If you are like me then you will have been yearning for some football to watch almost ever since Arsenal wiped the Wembley turf with Aston Villa before lifting the FA cup trophy again. So you will probably already have been watching the women’s World Cup, the Copa America and the under 21 Euro championship.
If not, then I strongly advise you to check out the final tonight, even if the dismal performance of the England under 21s made you abandon the tournament. The final between Sweden and Portugla should be a good game, with a clash of style between the physical Scandinavians and the skilful Iberians but there is an extra reason for fans of the Gunners to tune in.
His name is William Carvalho and after the Arsenal transfer rumours began to say that Arsene Wenger was not going to sign Arturo Vidal or Morgan Schneiderlin, the attention has turned to this powerful young defensive midfielder. We have been linked with Carvalho before and the Evening Standard thinks that this summer could finally see the transfer from Sporting Lisbon to Arsenal completed.
He was a total beast as Portugal beat England in the group stages and has been one of their main men throughout, sensing danger, making tackles and setting the tone for the Portuguese team. Check him out Gooners and see what you think.
Why is this article is written as if none of us know who William Carvalho is? He’s a player we’ve all been talking about for a long time and we’re all aware of the rumours surrounding him. Whilst we’re here, why not tell us about the up and coming talent that is Leo Messi.
Leo who?
Leonardo Da Vinci. Promising multi-talent
Just Leo. He lives in the sewers with his three other friends and Master Splinter. Sometimes a guy named Casey goes and hangs out with them. A reporter named April O’Neill is a friend of his as well.
It will be an interesting match tonight,looking forward to watching carvalho play. To be honest he is my third choice for the deep midfield position, Vidal and Morgan were my first choices but it seems unlikely now.hope we manage to get carvalho before its too late.
Lol – yes, like he hasn’t been mentioned on here before.
I can’t work him out to be honest, tidy, unflashy, bit of a lump – but I can’t help but see a young YY Toure who generally can’t be bothered – probably not a compliment.
Cech it out! More Petr:
hTeeTeePee://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/20150630/56143/cech-this-team-has-such-big-potential
The kid is stil ver raw some try to convince themselves that he is like Yahya Toure .Though Toure isnt as good as it seems in Defensive mode he is way better on attacking as he score goals. if we were to go for an xtreme defensive one it should hav b Krychowiak. Vidal is ver utility player he can play b2b DM. and even as defender (when needed)
signin Vidal he wil increase Fear factor in the squad…….
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I am waiting for Arsene’s speciality as of late in the transfer windows. The Domino Effect of buy and selling of players. We will get a player of quality.
Theo Walcott new 4 year deal. Done.
thanks for the update @AlanFrank. Good direction by the club.
Great news if it’s true. Nothing on the Arsenal site though.
People should also keep in mind that he has been coming up against players younger than he is and many of whom are on the sidelines of big clubs or there youth teams. Carvalho is well developed and we can not say that about every u21 team player. The lad has competed at a higher level than allot of his opponents and/or lengthier time has challenged for trophies whilst also playing European CL football.
When he moves or indeed if he makes the leap to PL football he will be playing against physically strong men. Too hard to properly judge him playing against youth.
Just out of curiosity, did any of our fans actually watch Arsenal last season, and all of the previous seasons since Gilberto Silva left? Apart from Flamini’s fine performances, I think in the 07/08 season, we’ve been begging for a top DM for years. In Coquelin, we finally have one. He’s at a great age, many years left at the top, and he hasn’t even reached his peak yet. He’s probably saved us around £30 million, huge wages, but most importantly has no one actually seen him play? Coquelin saved our season!
Sanchez came in, played brilliant, carried the team on his back, scored lots of goals, but we still had the exact same problems as always…no balance. The performances were still poor, and more importantly, the results were bad, especially in the big games. That all changed with Coquelin in the team. We finally have a top DM, but lots of fans aren’t happy about this. They want Vidal or now Carvalho to come in. These are first choice players, which means Coquelin being regularly benched. It makes no sense! It’s like having a striker with age on his side, tons of potential, who just scored 30 goals, and the fans wanting to spend £30 million on a new striker.
