moments.
Bukayo Saka nonetheless can’t take a penalty with out the England miss, and the miss in opposition to West Ham final season, being talked about. It’s 0-0 at residence in opposition to Bournemouth, the third final recreation of the season, and simply earlier than half-time we get a penalty. Saka takes it, cool as you want, 1-0. 0-0 away at Brighton in early April, he breaks the impasse from the spot. Within the penalty shoot-out in opposition to Porto, bam, keeper doesn’t even get shut. A penalty away at West Ham to make it 2-0, sends the keeper the mistaken means. One within the North London derby at residence to place us 2-1 up, proper down the center as Vicario jumps out of the best way. 1-0 down at residence to Fulham in August, he makes it 1-1.
Not everybody can take penalties. Even somebody as good as Dennis Bergkamp wouldn’t do it after his miss in opposition to Man Utd in 1999, so I’m not having any downplaying of Saka’s numbers as a result of he’s good at one thing plenty of gamers don’t even have the nerve to strive. Maybe the factor is with him, our expectations of him are such that we’re in search of 9/10 performances each week, and clearly that doesn’t occur. It didn’t occur for the gamers within the prime three both, that they had their off-days, however rightly or wrongly, if Arsenal battle a bit of bit, the primary place folks look to is Saka.
His expertise, his high quality and his consistency have made him one thing of an emblem for this group, as a result of greater than anybody else during the last two/three seasons, he has been the driving drive of our on-pitch development. He now has gamers like Odegaard, Rice, Saliba and others who share a few of that burden and who’ve taken the highlight off him a bit of bit, however I keep these numbers for a participant of his age are outstanding. This was his first ever season of Champions League soccer, he had 4 objectives and 4 assists in 9 matches, and was denied an apparent penalty in opposition to Bayern which I’d have backed him to attain and which might have provided that second leg a special flavour.
So, as a lot as its value to him, he’d have been my Participant of the Season. As I stated although, Odegaard was a worthy winner too, and the most effective factor about this from an Arsenal perspective is that these guys will come again subsequent season able to do it another time, and to have that a lot high quality at our disposal is an attractive and thrilling thought.
Righto, have an ideal Saturday of us. I’m going to walk into city, and search out the optimum sandwich. I don’t know precisely what that’s but, however I do know that’s what I need to eat right now.
Have an excellent one.
