Arteta10
Player Valuation: £10m
Anyone else remember the state of meltdown this place was in when the news broke after the West Brom game that Gibbo was gonna be out for (what was then) 6 weeks?
And to be honest, although we havent been beaten since then, it was sorta justified. We've only won 3 of the 8 games since then, drawing all the others and have conceded sloppy goals all over the show
However, the fact that he is returing to fitness just as we head into a crucial run of games which involves Spurs, Arsenal and City is a massive boost and gives me a bit more confidence that we can pick up a lot of points between now and the new year against teams who you would think we will be vying with for that 4th spot.
Without it being obvious, Gibson being in the side helps us defensively massively, his positional sense is unbelievable and he helps to nip opposition attacks in the bud before theyve even begun. Neville in his position is just not an able deputy, he hasnt got the legs for it and as a result ends up giving away stupid free kicks (see Fulhams first goal) or getting done for pace on the counter (see QPR's goal). I dont think its any coincidence that in the games he played in, while he was on the pitch we didnt concede a goal (he was subbed before villa and WBA scored) and since he has been out of the team we have been conceding regularly without necessarily playing badly
So overall his return to fitness is giving me a lot of confidence that we can drive on and fulfil Mr Shearers profecy of finishing 4th. Tighten up defensively, and the attacking prowess will speak for itself. Hopefully we can keep Gibbo fit and go on a run of victories to get us a bit of breathing space in 4th spot.
Get well and stay well soon Gibbo x
And to be honest, although we havent been beaten since then, it was sorta justified. We've only won 3 of the 8 games since then, drawing all the others and have conceded sloppy goals all over the show
However, the fact that he is returing to fitness just as we head into a crucial run of games which involves Spurs, Arsenal and City is a massive boost and gives me a bit more confidence that we can pick up a lot of points between now and the new year against teams who you would think we will be vying with for that 4th spot.
Without it being obvious, Gibson being in the side helps us defensively massively, his positional sense is unbelievable and he helps to nip opposition attacks in the bud before theyve even begun. Neville in his position is just not an able deputy, he hasnt got the legs for it and as a result ends up giving away stupid free kicks (see Fulhams first goal) or getting done for pace on the counter (see QPR's goal). I dont think its any coincidence that in the games he played in, while he was on the pitch we didnt concede a goal (he was subbed before villa and WBA scored) and since he has been out of the team we have been conceding regularly without necessarily playing badly
So overall his return to fitness is giving me a lot of confidence that we can drive on and fulfil Mr Shearers profecy of finishing 4th. Tighten up defensively, and the attacking prowess will speak for itself. Hopefully we can keep Gibbo fit and go on a run of victories to get us a bit of breathing space in 4th spot.
Get well and stay well soon Gibbo x
