With
Arsenal two points clear atop of the Barclays Premier League, there seems to be
plenty of reasons why the team has started off the season so well. Midfielder Aaron Ramsey has inarguably been
the team’s player of the season so far (and perhaps the league’s top player). The Welshman leads the squad with 10 goals and
is second on the team with seven assists in 23 total matches. Ramsey has also managed to win Arsenal’s
Player of the Month award for five consecutive months.
German
midfielder Mesut Özil has also been outstanding and has proved his worth after
joining the club from Real Madrid for a record fee of around $68 million. Not only has Özil played well on the pitch
(five goals and nine assists in 20 total matches), but the signing of the
German playmaker has appeared to change the mindset of the club, from the
players down to the fans.
While
the midfield duo of Ramsey and Özil has undoubtedly been the best midfield
tandem in the Premier League this season, one Arsenal player seems to get lost
in the shuffle: Mathieu Flamini.
When
Flamini joined the Gunners this summer, the news broke with groans from fans
around the world. Gooners were expecting
a “big-name, big-money signing” (this was well before the Özil signing), and
while that wasn’t necessarily the case with Flamini, the 29-year-old has
brought depth, passion, and stability to this Arsenal squad.
The
Gunners have struggled with their defensive play in seasons past and since Alex
Song left for Barcelona, the team has lacked a true defensive midfielder to man
the middle of the pitch. After the first
15 Premier League matches last season Arsenal had given up 16 goals (winning
only five of these matches). Fast
forward to this season and the Gunners had only given up 11 goals (before the
Manchester City match) and won 11 of their first 15 league matches.
While
much of Arsenal’s good fortune so far this season is due to the play of Özil,
Ramsey, and the goal scoring abilities of Olivier Giroud; Mathieu Flamini
definitely deserves praise for his play as well. The Frenchman exudes confidence and tenacity
on the pitch and there is no doubt that these qualities have spread throughout
the squad since his arrival in the summer.
Written by: @ChrisMoore32
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This content was produced exclusively for ZachAFC.blogspot.com and can be reproduced with attribution, please.