Coquelin has already proved how good he is, and how important he is to the team. Yes we need more depth in the DM position, because Flamini is not good enough, and Arteta isn’t even a DM, but bringing in a big name that expects to start every game, just causes more selection problems for a manager who rarely rotates. Coquelin should play the majority of games next season, including all the big games, so maybe we just need a young DM with good potential to fill in now and again, and develop over time.
On the flip side, fans might want a potential new signing like Vidal to actually play with Coquelin. Which is great, but then how do you fit four first team central midfielders (Wilshere, Ozil, Ramsey, Santi) into one position, because Wenger will almost always have three in the centre. Another simple way of looking at it, how do you fit six first team players into three central positions? (seven and eight if you include Arteta and Rosicky, but I doubt Rosicky will hardly kick a ball next season whatever happens). Don’t get me wrong, having great squad depth is a must, but having so many first choice players that expect to start most games can only be a problem for the actual team (it means we’ll continue seeing central players out on the wings), and for our manager, because he’s not a fan rotation.
Sorry for the big post, but I just cannot understand why people think we need a first choice player in central midfield. Are Coquelin, Santi, Ozil, Wilshere, Ramsey, Rosicky, Arteta, not good enough or just not enough? Surely a top striker is our absolute priority by a country mile.
6 players for 3 positions sounds spot on in terms of competition…
How do you fit them in? The in-form player gets in the team. Or you could take your strat which is to protect the ego of some by and not challenge their place. That should work out well.
Or there is any way of getting Vidal, I would suggest getting him. Vidal is WC. He has never had a bad season. He plays his behind off. He is a great attacker and defender, if not a pure DM. So it’s not a Gamble
Carvalho is not the fnished product yet. I think £37 million is too much of a gamble. Also, Wenger just will not spend that much money on a DM anyway
That’s right coquellin Ramsey arteta and flamini Are good (well not flamini) but not good enough … Have real hopes for coquellin but 5 months of first team football aren’t sufficient proof … I would want a more defensive minded DM than Vidal ( would have taken him two yrs ago without hesitation) schneiderlin seems MU bound so maybe cavalho fits bill … He has power and passes ball well but I honestly haven’t seen enough of him …
Bellerin Gabriel kos darmian (why take naples reject?)
Carvalho wilshere
Ozil santi Sanchez
Lacazette
Power creativity and goals …and affordable
Not disagreeing with your thoughts rkw – but you and some others have said the same thing about FC – “only 5 months”, “not proven yet”, “not experienced enough”, “good but not Carling” and words to that effect, etc – I am not clear as to the best forward, surely he needs to play to get the experience, improve etc? Otherwise we are just assuming he won’t reach the required level whilst spending £25-35M on someone who may well be better but there certainly won’t be any guarantees.
If pundits are right and from the little I have seen he is a more powerful and more dominating type DM than coquellin … I think that is what wanyama adds to shampton and yaya toure to man city and matic to chelski … He would also certainly add aerial strength … U r right there are no guarantees including that coq will maintain last seasons level … But sell flamini and get rid of Diaby for sure and we have a serious upgrade on existing options … And lower wage bill … Seems like common sense to me
I’ve got Carvalho in my FIFA team. Dude’s a beast, despite being rated in the lower 70s.
Jovialities aside, I feel his price tag is somewhat bloated for the level he’s proved himself at. He has good physical attributes being 6’1 or 6’2 and a stronger lad, and has a good engine. But Krychowiak is a similar size, only a couple of years older and has proved himself at a higher level. Plus he’s a few quid cheaper.
Carvalho is a lump.
Agree with nygunner, carvalho runs and moves like a sack of potatoes, would hardly call him an athelete! James McCarthy and Eduardo vargas and strip out the dead wood.
SWEDEN!!!!!!!!
@UlrikNilsson
Bra jobbat…